10 College Football Players Who Could Be Headed for Sophomore Slumps
The concept of a sophomore slump is hardly a new one in college football, or college sports in general. A freshman emerges onto the scene as a talented player and is feted with accolades, attention and a higher profile. And it goes to their head. They ease up a bit, more film gets out on them and opponents adjust.
A slump happens. Maybe it isn’t their fault (a new coaching staff arrives, or the talent around them dips), but the concept remains the same, and their production falls off from the highs they reached as freshmen. Here is a group of players who could be facing sophomore slumps in 2015.
Tennessee DE Derek Barnett
1 of 10
Last August, Derek Barnett wasn’t widely known in college football circles, but that changed quickly once Tennessee started its season. The freshman defensive end had an excellent season, setting Tennessee records for sacks (10) and tackles for loss (20.5) and excelling against talented competition.
Barnett’s work ethic is excellent, and he has a great motor. However, he is coming off offseason shoulder surgery that hampered him last fall, forcing him to sit out spring practice and perhaps slow his development. SEC offensive coordinators now have a year’s worth of film to study on Barnett, allowing them to better game-plan for him. He isn’t a secret anymore, which could cause his stats to slide in 2015.
Ohio State QB J.T. Barrett
2 of 10
Remember last August, when Ohio State’s offense was thrown into chaos by Braxton Miller’s season-ending shoulder surgery? J.T. Barrett made sure you didn’t. Barrett overcame a slow start and was very impressive as the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback, throwing for 2,834 yards with 34 touchdowns against 10 interceptions and rushing for 938 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground.
Without Barrett, Ohio State would’ve had serious trouble making the College Football Playoff. But he won’t be alone in the quarterback room this summer. Miller will be back from surgery, and Cardale Jones, who led the final push to the national title after Barrett’s season-ending broken ankle in the regular-season finale, is back, too.
If Barrett gets on the field, he’ll be surrounded by plenty of talent and put up impressive stats. But getting on the field at all is no sure bet, given the quarterback competition he’ll be in this summer.
Baylor WR KD Cannon
3 of 10
When KD Cannon was good last fall, he was great. Baylor’s freshman wide receiver broke out in his second career game, catching six passes for 223 yards and two touchdowns in a rout of FCS foe Northwestern State. He finished the season on an equal high, scorching Michigan State’s secondary for eight catches, 197 yards and two touchdowns in a wild Cotton Bowl defeat.
Cannon finished with 58 receptions for 1,030 yards and eight touchdowns. But he did tend to disappear at times. He had one catch for eight yards against Texas, one reception for 10 yards against West Virginia and two catches for 17 yards against Oklahoma. He has huge potential, but he needs to be more consistent.
Baylor is also breaking in a new quarterback in junior Seth Russell. The two hooked up for six receptions and 189 yards when Russell started in place of injured Bryce Petty against Buffalo, but they’ll need to replicate that chemistry on an every-down basis this fall.
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Florida State RB Dalvin Cook
4 of 10
While Dalvin Cook struggled at first acclimating to college football, there’s little questioning that he was one of Florida State’s best players by the end of the 2014 season. After rushing for only 128 yards combined in FSU’s first five games, he had five 100-yard rushing efforts in the final nine games, including each of the last three.
He finished with 1,008 yards and eight touchdowns, averaging 5.9 yards per carry. However, 2015 will be a season of transition for Florida State, which returns just three offensive starters. Left tackle Roderick Johnson is the only returning starter, which means there could be some difficult moments early on.
With Jameis Winston gone to the NFL, a new quarterback will be running FSU’s offense, be it junior Sean Maguire or Notre Dame graduate transfer Everett Golson. There’s no doubt Cook is talented, but will he find enough holes to run behind in 2015? We’ll see.
Illinois WR Mike Dudek
5 of 10
Amid a difficult season, Mike Dudek was a point of light for Illinois in 2014. The freshman wide receiver introduced himself to college football in a big way, making 76 receptions for 1,038 yards and six touchdowns. He was expected to be one of the top returning receivers in the Big Ten, but his 2015 hit a speed bump in early April.
