Ranking the Best Position Units in College Football Right Now
As the 2022 college football picture comes into clearer focus, it's easier than ever to identify the top teams and their strengths.
If a team is going to surge into the College Football Playoff or compete for its conference championship game, it needs to have dominant positional units. Plenty of those exist this year, led by a pair of dynamic receiving corps.
To be included here, a unit has to have at least two major contributors to victories (which prevents teams such as Ohio State and Tennessee from making the list for their quarterback play, despite the incredible contributions of Heisman Trophy contenders C.J. Stroud and Hendon Hooker).
In some cases, such as that of Alabama's outside linebackers, we know Will Anderson Jr., Dallas Turner and Co. are the nation's most talented group, but the unit finished just outside the top 10 because of a lack of consistency, despite Anderson's dominance. Of course, that could change with a huge second half of the season.
Utah's tight ends just missed the list also after Brant Kuithe's season-ending knee injury, and Iowa's secondary, Michigan's offensive and defensive lines and Cincinnati's linebackers easily could have made it too.
The factors that weighed heavily in determining the order were statistics, impact on winning, the team's strength of schedule and, to a lesser extent, star power.
10. Oklahoma State's Defensive Line
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The Oklahoma State defense would love to forget last week's 43-40 double-overtime loss to TCU in what could be a setback that costs the team a chance at the College Football Playoff. But if the 5-1 Cowboys rebound, it'll be on the strength of their defensive front.
They aren't as good as they were a year ago as a unit under current Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, but new coordinator Derek Mason still has them playing well, bolstered by a defensive front that has playmakers galore.
According to Pro Football Focus, Tyler Lacy, Brock Martin and Collin Oliver were three of the nine highest-graded edge defenders in the Big 12 entering last week's tilt against the Horned Frogs, and they didn't play badly despite giving up that many points.
The trio is a menace to quarterbacks each week, combining for nine sacks this season to go with 19 tackles for loss. That's not even counting the exceptional work of defensive tackle Sione Asi, who has added 5.5 tackles for loss and a sack, and Samuela Tuihalamaka has been a terror at times too.
It could be even better, but starting DT Brendon Evers has been out with an injury and announced Thursday he's sitting out the rest of the season to prep for the NFL draft.
Oklahoma State needs to shore up some things, but the Cowboys have the best D-line in the country, and it will carry them as far as they go.
9. Georgia's Tight Ends
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Everybody knows about Brock Bowers, and there's a reason for that.
The sophomore was a breakout superstar last year as a true freshman for the national champion Georgia Bulldogs, becoming the centerpiece for an offense that, while not always pretty, was extremely effective.
As the Bulldogs have grown this year with Stetson Bennett under center, the offense has taken on a bigger part in carrying the No. 1 Bulldogs.
Bowers' role hasn't changed. He's still the team's leading receiver in terms of yards, catching 26 passes for 393 yards and a pair of touchdowns. If Bennett needs a big completion, he looks for the California native. And by the way, Bowers has run the ball three times for 82 yards and scored on all three carries.
But the thing that gives this unit the nod over a Utah team that has Dalton Kincaid—and did have Brant Kuithe until he tore his ACL—is Darnell Washington. The 2020 5-star recruit is a huge part of the Bulldogs' offensive resurgence.
At 6'7", 270 pounds, he's a force in run blocking, an element of his game he didn't embrace early in his career that kept him from making a major impact. He is the type of talent that doesn't come around often with his combo of size and athleticism, and he is doing positive things in the passing game this year too.
Washington has 16 catches for 285 yards through seven games, and while he hasn't gotten in the end zone yet, he does a lot of the "hidden" things that don't show up on the stat sheet. These two dudes are invaluable to the nation's top-ranked team.
8. Ohio State's Offensive Line
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Entering the season, Ohio State was expected to have one of the nation's most dominant offensive lines, and the Buckeyes have not disappointed.
A lot of the headlines have perhaps centered around rival Michigan's surprise success along both lines of scrimmage (and rightfully so), but Ohio State's O-line simply has been more dominant than any other.
While the unit will have to continue that trend during a difficult second half of the season for the No. 2 Buckeyes, it's off to a great start, led by Paris Johnson Jr., who looks like he'll be the best offensive tackle prospect in the upcoming NFL draft.
Two major measuring sticks for an O-line are primarily keeping your quarterback upright and paving the way for big rushing yards.
While Michigan has a bit better rushing attack (242 yards per game to OSU's 228), the Buckeyes are averaging more yards per carry (6.0 to 5.8) and, perhaps most importantly, as much as the Buckeyes pass the ball, Stroud remains relatively unscathed.
