Big 12 Football: 50 best players of all-time
By Randy Gurzi
Grant Wistrom. 15. player. 810. . DT. Cornhuskers
Big 12 Football best players of all-time: 15. Grant Wistrom, DT, Nebraska football
Once again, we have a player who was able to win a title as a freshman as we come to Grant Wistrom. In 1994, he was a part of that roster and had 36 tackles and 4.5 sacks. He continued to excel from there, adding 44 tackles with 15 going for a loss.
That was before Wistrom and the Cornhuskers played in the Big 12 but once they moved to the conference in 1996, he was at his best. He made the All-American Team and First-Team Big 12 in 1996 and 1997 and was also a two-time Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.
John E. Hoover from SI.com’s All Sooners page was also high on the play from Wistrom in his Big 12 player rankings and pointed out that Wistrom was the first Big 12 player inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame.
"“Wistrom was two-time consensus All-America, was the Big 12’s inaugural defensive player of the year in 1996, and in 1997 won the Vince Lombardi Award as the nation’s best college lineman. He was also a two-time first-team Academic All-American. In 2009, Wistrom became the first Big 12 player inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame (there are currently only five).” — Hoover, SI All Sooners"
Most impressively, Wistrom was the leader of a defensive line that helped the Cornhuskers win three National Championships in 1994, 1995, and 1997. He was later drafted sixth overall in the 1998 NFL Draft and he was able to win a Super Bowl with the St. Luis Rams. This guy simply won wherever he went.