10 College Football Teams Who Will Play the Most Freshmen in 2014
Freshmen, your time is coming. In fact, it's probably already here.
More and more true freshmen are playing right away in college football as schools are hungry to get that talent onto the field as soon as possible. Many of the nation's top recruits end up enrolling in school early as a way of expediting their development and improve the chance to play immediately, and coaches are more than willing to give the new players their chance to shine.
How prevalent has true freshman play become in the game? It wasn't hard for 247Sports to put together a True Freshman All-American Team, even finding enough standouts to list a second team.
It's almost a given that every one of the nation's 128 FBS teams will suit up and send out at least one true freshman during the 2014 season, while some may become overly reliant onto young and untested players.
Here's our look at the 10 schools who are apt to play the most frosh this fall.
Alabama Crimson Tide
1 of 10
You'd think a program as established and high-performing as Alabama wouldn't need to resort to playing guys fresh out of high school in order to maintain success. And you're right. It's that the Crimson Tide want to play true freshmen.
Alabama's 2014 signing class, rated No. 1 overall by 247Sports, might be one of the best groups of recruits ever assembled. And because of this, many of these guys are expected to see time in 2014. It's why they signed with 'Bama, and past history shows Nick Saban has given time to first-year players who are worthy.
The 2014 class includes six 5-star recruits, two of whom are already in school and will be part of spring practice. Five of the Tide's six 5-star players from 2013 saw action last season, and expect similar contributions from the top recruits this fall.
Top impact true freshmen: CB Tony Brown, LB Rashaan Evans, DE Da'Shawn Hand, CB Marlon Humphrey, S Laurence Jones, OT Cameron Robinson
Kentucky Wildcats
2 of 10
How, exactly, did Mark Stoops manage to put together a top-25 recruiting class following a 2-10 season? This could be one of the world's great mysteries, along with the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot, but at least we know this one is true.
Though being No. 22 overall in the 2014 class still only gets you 10th-best in the SEC, it's still a big deal for a program that hasn't been good for a long time. And with the accolades of such a strong recruiting haul comes instant (and lofty) expectations, so look for a number of the Wildcats' incoming stars to get on the field early in 2014.
Quarterback Drew Barker is already in school, and will make a serious push to move past existing passers Jalen Whitlow and Maxwell Smith, neither of whom were particularly impressive last season. And on the defensive side, beefy Matt Elam could be the ideal stopgap on the line.
Top impact true freshmen: QB Drew Barker, DT Matt Elam
LSU Tigers
3 of 10
With LSU going through its annual exodus of talent to the NFL (mostly of the early departure variety), plenty of voids are left to be filled in the Tigers' lineup. And while there is depth at many positions in terms of existing players on the roster, the incoming crop is stacked with studs.
Remember these names, folks: Leonard Fournette and Malachi Dupre. They could both be All-Americans as freshmen, starting as soon as the Aug. 30 opener against Wisconsin in Houston. Heck, Fournette (the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2014 class) has so much hype attached to him, anything less than a big season would seem like a disappointment.
Top impact true freshmen: S Jamal Adams, WR Malachi Dupre, RB Leonard Fournette, LB Clifton Garrett
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Nevada Wolfpack
4 of 10
Nevada had one of its worst seasons in recent memory, going 4-8 in 2013 to end a long streak of bowl appearances. It wasn't the kind of year Brian Polian had hoped for in his first season replacing legendary Wolfpack coach Chris Ault, and he's made it known he expects big improvement this fall.
And that's likely to come from playing a lot of new players, according to the Reno Journal-Gazette's Dan Hinxman, who reports that Polian said he expects many of the 22 freshmen who signed with the Wolfpack this month to play right away. Six such true freshman saw action in 2013, and the number could be much higher this year.
Top impact true freshmen: WR Drew Celis, DE Patrick Choudja, DE Korey Rush, OL Chad Specht
Penn State Nittany Lions
5 of 10
In analyzing Penn State's 2014 recruiting class, Bleacher Report's Tim Tolley indicated the depth acquired makes it so the offense of the future is in place for the next few years.