Ohio State has allowed just four sacks, an amazing statistic considering Stroud is probably the best true passing quarterback in the country and does it a lot. Since the Wolverines have given up nine, the Buckeyes get the nod. But these two rivals will go back and forth for top honors among O-lines nationally all year.
7. Alabama's Quarterbacks
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Everybody knows how amazing Bryce Young is.
The defending Heisman Trophy winner "feels" the play and the pressure better than any signal-caller in the country, often weaving away from pursuing defenders to put himself in a position to deliver dimes on the run.
He throws the deep ball as well as anybody and can tuck it and run. The toughness he displayed in last week's 52-49 loss to Tennessee despite playing through a shoulder injury was the stuff of which legends are made.
But the Crimson Tide can't be on this list just because of Young's contributions, remember. They're also here because once Young left the Arkansas game with a shoulder injury, Jalen Milroe entered and delivered in a big way.
The backup signal-caller was brilliant in running and passing while helping the Crimson Tide pull away from the Razorbacks in a win. Then with Young unable to go in a pivotal SEC West battle against Texas A&M, Milroe led Alabama to another victory.
He doesn't have anywhere near the passing acumen of Young, and he's far from a finished product. But he's a big-time athlete who's completed 61 percent of his passes for 262 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. He's also run for 244 yards, averaging 8.4 yards per carry.
So, while Alabama's offensive attack changed under Milroe, the loss column didn't. Now that Young is back, the 6-1 Tide are looking to run the table to still have a shot at the national title.
6. UTSA's Wide Receivers
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You won't see a lot of Group of Five units on this list, but we would be remiss to leave out the UT San Antonio Roadrunners receiving corps, which has put up gaudy numbers.
It certainly helps to have a talented veteran quarterback such as Frank Harris leading the way, but he can't do it by himself. He certainly doesn't have to for coach Jeff Traylor's team, which has stockpiled enough talent to make the big boys in the Lone Star State proud.
The trio of De'Corian Clark, Zakhari Franklin and Joshua Cephas are torching everybody they play. Where others have departed for bigger, brighter opportunities at more name-brand universities, they stuck around with Harris and are having amazing senior seasons.
“They [UTSA] are probably the most talented team in our conference," Western Kentucky head coach Tyson Helton told the San Antonio Report's Stephen Whitaker this month. "They’re doing a great job, averaging 500 yards a game and picking up right where they left off last year."
Clark (44 catches, 678 yards and seven touchdowns), Franklin (49 catches, 654 yards and seven touchdowns) and Cephas (50 catches, 604 yards and two touchdowns) are all in the top 20 nationally in receiving yards, and they all make things happen with the ball.
This is against a schedule that already has featured two ranked opponents in Texas and Houston too. These guys flat-out get it done for the nation's No. 7 passing offense.
5. Illinois' Defensive Backs
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What Bret Bielema has done to resurrect the Illinois Fighting Illini football program in a two-year span is national coach of the year-type stuff.
Everybody is pointing to his incredible running game, led by Heisman Trophy candidate Chase Brown, because that is Bielema's M.O. from his days at Wisconsin.
But there aren't enough accolades going to the Illini's secondary. It has been remarkable, and the only reason the nation's best pass defense is ranked this low here is the Illini haven't exactly taken on a murderers' row of passing attacks.
The schedule has included Wyoming, Indiana, Virginia, Chattanooga, Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota. Remaining games against better passing teams Nebraska, Michigan State, Purdue and Michigan will tell the tale, but this has been a strong group so far.
Defensive coordinator Ryan Walters' unit is second nationally, allowing just 143 passing yards per game, trailing Boise State's 134. It's also tied for the top spot with 12 interceptions, and their best player, Devon Witherspoon, has just one of them.
Kendall Smith leads the way with four interceptions, Matthew Bailey and Jartavius Martin have two each and three other players have a single pick. They are deep, talented, productive and a massive reason Illinois is 6-1 and first in the Big Ten West.
4. Ole Miss' Running Backs
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Entering the season, it was easy to look at Ole Miss' roster and circle the team's running backs as a potential strong point.
While the Rebels had to replace Jerrion Ealy and Snoop Conner, coach Lane Kiffin hit the transfer portal hard and landed massive commitments from Zach Evans (TCU) and Ulysses Bentley IV (SMU).
What you probably didn't notice (unless you were an Ole Miss fan buzzing about his ability in the preseason) was 3-star incoming true freshman Quinshon Judkins. The Alabama native has taken college football by storm, leading the charge as the seventh-ranked, undefeated Rebels' top offensive playmaker.
Throw in signal-caller Jaxson Dart's running ability, and what you have is the nation's No. 3 rushing offense.
