With a father, Frank, and brother, Ryan, excelling as not only college stars but also NFL performers, the youngest Kalil was well prepared for life at USC. [12] Questions remained around the wide receivers, who had struggled with consistency the previous season; all starters returned, with special attention focused on Arkansas transfer Damian Williams, who caught 19 passes for the Razorbacks in 2006 but sat out 2007 along with fellow Arkansas teammate Mustain. [36] All seven experts polled by Sports Illustrated picked USC to win their conference, with three forecasting them in the Championship Game with one selecting them to prevail. ", "Ohio State's Wells is the man to beat in the 2008 campaign", "USC near-unanimous choice to win Pac-10 football title", Georgia is preseason No. The accolades piled up as Peterson won the Thorpe and Bednarik awards as the nation’s top defensive back and top defensive player. However, a knee injury ended his 2011 season after just three games. By the fourth game of his career, Pryor was the starting quarterback, earning Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors en route to the first of three straight Big Ten championships. Southwest. While Tressel defended Palmer's comments as those of fan, Ohio State fans were incensed. 5. The massive offensive lineman started as a sophomore, paving the way for Dion Lewis’ 1,799-yard season in 2009. He became the first Noles defender to lead the team in tackles for three consecutive years since Marvin Jones did it in the early ’90s. 3 Trojans got off to a good start, thanks to the Virginia turnovers. He finished his career with 150 total tackles, 17 tackles for a loss and eight sacks to go with three division titles. [22], At the Pacific-10 Conference media day, the Trojans were the near-unanimous pre-season pick to win the conference. The 2008 class was as heralded as any in modern era of recruiting rankings and was highlighted by a number of potential first round picks. Jonathan Baldwin, WR, PittsburghAliquippa (Pa.) High. We have received mostly all of the data from the recruiting hotbeds and now look to expand the college football recruiting map into other areas of the United States that we have deemed "CFT Hotbeds". 11. A freak athlete, Bowers excelled at defensive end, running back and kick returner his final season in high school. Scott projected as an “athlete” because of his potential at both defensive back and wide receiver. Expectations were high for Good after he was a part-time starter as a sophomore, but he never locked down a starting spot as an upperclassman. USC topped the total number of draftees for the second consecutive season. Garnering unwarranted comparisons to Adrian Peterson, the Lone Star State runner went North to Oklahoma and never realized his potential. Meanwhile, the 2008 Ohio State team was ranked third with 1392 points but an equal number of first-place votes with 14. 16 pick in the 2013 NFL Draft. Kalil was the fourth overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, started all 16 games in front of Adrian Peterson and earned a Pro Bowl invite as a Minnesota Vikings rookie. Etienne Sabino, LB, Ohio StateNorth Miami Beach (Fla.) Dr. Krop. 17. Nick Saban rarely misses on 5-star talent, but Love will end his Tide career as an afterthought on some of the most talented teams in program history. The combination aimed to use Boeckman's prowess as a classic drop-back passer with Pryor's speed and ability to scramble for yards. In two seasons in the desert, Buckner caught 103 passes for 1,379 yards and seven scores.