Power Ranking College Football's Top 10 Lockdown Safeties

When a quarterback lines up under center, his first check is the defensive line and the big men that want to rip his head off every chance they get.

His second check is the secondary and who's standing back at the safety position, because he wants to know if it's anyone he has to stay away from.

The best safeties in college football will make even the best quarterbacks think twice about where they want to throw the football, and even make them think twice about throwing at all.

The best of them know where the quarterbacks want to go and they shut that part of their game down.

So who are the best 10 safeties in college football that create the biggest problems for quarterbacks?

That's exactly the question we're going to answer.

No. 10 - Trevin Wade (Arizona)

Not a name that's well known outside the Pac-10 but I promise you there are a few quarterbacks that will try to avoid Arizona's Trevin Wade.

Wade finished with five interceptions through 13 games for the Wildcats in 2009, including one being returned for a touchdown against Iowa.

He had two picks against Northern Arizona and one each against in-state rival Arizona State and Oregon State.

No. 9 - Rashard Hall (Clemson)

The first year safety for the Clemson Tigers, Rashard Hall picked up six interceptions his freshman year.

He had four of those six interceptions in four consecutive weeks against Florida State, Coastal Carolina, Miami, and Wake Forest. He also picked up interceptions against South Carolina and Boston College.

No. 8 - Mana Silva (Hawai'i)

Junior safety Mana Silva picked up six interceptions in 13 games for the Warriors of Hawaii last season.

He had two picks against Washington State and one against UNLV, then had three consecutive weeks with at least one interception against Utah State, New Mexico State, and San Jose State.

No. 7 - Deunta Williams (North Carolina)

North Carolina got a break when Duenta Williams, along with two other players, decided to pass on the NFL Draft this year and return for their senior seasons.

Williams had six interceptions through 13 games in 2009, including two or more interceptions in a game twice, including three picks against Boston College.

If you're the quarterback of Boston College and Williams has picked you off twice already, don't you think you would want to STOP throwing it in his direction? Just a thought.

No. 6 - Tyler Sash (Iowa)

Tyler Sash, a sophomore last season for the Iowa Hawkeyes, returns for his junior season to build upon the success he had in 2009.

Sash had six interceptions for 203 return yards and one touchdown last season.

He picked off rival Iowa State three times in just the second game of the season. His other three came against Arizona, Arkansas State, and Indiana. Against the Hoosiers, Sash got his first return for a touchdown on an 85-yard interception return.

No. 5 - Johnthan Banks (Mississippi State)

The freshman phenom at Mississippi State, Johnthan Banks, had one heck of a first season for the Bulldogs.

Banks had four interceptions in 12 games and all four he got in back-to-back weeks.

He picked off Middle Tennessee State twice and then got his other two the following week against Florida, returning both for touchdowns.

No. 4 - Brian Lainhart (Kent State)

I know you didn't expect to see a player from the MAC on this list, but Brian Lainhart from Kent State deserves to be mentioned among the best safeties in college football.

Lainhart had seven interceptions through 12 games in 2009, recording at least one interception in each of his first four games against Coastal Carolina, Boston College, Iowa State, and Miami of Ohio.

His other three came toward the end of the season against Ohio University, Temple, and Buffalo.

No. 3 - Mark Barron (Alabama)

The sophomore safety for Alabama had a great second season for the eventual BCS National Champions.

Barron finished with seven interceptions and one touchdown, which came on a 77-yard return against South Carolina, in 14 games for the Crimson Tide.

His other six interceptions came against Florida International and SEC conference foes Kentucky, Tennessee, two against Mississippi State, and Auburn.

No. 2 - DeAndre McDaniel (Clemson)

Yes I know there are two Clemson players on this list but you're just going to have to deal with that fact.

DeAndre Williams will return for his senior season after his junior season saw him land eight interceptions through 14 games in 2009, including one return for a touchdown.

Twice Williams had at least two interceptions against ACC foes Georgia Tech and Miami. One of those against Miami was returned for a touchdown.

His other four interceptions came against Middle Tennessee State, Boston College, Wake Forest, and Florida State.

No. 1 - Rahim Moore (UCLA)

Was there anyone better than UCLA's Rahim Moore in 2009? You can look at Earl Thomas' numbers and see he returned two of his eight interceptions for touchdowns and had more interception return yards than Moore, but Moore seemed the bigger thorn in a quarterback's side.

Moore grabbed 10 interceptions in 13 games for UCLA, including three games with two or more interceptions. He grabbed three against San Diego State, two against Tennessee, and two against Arizona.

His other three came against Washington, Washington State, and Temple.