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Big 12 Football: 50 best players of all-time

By Randy Gurzi

COLUMBIA, MO - OCTOBER 1: Vince Young #10 of the Texas Longhorns in action against the Missouri Tigers at Memorial Stadium/Faurot Field on October 1, 2005 in Columbia, Missouri. Texas defeated Missouri 51-20. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
COLUMBIA, MO - OCTOBER 1: Vince Young #10 of the Texas Longhorns in action against the Missouri Tigers at Memorial Stadium/Faurot Field on October 1, 2005 in Columbia, Missouri. Texas defeated Missouri 51-20. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State Football
Dez Bryant Big 12, Oklahoma State football (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

856. . WR. Cowboys . Dez Bryant. 48. player

Big 12 Football best players of all-time: 48. Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma State football

From one former Dallas Cowboys star to another. DeMarco Murray went on to have a great NFL career with the Cowboys, as did Dez Bryant — who was a teammate of Murray’s from 2011-2014 before the running back moved on and joined the Philadelphia Eagles.

As for Bryant, he came into the NFL with much more expectations and a little bit of drama. Bryant found himself in trouble during his final season with Oklahoma State and was suspended for the remainder of the season after just three games.

The reason the league came down on him was that he wasn’t truthful in regards to a visit with former NFL player Deion Sanders. While the two had become friends, the league started to believe Sanders was trying to set Bryant up with an agency and when the young wideout wasn’t completely honest about meeting with Prime Time, they brought down the hammer.

While that clouded his collegiate career, Bryant should be remembered for his physical dominance. He was a man among boys at times on the field and showed out in 2008 when he became a consensus All-American while also earning First-Team honors in the conference. On top of that, Dez won the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Year award which was due to his 17.9 yards per punt return.

As a wideout, Bryant had 17-yards per catch and 19 touchdowns for the Cowboys. He finished with 1,480 yards with 87 receptions and was off to an even hotter start in 2009 before finding himself in hot water. Had he finished that season, he would have been ranked much higher because this kid was special.

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