10 College Football Seniors with Most to Prove in 2015
Senior leadership is a valuable commodity in college football, especially if it comes from a team's best players.
This is a rarity, though, as most of the game's top performers leave school after their junior years to pursue an NFL career. For those who stick around, that final season is one where they get the opportunity to make one last impact while also trying to show they've got what it takes to play in the pros.
That's one of many things that some of the nation's top seniors have to prove in 2015.
Beyond pro value, there are other motivating factors that come into play. Some are trying to rebound from disappointing 2014 seasons, while others hope to lift their teams over that last hurdle and battle for a championship.
Check out what's at stake and what will drive some of college football's top seniors this fall.
Devontae Booker, RB, Utah
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Of the 84 players with eligibility remaining who declared for the NFL draft, one-sixth of them were running backs. It's often one of the most common positions to leave early, since the shelf life of ball-carriers in the pros is on the low side.
Yet Utah's Devontae Booker opted to stay in school, which was somewhat of a surprise after he had a breakthrough 2014 season in which he ran for 1,512 yards and scored 10 touchdowns after transferring from a junior college. He finished second in the Pac-12 in rushing and came just a few yards short of the school record, which John White set in 2011 with 1,519.
Had the Utes turned to Booker earlier in the season, that record would have fallen, but he averaged only 10.3 carries in Utah's first three games before getting 24 touches against Washington State. The 5'11", 203-pound Booker ran for 178 yards in that game, the first of five straight 100-yard games and seven for the season.
Booker now gets a chance to not only set records but lead Utah to a potential conference title. It also brings back quarterback Travis Wilson and most of an aggressive defense and should again be right in the mix in the South Division after going 9-4 overall and 5-4 in conference play last year.
"I am excited to see what this season has ahead for the team and me, and this should be another great year for our program," Booker said in a statement in January, per the Deseret News.
Connor Cook, QB, Michigan State
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The switch to Connor Cook at quarterback two years ago helped springboard Michigan State from a pretender to a contender. Now Cook is tasked with trying to keep the Spartans on their lofty perch in a season where a lot of new faces will be called on to contribute.
The 6'4", 218-pound Cook returns for his senior year at the helm of an MSU offense that graduated a 1,500-yard rusher, a big-play receiver and two key linemen. Yet, because of Cook's presence, the Spartans are still expected to challenge Ohio State in the Big Ten and contend for the playoffs.
Cook was a redshirt sophomore in 2013 when MSU was trying to find a way to make its offense more explosive. He saw time as a backup in the first two games, neither of which produced much in terms of offensive highlights. Then, when he started against FCS Youngstown State over senior Andrew Maxwell, the Spartans' attack took off.
MSU won the Big Ten and the Rose Bowl that year, and in 2014, Cook threw for 3,214 yards and 24 touchdowns.
"Every year he has played, he has gotten better, he's gotten smarter, and he's become more of a leader," Langford told Mike Griffith of MLive.com.
Now Cook gets one last ride to show he's still all of those things.
Brandon Doughty, QB, Western Kentucky
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Brandon Doughty looked like he was making sure he went out with a bang in his final season of college football, obliterating school passing records and decimating opposing defenses. Then he got an unexpected reprieve right after the best game of his injury-plagued career.
Less than two weeks after throwing for 491 yards and eight touchdowns in an overtime win over previously unbeaten Marshall, the Western Kentucky quarterback learned he'd been granted a sixth year of eligibility because of knee surgeries that sapped nearly all of his 2011 and 2012 seasons.
The 6'3", 210-pound Doughty has thrived under the guidance of both Bobby Petrino (who coached the Hilltoppers in 2013 before going to Louisville) and Jeff Brohm, and this past season, he led FBS with 4,830 passing yards and 49 touchdowns.
Doughty helped Western Kentucky reach a bowl last year, winning the wild and wacky Bahamas Bowl thanks to 486 yards and five TDs. Now he'll pilot the Hilltoppers offense once more. This time, the team is apt to be favored to win Conference USA and could be a candidate for the Group of Five bid to a major bowl.
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D.J. Foster, WR, Arizona State
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D.J. Foster has been a productive running back for Arizona State for three years, amassing 2,075 yards and 17 touchdowns, including 1,081 yards with nine scores in 2014.
But the 5'11", 205-pound Foster understands that he's more likely to be a receiver in the NFL than a rusher, and rather than learn to make that switch in the pros, he's using his senior year to transition into a viable slot wideout. His receiving numbers with the Sun Devils indicate he's got the potential, but now it's a matter of making that his primary responsibility.
In addition to leading ASU in rushing last year, Foster was also second on the team with 62 receptions for 688 yards and three TDs. He averaged 136.1 all-purpose yards per game and six times had more receiving yards than rushing output as ASU turned more toward freshmen Kalen Ballage and Demario Richard to run the ball.
Now Foster figures to be one of the top targets for quarterback Mike Bercovici, who takes over the starting job on a full-time basis after serving as an injury replacement for Taylor Kelly last year.
Kevin Hogan, QB, Stanford
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Kevin Hogan felt it was a better move for his pro career to remain in college for one more season. In order for it to prevent Stanford's future from getting stunted, he'll need to prove he's worth holding off on turning toward another promising quarterback waiting in the wings.
Last year, the Cardinal redshirted highly touted passer Keller Chryst so he could learn from Hogan, who threw for 2,792 yards and 19 touchdowns on 65.8 percent passing in 2014. Those numbers were a slight improvement from his sophomore year, but Stanford's overall performance dropped off from four straight 11-win seasons to an 8-5 mark.
