16 Non-Power 5 College Football Players You Need to Know for the 2016 Season
This might shock you, but college football teams that hail from outside the power conferences also have some pretty good players. No, really, they do. Not as many as the big-name programs but still enough to where they deserve some attention as we inch closer to the 2016 season.
Three players from non-power conference FBS teams were taken in the first round of the NFL draft in May, and since 2013, there have been 11 such players taken in the opening round. That includes Central Michigan offensive tackle Eric Fisher, who was the No. 1 overall pick in 2013.
Pro scouts are aware of the talent that exists outside the power leagues, and so should you. To help you out, we've picked 16 players for the 2016 season from teams outside of the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC (as well as top independents BYU and Notre Dame) you should know about.
Matt Breida, RB, Georgia Southern
1 of 16
Georgia Southern is entering its third season of FBS play, having so far won 18 of 25 games, including going 14-2 in Sun Belt play. The Eagles have leaned on an option run game that has led the nation in rushing the past two years, gaining 363 yards per game in 2015, and Matt Breida has been the workhorse of that attack.
The 5'11”, 190-pound senior has run for 3,093 yards and 34 touchdowns in two FBS seasons, with his 1,608 yards last year ranking 10th in the country, and he did that on only 203 carries. Georgia Southern gave him 20 or more carries just three times last season, but he topped the 100-yard mark seven times. Against power-conference opponents West Virginia and Georgia, however, he was limited to a combined 136 yards on 37 carries.
At 8.27 yards per carry for his career, Breida is on pace to set the FBS all-time rushing average mark if he can maintain that pace. Army's Glenn Davis averaged 8.26 yards from 1943-46, the record for players with 300 or more carries, while Melvin Gordon's 7.79 average from 2011-14 is the record for players with 415 or more carries.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Oct. 16 at Georgia Tech, Nov. 6 at Ole Miss
Marcus Cox, RB, Appalachian State
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Had Appalachian State remained in the FCS ranks instead of moving up to FBS in 2014, Marcus Cox might be in contention for the Walter Payton Award—FCS' version of the Heisman Trophy—this fall as a senior. He was second in voting in 2013 for the Jerry Rice Award, FCS' freshman of the year honor, when he led the Southern Conference with 1,250 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns.
Cox has managed to perform better against tougher competition, though, topping the 1,400-yard mark in each of the last two seasons. Last year, he ran for 1,423 yards with nine TDs, making him the first player in school history to top 1,000 yards in three straight seasons. Of his eight 100-yard games, one came in a September loss at Clemson.
With 4,088 yards for his career, the 5'10”, 205-pound Cox needs only 717 yards to become the Mountaineers' career rushing leader.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 1 at Tennessee, Sept. 17 vs. Miami (Florida)
Corey Davis, WR, Western Michigan
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Western Michigan's rise under coach P.J. Fleck is one of the great stories of college football, with the exuberant young coach going from 1-11 in 2013 to consecutive 8-5 seasons, including the program's first-ever bowl win in 2015. Corey Davis has been along for the entire ride, and he's ready to finish on a high note.
Davis' 3,778 receiving yards for his career are the most of any active FBS player, and after catching 90 passes for 1,436 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2015, he's within reach of the all-time FBS receiving mark. Nevada's Trevor Insley had 5,005 yards from 1996-99.
The 6'3”, 213-pound Davis enters his final season having recorded seven straight 100-yard games, including 183 against Middle Tennessee in the Bahamas Bowl, and he began 2015 with a 10-catch, 154-yard effort against Michigan State. The NFL scouts have noticed, as has Bleacher Report NFL draft expert Matt Miller, who in May listed him as the fifth-best wide receiver prospect and best route-runner of the 2017 draft class.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 3 at Northwestern, Sept. 17 at Illinois
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Trey Hendrickson, DE, Florida Atlantic
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It's not just skill-position players who manage to stand out among the non-power conferences, as Trey Hendrickson has shown. His 13 sacks last season tied for second most in the country, the same as Oklahoma State's Emmanuel Ogbah and Maryland's Yannick Ngakoue.
The 6'4”, 270-pound senior got his sacks in bunches, recording two or more in four games, including in all three of Florida Atlantic's wins in 2015. He had two sacks in the Owls' overtime loss at SEC East champion Florida in November, forcing a fumble that FAU recovered in the end zone to tie the game at 14 midway through the fourth quarter.