But considering the Nittany Lions coach, James Franklin, has already gone all-in with his new gig and appears determined to get the program past its NCAA sanctions as quickly as possible, don't look for this to be a slow process. Franklin doesn't want to take his time, which could mean getting a lot of freshmen on the field in 2014.
Similar to how Bill O'Brien went right to true freshman Christian Hackenberg at quarterback last year, look for Franklin to dive into his bevy of receiver prospects to find the next Allen Robinson and get those guys on the field immediately.
Top impact true freshmen: WR Saeed Blacknall, S Koa Farmer, WR Chris Godwin, WR De'Andre Thompkins
South Florida Bulls
6 of 10
Willie Taggart didn't start to get things going at Western Kentucky until his second season, going from 2-10 in 2010 to 7-5 a year later.
He's hoping for a similar boost at South Florida in his second season after the Bulls went 2-10 in 2013, and it's likely such an improvement will come from the performance of his first full recruiting class.
Only a few of the guys he brought in during his first season got onto the field, with many of the more promising guys getting redshirted. That won't be the same this time around, as Taggart and his staff were able to identify immediate needs throughout the 2013 season, and addressed those with a class that includes plenty of playmakers on offense.
Top impact true freshmen: ATH Jimmy Bayes, WR Ryeshene Bronson, QB Quinton Flowers
Tennessee Volunteers
7 of 10
Tennessee signed the largest recruiting class of the 2014 slate, bringing in 32 players, with a whopping of them already enrolled and doing offseason workouts before national signing day even occurred. To think a good number of those won't get onto the field is foolish.
The Volunteers went back to their home roots, picking up nine of the top 11 players from within the state, and with such lofty expectations at a school that should have no trouble selling its allotment of tickets for a football game inside a racetrack, it's unlikely coach Butch Jones will redshirt most of these recruits.
Top impact true freshmen: RB Jalen Hurd, WR Josh Malone, WR Von Pearson
Texas A&M Aggies
8 of 10
The post-Johnny Manziel era for Texas A&M and coach Kevin Sumlin could be decidedly inexperienced in terms of who is leading the Aggies on the field in 2014. In fact, it's almost a guarantee because of the lack of battle-tested standouts still on the roster.
But fear not, that's what the nation's No. 5 recruiting class was lined up to provide: Reinforcements.
The passing tandem of Kyle Allen to Speedy Noil could be one of the most electric in the nation, assuming both play, which is very likely. It would almost be a mirror opposite of Manziel and Mike Evans, with the quarterback being the big guy and the receiver being small in stature. And Myles Garrett, a stud of a defender, might be just what A&M's defense needs to stop looking so bad.
Top impact true freshmen: QB Kyle Allen, DE Myles Garrett, WR Speedy Noil
USC Trojans
9 of 10
USC is nearing the end of its NCAA sanctions and scholarship restrictions, with the 2014 class that just signed, serving as the last of those with restrictions. The Trojans are still thin in terms of overall available bodies, thanks to early NFL departures and injuries, which makes it very likely that several key recruits from this class are going to be on the field in the fall.
It's how it was in 2013, with the likes of safeties Su'a Cravens and Leon McQuay and running backs Justin Davis and Ty Isaac all seeing significant playing time.
Top impact true freshmen: CB Adoree' Jackson, OL Damien Mama, WR John Smith
Virginia Cavaliers
10 of 10
With a 2-10 record still fresh in fans' (and the athletic director's) minds, Virginia coach Mike London doesn't have much time to slowly rebuild the program. It needs to get better right away.
Enter Quin Blanding and Andrew Brown, arguably the best recruits the school has signed in a long time.
The fact that the Cavaliers were able to secure two 5-star players in Blanding and Brown was nothing short of amazing, especially since both committed long before this past woeful season even started and their commitments never wavered. Each should make a splash right away, helping a defense that gave up far too many big plays in 2013.
An offensive standout that should be on the field immediately is Jamil Kamara, a 6'2" receiver who will make a great target.
Top impact true freshmen: S Quin Blanding, DT Andrew Brown, WR Jamil Kamara
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