College Football's 9 Most Clutch Performers
Every player wants it and every team needs it—the ability to come through in the clutch.
College football games are often boiled down to a handful of crucial plays when the pressure is at its highest. Some players fold in these situations, while others thrive and become heroes for their respective schools.
Here are nine of college football's most clutch performers who will be back for the 2016 season, from the quarterbacks who will put the teams on their backs to the defensive stars who come up with clutch plays to preserve victories.
These selections were based on a number of factors, including number of game-winning plays in their career and overall statistical output in pressure situations such as fourth quarters and tie games. While some of the best clutch performers from 2015 are now off to the NFL, there are still some who have already made a name for themselves as those who thrive in tense spots.
Have any more suggestions for the most clutch players of college football heading into the 2016 season? Shout them out in the comments below.
Arkansas WR Drew Morgan
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Drew Morgan was clearly Brandon Allen's No. 1 target in Arkansas' rejuvenated passing attack last season. He had twice as many receptions as the second-best wide receiver on the team, and he was the only one to grab double-digit touchdowns.
What worked out even better for the Razorbacks is that Morgan played some of his best ball when the game was at its tightest. Six of his 10 touchdowns in 2015 came when the score was tied, which tied him for the most overall in that situation with all-around scoring machine Corey Coleman from Baylor.
Morgan scored two of his touchdowns after regulation in a four-overtime thriller against Auburn, including a 25-yard catch-and-run that served as the game-winning points. Two weeks later, he caught a career-high nine passes for 122 yards and three touchdowns—including another game-winner—in a wild 53-52 overtime victory over Ole Miss.
Morgan will undoubtedly be the No. 1 target again for Arkansas in 2016, just with another starting quarterback. The Razorbacks will take comfort in knowing that whenever the margins are narrow, they can sling it out to Morgan for a big play in the clutch.
BYU QB Tanner Mangum
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Tanner Mangum only needed the first two games of his college football career to prove he was clutch. In that time span, he went from backup few outside of Provo knew to a household name in college football.
In Week 1, Mangum came off the bench for the injured Taysom Hill early in the fourth quarter and down by four on the road to Nebraska. He led the Cougars on a long field-goal drive, converting a fourth down in the process. Two drives later, he took BYU 76 yards in 40 seconds with a 42-yard game-winning heave to Mitch Mathews as time expired.
The next week, in his first career start, he would throw for more than 300 yards and score a go-ahead, 35-yard touchdown bomb to Mitchell Juergens with under a minute left against Boise State. The Broncos would throw a pick-six to the Cougars on the ensuing drive, sealing an incredible 35-24 win for BYU.
But that's not all. Mangum would also lead BYU to a wild victory against ECU a few weeks later after falling behind 14-0 early and blowing a 38-21 lead in the fourth quarter. His final line: 24-of-33 passing for 331 yards and three touchdowns. That's clutch.
Clemson LB Ben Boulware
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Deshaun Watson or Wayne Gallman would be excellent choices here from Clemson, but let's go off the beaten path a bit. In addition to Watson, one of the Tigers' most clutch performers will be back on the other side of the ball in 2016—linebacker Ben Boulware.
Whenever Clemson needed a big stop in a big game, Boulware was seemingly right there. He tied a season high in tackles (10) against Notre Dame, but one of his biggest plays that night didn't show up in the stat sheet. As Bill Bender of Sporting News noted, Boulware took out the lead blocker on the Irish's late two-point conversion attempt, and the Tigers made the stop for a 24-22 win.
Boulware came up big again a few weeks later against Florida State, when he forced a late fumble from Travis Rudolph that sealed a 23-13 victory over the Seminoles. In the fourth quarter of the Orange Bowl playoff semifinal, Boulware slammed the door on Oklahoma with an incredible one-handed interception just outside of Clemson's end zone.
The linebacker will once again be a leader for the Clemson defense in the 2016 season, and if he can keep making clutch plays like that in big games, the Tigers will be in great hands for another possible run to the national title game.
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Florida State RB Dalvin Cook
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In just two seasons, Florida State's Dalvin Cook has not only proven himself to be one of the best running backs in college football but one of the most clutch performers on the entire field.
As a freshman, Cook came up big in a tough road win over Louisville, busting runs of 40 and 38 yards—the latter being a crucial touchdown—and catching a handful of key passes from Jameis Winston. He was the difference-maker in a 24-19 win later that season against rival Florida, and he was the ACC title game MVP with 31 carries and 177 yards in a 37-35 victory.
Last year, Cook picked up right where he left off, this time as the clear-cut No. 1 option for the Seminoles. Against Miami, he scored a game-winning 26-yard touchdown with a little more than three minutes remaining. In tied games in 2015, he was electric, averaging an absurd 11.86 yards per carry and scoring seven touchdowns, which was tied for the most in the FBS.
Cook is a touchdown threat every time he touches the football, and he has proven he can turn it on when his Seminoles need it the most. He won't just rack up impressive overall statistics—he'll do it at the perfect time.
Iowa QB C.J. Beathard
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In order to make an undefeated run through the regular season to the Big Ten title game, the Iowa Hawkeyes needed several players to step up in huge situations. On offense, that go-to leader was quarterback C.J. Beathard.
