SEC Football history: 50 best players of all time

41. Best SEC football players of all time: DeVonta Smith, Alabama football

Very few players can say they had the kind of season that DeVonta Smith had during the COVID-ridden 2020 college football season. Coming off a season that saw him earn All-SEC honors, Smith was supposed to be the No. 2 option at wideout behind Jaylen Waddle, but an injury to Waddle early cleared the way for one of the more impressive seasons of any wideout in SEC history.

If there was an award to be won, and one he was eligible to receive in 2020, then Smith brought that hardware home. He had an unprecedented run, hauling in the Maxwell Award, the Walter Camp Award, the Biletnikoff Award, and the Paul Hornung Award. Also, he won the Heisman Trophy, the most prestigious award of them all.

By winning the Heisman, Smith was the first wide receiver to take home the award since 1991, the year that Michigan star Desmond Howard won it. The fourth wideout in history to win the Heisman, Smith capped off his career with a monster showing in the CFP National Championship Game, hauling in 12 passes for over 200 yards in a little over a half of play.

His effort gave him one final award, as he was named the Offensive MVP of the national title game, helping Alabama to a blowout victory over Ohio State. A presumed top-5 pick this April, Smith finished his last two seasons with over 3,000 yards and 37 touchdowns, becoming one of the best wideouts this conference has ever seen.