Rated as only the No. 1,923 player in the 2013 recruiting class and the 280th best in Florida, Hendrickson has added nearly 50 pounds to his frame since high school and molded himself into a standout pass-rusher.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 10 at Miami (Florida), Sept. 17 at Kansas State
Brian Hill, RB, Wyoming
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Wyoming has been in a prolonged rut as a program, with four straight losing seasons, including a woeful 2-10 in 2015 for its most losses in 13 seasons. A 6-18 record under coach Craig Bohl, who won three consecutive FCS national championships at North Dakota State before coming to the Cowboys, has kept Brian Hill's performance from getting its rightful attention.
The 6'1”, 219-pound Hill has been the only good thing about Wyoming the last two years, rushing for 1,631 yards in 2015 after gaining 796 yards as a freshman. He didn't start getting meaningful touches until late October 2014, when he ran for 121 yards and two touchdowns against Colorado State. The following week, he had his breakthrough performance with 281 rushing yards and 106 receiving yards against Fresno State.
According to Hill's online bio, he's the only player in NCAA history with 200-plus rushing yards and 100 or more receiving yards in the same season. He hasn't been able to replicate the receiving production, but in 2015, he added four more 200-yard rushing games, and with 2,427 yards, he's 537 yards from becoming the school's career rushing leader.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 10 at Nebraska
Shawun Lurry, CB, Northern Illinois
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There are plenty of reasons why Northern Illinois has been one of the most consistently successful non-power programs in the country, winners of six consecutive Mid-American West Division titles and making a BCS bowl game after the 2012 season. One of those is managing to get the most out of its players, including ones who probably seem way too small to do anything productive.
Shawun Lurry is 5'8” and 180 pounds, but last season, he was arguably the most dangerous cornerback in FBS. He led the nation with nine interceptions, despite only starting 10 of 14 games as a sophomore, and his 24 passes defended were second-best in the nation.
And Lurry wasn't picking off schlubs, either. He had two interceptions in the Huskies' 20-13 loss at Ohio State, returned one 79 yards against Boston College, and took a pass from Bowling Green's Matt Johnson—who led FBS with 5,055 passing yards and 48 touchdowns—and brought it back 64 yards for a TD in the MAC title game.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: None
Marlon Mack, RB, South Florida
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South Florida has only had a football program since 1997 and has been at the FBS level since 2000, so there's not much history to compare. But it's still a significant achievement that Marlon Mack is poised to be the school's career rushing leader early in his junior season.
The 6'0”, 205-pound Mack ran for 1,041 yards as a true freshman and improved to 1,381 yards last season, putting him 292 yards out of first place on the Bulls' career rushing list. He nearly had that much in his collegiate debut, when he ran for 275 yards and four touchdowns in the 2014 opener against Western Carolina.
Mack also had 230 yards and two scores last November against Temple, which went on to win the American Athletic Conference's East Division. Two of his three games under 100 yards, though, came in early-season losses at Maryland and Florida State, but he'll get a chance to redeem himself against the Seminoles next month in a game that could put South Florida on the map.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 17 at Syracuse, Sept. 24 vs. Florida State
Nick Mullens, QB, Southern Mississippi
8 of 16
Southern Mississippi won 12 games in 2011 but then went into the dumps for several seasons, going winless the following year and winning just four combined games in 2013-14. But the program's turnaround began midway through 2013 when then-coach Todd Monken turned to true freshman Nick Mullens as his starting quarterback, and it's been a steady rise ever since.
Mullens threw for 1,659 yards and 11 touchdowns in those final six games, including 370 yards and five TDs in a win over UAB that ended the Golden Eagles' 23-game losing streak. In 2014, he added another 2,470 yards and 12 TDs in 10 games. His junior year was the true breakthrough, however, as Mullens set school records for passing yards (4,476) and TDs (38) as Southern Miss went 9-5 and played in the Conference USA title game.
His 8,722 career passing yards are second-most among active FBS players, trailing only Central Michigan's Cooper Rush (9,351). The 6'1”, 196-pound Mullens passed Brett Favre on the school's career passing list last year and needs 2,171 yards to become the all-time Southern Miss leader.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 3 at Kentucky, Oct. 15 at LSU
Ed Oliver, DT, Houston
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True freshmen from outside the power leagues don't usually garner much preseason hype, but Ed Oliver isn't your prototypical “Group of Five” player.