Although he stats didn't necessarily reflect a star quarterback, Beathard had a way of coming up with big plays in the clutch for Iowa. He led Iowa on game-winning drives against Iowa State and Pittsburgh, scored the only touchdown of a 10-6 game against Wisconsin and pulled off a memorable touchdown run against Illinois.
"One thing quarterbacks have to have is confidence, and you can see him playing with a very high level of that," Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook said of Beathard, per Brian Bennett of ESPN.com. "In big-time moments, when they need him, he just has that level of confidence you want in a quarterback."
In fourth quarters alone last season, Beathard completed 70 percent of his passes for 706 yards, six touchdowns and zero interceptions. He might not be the most famous quarterback in the Big Ten, but Beathard deserves more than his fair share of praise for his clutch ability.
Miami CB Corn Elder
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Corn Elder's most clutch moment of the 2015 season shouldn't have stood as a legal play. However controversial it may have been, Elder's 87-yard kick return as time expired to beat Duke is still a great example of not giving up when it seems like the odds of winning are microscopic.
"When I was running to the end zone at the end, my legs were giving out and I was like, 'Just stay up and make it to the end zone,'" Elder told Susan Miller Degnan of the Miami Herald.
But that wasn't the first time Elder came up with the game-winning play for Miami last season. Earlier in the year, against Nebraska, Elder prevented a full-on meltdown by the Hurricanes defense by breaking up four passes in the contest and picking off a pass in overtime.
With his ability to make game-changing plays on defense and in special teams, the athletic Elder will be relied on as a key player for new head coach Mark Richt and defensive coordinator Manny Diaz in 2016. No matter what happens beforehand in a game, Elder has shown he can come through in the clutch for the Hurricanes.
Michigan State RB LJ Scott
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As a freshman last year, Michigan State running back LJ Scott became a Spartan legend with one of the most clutch plays of the season. Down by four with 33 seconds left with a Big Ten title and a spot in the College Football Playoff on the line, Scott's second effort sent Michigan State to the final four.
"Going back and watching the play, he probably shouldn't have gotten in," Michigan State offensive lineman Jack Conklin told Dan Wolken of USA Today. "For a freshman running the ball like that, that's nuts. He really became a man on that play. He didn't look like a freshman out there."
But that wasn't the only time Michigan State turned to Scott in tense situations last season. He scored six touchdowns in the fourth quarter for the Spartans, more than half of his total on the year. He had four multi-score games last season, and all of those Michigan State wins were decided by seven points or less.
Scott has already developed a reputation as Michigan State's go-to weapon in the clutch, which will be even more important in 2016 as the Spartans look to replace the bulk of their passing attack. He can improve overall as a rusher over the next couple of seasons, but Scott is already flashing that end-game skill that any coach wants from his running back.
Notre Dame QB DeShone Kizer
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Like Tanner Mangum, DeShone Kizer came off the bench and immediately showed he could make huge plays in the clutch last season. After coming in for the injured Malik Zaire against Virginia, Kizer converted a huge fourth down with his feet and tossed a 39-yard, game-winning touchdown pass to Will Fuller with just seconds left on the clock.
With Zaire out for the rest of the season, Kizer became the No. 1 quarterback for the Fighting Irish, leading them to close victories over Georgia Tech, USC, Temple and Boston College. Even in narrow losses to Clemson and Stanford, Kizer showed a knack for keeping the game alive with late touchdowns and massive conversions.
"Even in defeat, DeShone Kizer played the type of clutch football that should have Irish fans very excited about the future," Keith Arnold of NBC Sports wrote after Notre Dame's 38-36 loss to Stanford. "With the game on the line, Kizer delivered a 15-play, 88-yard touchdown drive. It was the latest example of Kizer playing his best when the game demanded it."
Kizer is currently in a tight offseason quarterback battle with former starter Zaire. But this fall, when the Fighting Irish need a quarterback who will thrive under pressure, they know they can have full confidence in their impressive former third-stringer.
Washington State WR Gabe Marks
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Mike Leach's Air Raid attack at Washington State thrives on spreading the ball around to a good number of receivers. But when the Cougars needed big plays last season, quarterback Luke Falk set his sights on Gabe Marks more often than not.
In the fourth quarter last season, Marks had the third-most first-down catches in college football, the second-most touchdowns and the fourth-most yardage. In a 37-34 win over Rutgers in Week 2, he had a season-high 14 catches for 146 yards and a touchdown. He had eight catches for 111 yards and two scores a few weeks later in a double-overtime win against Oregon.
Marks scored four touchdowns in a 45-42 victory over Arizona, and he had one of the biggest plays of the year when he caught a 21-yard touchdown pass with three seconds left to knock off UCLA—one of his hometown teams, as Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports noted.
The star receiver for the Cougars is coming back in 2016, and his coolness in the clutch will be a tremendous asset for Washington State as it looks to build on its nine-win campaign. Marks is one of the toughest receivers in the country to slow down, especially when the game is on the line.
All statistics courtesy of CFBStats.com unless otherwise noted.
Justin Ferguson is a National College Football Analyst at Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @JFergusonBR.
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