But the Judkins-Evans combo gives the Rebels a good argument for having the nation's top rushing attack. If they can continue their quality production through a grueling second half of the season that begins with this week's rivalry game against LSU, they'll prove they should be much higher in these rankings.
Judkins is the nation's top freshman runner with 720 rushing yards, a 6.0 average and 10 touchdowns on the ground. Evans, who could head to the NFL after this season and would be a high-round selection, has proved elite, too, with 605 yards, a 6.1 average and seven scores.
Bentley has been hurt for a large swath of the year, but he will contribute once healthy. This is a deep, strong group of runners Kiffin can throw at you.
3. Michigan's Running Backs
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Ole Miss has the under-the-radar guys, but the Michigan Wolverines are slightly ahead of the Rebels because of star power.
Blake Corum is a bona fide Heisman Trophy candidate, and he is the star of the show in Ann Arbor for a team that made the CFP last year and is the biggest challenger to Ohio State yet again in the Big Ten.
In last week's Top 10 clash at home against Penn State, the Wolverines torched the Nittany Lions for 418 rushing yards, led by sophomore Donovan Edwards' 16 carries for 173 yards and a pair of scores. Corum added 28 carries for 166 yards and another pair of touchdowns.
Freshman CJ Stokes threw in 22 yards in garbage time in a 41-17 beatdown.
Michigan is tied with Ole Miss and Georgia for the national lead with 24 rushing touchdowns, and while they trail the Rebels in rushing yards, the Wolverines have the best player in the bunch in Corum.
The Rebels have a difficult late-season schedule, while the Wolverines must face Michigan State, Illinois and Ohio State, so the best will prove it on the field.
The one-two punch of Corum and Edwards behind that dominant offensive line is hard to beat, though, and stats aren't everything. On one of the biggest stages of the season in the Big House last week, they stole the show. Head coach Jim Harbaugh should continue to rely on them to pull out wins and help along second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
So far, they've been up to the challenge.
2. Ohio State's Wide Receivers
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Everybody was buzzing about Jaxon Smith-Njigba before the season started, especially after he catapulted into the national spotlight with last year's bowl-record receiving performance in the Rose Bowl victory over Utah.
Then, he went and injured his hamstring in Week 1.
Even so, it hasn't hampered the Ohio State receiving corps, which is without question the nation's most talented unit. During an otherwise soft early-season schedule, the Buckeyes dispatched Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Michigan State, and a big reason for that is their electrifying receiving corps.
Quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate C.J. Stroud is making his receivers look terrific. Smith-Njigba has just four catches for 36 yards, so just imagine what this unit will be when it gets him back—maybe in time for Iowa this week.
While he has been out, Emeka Egbuka and Marvin Harrison Jr. are putting together first-team All-American type campaigns. Egbuka has 35 catches for 655 yards and has six touchdowns, and Harrison has played equal part Batman with 31 catches for 536 yards and nine scores.
Oh by the way, Julian Fleming has added 222 yards and five scores. The Buckeyes are 15th in passing offense, but they have 25 receiving touchdowns and can beat anybody on the perimeter.
1. Tennessee's Wide Receivers
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Much like the Buckeyes, Tennessee lost its alpha receiver before the meat of the season even started when Cedric Tillman—a player several think will be one of the top five receivers in next year's draft— suffered a high ankle sprain against Akron.
It hasn't mattered one bit for QB Hendon Hooker and Co.
The third-ranked Vols have the nation's No. 5 passing attack and are first in total offense and second in scoring offense, and that's against a schedule that has featured four ranked opponents in the team's first six games. By comparison, no other squad in the Top Five has played more than two ranked opponents.
Nothing has stopped Tennessee's offense, though. When Tillman went down, coach Josh Heupel inserted senior Ramel Keyton, who has 15 catches for 280 yards and a touchdown.
During last weekend's monumental upset of Alabama in which UT exorcized 15 years of demons with a 52-49 last-second win, Jalin Hyatt tied an SEC record with five receiving touchdowns. For the season, he leads the nation with 10 scoring receptions and has 33 catches for 593 yards.
USC transfer Bru McCoy has been a huge weapon, especially in big-play situations and when getting yards after the catch, amassing 22 catches for 389 yards and a pair of scores. Before he went down in his third game, Tillman had 17 grabs for 246 yards and a touchdown.
Hooker distributes the ball to weapons all over the field, and when Tillman comes back (likely for Kentucky on October 29), the Vols will have just one more star pass-catcher. This is the deepest, most productive unit in the country.
All stats courtesy of cfbstats and Sports Reference. Recruit rankings courtesy of 247Sports.
Follow Brad Shepard on Twitter, @Brad_Shepard.
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