Offense
Quarterback (1)
Pat White, West Virginia (97 overall rating, 2009)
Honorable mention: Terrelle Pryor, Ohio State; Tim Tebow, Florida; Vince Young, Texas
There were higher-rated quarterbacks. Tebow was the only two-time 99-rating player (2010 and 2011), while USC’s Matt Leinart and Stanford’s Andrew Luck also reached the 99 mark. But true die-hard NCAA heads know no quarterback was feared like White, who teamed with running back Steve Slaton to form the best 1-2 running-game punch in college football history.
Few were tougher to stop running the read option, and White’s legs (and users’ propensity to cheaply use them) made him an obvious choice. Young (96 rating) was a similar player, but White’s skills in the game could produce fights among friends. Defensive schemes hadn’t evolved yet, and few teams had linebackers fast enough to contain quarterbacks with speed ratings in the 90s. Cheapness aside, it was a forecast of what was to come in the sport.
Running backs (2)
Reggie Bush, USC (97, 2006)
Darren McFadden, Arkansas (99, 2008)
Honorable mention: Chris “Beanie” Wells, Ohio State; Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma
Bush in the open field was terrifying. Power backs like Wells and Peterson could emerge from piles and break open games, but getting running backs the ball in space has always been a cornerstone of NCAA football, and no player could turn a completion in the flats into points more often — or more spectacularly — on the game than Bush.
McFadden was a good balance of speed and power, and he headlined a freakish backfield with
future Madden cover boy Peyton Hillis(93 rating) and running mate Felix Jones (89).