Dudek suffered a torn ACL during a spring workout and is expected to be out until at least midseason. Even if he is a quick healer, ACL injuries can be difficult to recover from in a short time frame. That means expectations about what Dudek can contribute to the Illinois offense in 2015 should be lowered.
Penn State WR DaeSean Hamilton
6 of 10
James Franklin’s first season at Penn State wasn’t one to remember—at least offensively. A leaky offensive line allowed 44 sacks and led to standout quarterback Christian Hackenberg’s regression, throwing 12 touchdowns against 15 interceptions.
However, receiver DaeSean Hamilton was a bright spot. He made a Big Ten-best 82 receptions for 899 yards and two touchdowns. He’ll be expected to take a step forward this fall with a year of experience under his belt, but a lot of that depends on whether the offensive line can improve.
The line returns four starters, but if it isn’t any better at protecting Hackenberg, Hamilton’s stats won’t improve and could even falter in 2015.
Miami QB Brad Kaaya
7 of 10
There’s no questioning that Brad Kaaya had a tremendous freshman season for Miami last fall. The talented passer was thrown into action as a true freshman and responded well, throwing for 3,198 yards with 26 touchdowns against 12 interceptions. He was named the ACC Rookie of the Year, and he set Miami true freshman records for passing yards and touchdowns.
There is no questioning his skills, but the Hurricanes lost a ton of talent around him. Miami returns only one starting offensive lineman in junior guard Danny Isidora, and leading receiver Phillip Dorsett, a first-round draft pick of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts, graduated. In addition, tailback Duke Johnson, Miami’s all-time leading rusher, left early for the NFL.
The Canes still have a solid group of receivers led by Stacy Coley, but the offensive line must gel quickly around Kaaya, or he could see a significant stat drop-off this fall.
Texas A&M WR Speedy Noil
8 of 10
In his freshman season at Texas A&M, Speedy Noil lived up to his nickname. The 5’11”, 185-pound wide receiver had an excellent debut, making 46 catches for 583 yards and five touchdowns. He also served as the Aggies’ No. 1 returner, making 28 kick returns for 636 yards (including a 70-yard return) and 15 punt returns for 180 yards (including a 67-yard return).
Noil should be expected to take a step forward as a sophomore, but a red flag sprung up this spring. He took a leave of absence from spring practice for reasons A&M coach Kevin Sumlin didn’t entirely elaborate on, according to Brent Zwerneman of the Houston Chronicle.
“There’s more to it than just playing football,” Sumlin said. “There are guys who mature at different times, and sometimes you have to put some things in place to make sure guys really understand what’s expected of them. And sometimes when you take football away from them and get them from that a little bit, the point is made.”
If those issues carry over to this fall, it could affect Noil’s playing time and on-field performance.
Oklahoma RB Samaje Perine
9 of 10
Last fall, Samaje Perine emerged as one of the biggest surprises of the 2014 college football season. The physical Oklahoma tailback worked his way out of a crowded backfield situation and impressed, rushing for 1,713 yards and 21 touchdowns. He set the NCAA single-game rushing record against Kansas and would figure to build on those stats this fall, right?
Maybe not. Oklahoma shook up its offensive staff following a disappointing 8-5 record, hiring East Carolina offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley to run its offense. Riley is a proponent of the pass-happy Air Raid offense, which tends to minimize the impact of the running game. Last fall, East Carolina’s leading rusher, Breon Allen, rushed 134 times for 869 yards. By comparison, Perine had 263 carries as a workhorse back.
In addition, talented tailback Joe Mixon will return to the backfield mix after a yearlong suspension connected to an assault of a female OU student. There’s no doubt about Perine’s skill, but his opportunities could be more limited in 2015.
Arizona QB Anu Solomon
10 of 10
Arizona broke through in Rich Rodriguez’s third season last fall, winning 10 games and making a Fiesta Bowl appearance. A huge reason why? Freshman quarterback Anu Solomon. Solomon won a summer quarterback derby and excelled, throwing for 3,793 yards and 28 touchdowns (both Arizona freshman records).
He is a talented passer, but there are concerns about how he’ll be protected this fall. Arizona returns just two starting offensive linemen and must replace both tackles from a year ago. The Wildcats have a talented core of skill players surrounding Solomon, but it could be hard for him to find time to connect with them if the offensive line struggles.
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