An inconsistent offense was at the center of the Cardinal's struggles last year, but Hogan's return should prevent inexperience from being a hurdle to improvement this fall. Stanford might have been willing to take some lumps as either Chryst or Ryan Burns (who got into two games as a sophomore last year) settled into the quarterback job, but under Hogan, it will expect to rebound and once again contend for a Pac-12 title.
Cody Kessler, QB, USC
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Cody Kessler managed to put up one of the best seasons in school history last year, yet he managed to do it without the normal fanfare heaped on a USC quarterback. His decision to return for his senior season also went without much attention, at least not compared to when past Trojans passers such as Matt Barkley and Matt Leinart chose to hang around for another year.
But now Kessler has the opportunity to pilot USC into championship contention, something it hasn't had a chance to be a part of since 2008.
Kessler threw for 3,826 yards and 39 touchdowns in 2014, tying Barkley's school TD record and coming just shy of Carson Palmer's single-season yardage mark of 3,942. He did set school records for completion percentage (69.7) and passer rating (167.06), and he helped the Trojans win 10 games.
The recent success of past senior quarterbacks at USC has been mixed, with Barkley going 7-6 in that final year while Mark Sanchez was 12-1 and led the Trojans to the Rose Bowl.
Shawn Oakman, DE, Baylor
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There's no denying that Shawn Oakman is one of the most physically imposing players in college football. Just take a few moments to look at one of the many Oakman-themed memes circulating around the Internet, and you'll understand.
The 6'9", 280-pound defensive end is more than just a scary sight looming over the edge of the line—something he aims to prove during a senior year where he'll be honing his skills for the next level while also trying to improve Baylor's unflattering reputation on defense.
Oakman had 11 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss last year, though he felt his "body of work wasn't good enough" to warrant turning pro, per Bill Nichols of the Dallas Morning News. Despite being projected as a first-round pick, Oakman came back in an effort to give Baylor a shot at a piece of a third straight Big 12 title and another crack at the playoffs.
With such an efficient and explosive offense that seems to fare well no matter which parts are being used, it will be up to the Bears defense to get the job done in 2015. Much of that burden will rest on Oakman's sizable shoulders.
Dak Prescott, QB, Mississippi State
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As Mississippi State raced out to a 9-0 record and leaped to No. 1 in the nation, quarterback Dak Prescott saw his chances of being a Heisman Trophy winner rise at the same rate. In mid-October, he was atop the Heisman rankings of NFL.com's Mike Huguenin, who cited Prescott's running ability as what set him apart from other candidates.
Prescott ended up finishing a distant eighth in the Heisman voting, while the Bulldogs tailed off down the stretch and lost three of four. Both the individual and team shortcomings sparked him to spurn the NFL and instead use his last college season as a chance to boost his own draft stock while also trying to keep MSU among the top teams in the country.
"With defenses keyed on him, he'll have a chance to expand his game," wrote of The Clarion-Ledger. "He'll have the opportunity to improve on his inventory of throws and continue his football education."
Prescott ranked sixth in FBS last year with 341.2 yards per game while being responsible for 42 touchdowns, including 14 rushing scores. But in SEC play, Prescott threw 13 TDs and had eight interceptions, compared to 14 passing TDs and three picks in nonconference games and bowls.
Sterling Shepard, WR, Oklahoma
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So much went wrong for Oklahoma's offense last season that it's hard to pin too much of the struggles on one person, situation or scenario. But the injury that knocked top receiver Sterling Shepard out of nearly all of the Sooners' final six games had as big an impact as anything.
Shepard suffered a groin injury on a 46-yard reception on the opening play of Oklahoma's win over Iowa State on Nov. 1, which caused him to miss the next game and resulted in zero receptions over the Sooners' final three regular-season contests. He had one catch for 13 yards in the Russell Athletic Bowl loss to Clemson.
Prior to his injury, the 5'10", 195-pound Shepard was having a monster year. He'd recorded five 100-yard receiving games and tied the single-game school record with 15 receptions in a loss to Kansas State. He finished the year with 51 receptions for 970 yards and five touchdowns, all of which were team highs despite his limited action over the last two months.
Oklahoma has overhauled its offensive coaching staff, bringing in East Carolina's Lincoln Riley to implement the Air Raid. This should give Shepard a great opportunity to prove he can still put up big numbers and can be the Sooners' No. 1 receiver again.
D'haquille Williams, WR, Auburn
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Rated by 247Sports as the No. 1 junior college player in 2014, D'haquille Williams came to Auburn with the expectation of being the big-play wide receiver who would give the Tigers the one offensive weapon they'd been lacking during their run to the national title game.
Williams showed flashes of being this go-to guy, with four 100-yard receiving games and plenty of highlight-reel catches, but the 6'2", 216-pound receiver lacked consistency and discipline. A knee injury also sidelined him for two games. After returning with 121 yards in the Iron Bowl, he missed Auburn's Outback Bowl because of a suspension due to a team rules violation.
Despite the hiccups, Williams still led Auburn with 45 receptions and five touchdowns, while his 730 yards were second to Sammie Coates' 741. He's very likely to blow those numbers out of the water in 2015, as the Tigers plan to open up their offense more behind pass-first quarterback Jeremy Johnson.
Assuming he can live up to the expectations, Williams could end up being the first wide receiver taken in the 2016 draft, according to Joel Erickson of AL.com.
"ESPN's Mel Kiper says Williams will open the 2015 season as the top prospect at a highly-coveted position," Erickson wrote.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