Rated as the No. 6 overall player in the 2016 recruiting class, the 6'2”, 290-pound Oliver was coveted by a slew of major programs, including LSU, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas A&M. His signing with the Cougars was a true sign that the #HTownTakeover, as coach Tom Herman has coined his program's rise, was truly happening.
"Simply put, nothing has ever happened like this in the modern recruiting era, which dates back to 2002," SB Nation's Wescott Eberts wrote in May 2015 when Oliver committed.
Since then, there's been great anticipation as to what a prospect of his ilk could mean for Houston, which was 13-1 last year and beat Florida State in the Peach Bowl and hopes to make a serious push for a playoff spot this fall.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 10 vs. Oklahoma (in NRG Stadium), Nov. 17 vs. Louisville
Donnel Pumphrey, RB, San Diego State
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Donnel Pumphrey is the active rushing leader in FBS, with his 4,272 yards ranking him 74th all-time. With a good senior year, he can flirt with becoming the sixth member of the 6,000-yard club, last accomplished by Memphis' DeAngelo Williams from 2002-05, and along the way, he'll pass some pretty notable names.
That includes the greatest player in San Diego State history, NFL Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk, who ran for 4,589 yards from 1991-93. But while Faulk played for some so-so Aztecs teams during his time, Pumphrey is part of the program's best run since the 1970s.
SDSU went 11-3 in 2015, winning its final 10 games and beating every Mountain West opponent by at least 14 points. The 5'9”, 180-pound Pumphrey was a huge part of that winning streak, recording eight of his nine 100-yard games in that span while going for 90 and 99 yards in the other two contests.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 10 vs. California
Austin Rehkow, P, Idaho
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The fact we selected a punter from Idaho says a lot about why the program—which along with New Mexico State is being booted from the Sun Belt Conference after the 2017 season—is choosing to drop down to FCS in 2018. But to be honest, Austin Rehkow is good enough to play for most power-conference teams, and he's set to go down in history as arguably the best ever at his position.
The 6'3”, 208-pound Rehkow already holds one FBS record after he averaged 47.8 yards per punt in 2013 to set the single-season record for best rate by a punter with at least 75 attempts. He was second nationally in 2014 and seventh last season, giving him a career average of 47.24.
The FBS career punting record is 46.3, set by West Virginia's Todd Sauerbrun from 1991-94. The Vandals might not win many games this season, but field position isn't something it will have to worry about much.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 10 at Washington, Sept. 17 at Washington State
Larry Rose III, RB, New Mexico State
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New Mexico State might be the worst program in FBS history, not just lately but all-time. The Aggies haven't had a winning record since 2002, with no more than four victories in any of the last 11 seasons, and their last bowl appearance came in 1960.
Yet NMSU can't be completely discounted—not when it has one of the most productive running backs in the country in Larry Rose III.
The 5'11”, 190-pound junior ran for 1,651 yards and 14 touchdowns last season after going for 1,102 yards and nine scores as a freshman. In 2015, he had seven 100-yard games, with three of those going for more than 200 yards. NMSU's three wins last year came in a row and were directly related to Rose rushing for 610 yards with six TDs in that stretch.
Rose gets two chances to show his stuff against SEC teams this fall and to redeem himself for two of his worst efforts in 2015, when he ran for 64 yards in a season-opening loss at Florida and was held to 26 yards at Ole Miss.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 17 at Kentucky, Oct. 29 at Texas A&M
Brett Rypien, QB, Boise State
13 of 16
The last name probably sounds familiar, as Brett Rypien is the nephew of former Washington State and NFL quarterback Mark Rypien. That's mostly how he garnered attention before coming to Boise State and before getting onto the field, but since the Broncos put him to work last fall, he's been quickly making a name for himself.
The 6'2”, 200-pound Rypien led the Mountain West in passing despite only playing 11 games and starting 10. He didn't play in Boise's first two games, a redshirt a distinct possibility, but when Ryan Finley went down with a season-ending injury against Idaho State, the opportunity to play presented itself. Both he and sophomore Thomas Stuart played that night, with Rypien going 8-of-9 for 126 yards to earn the start the following week at Virginia.
And all Rypien did in his first career start, on the road against a power-conference team, was throw for 321 yards and three touchdowns on 24-of-35 passing. He'd go on to finish with 3,350 yards and 20 TDs, and if not for a pair of three-interception games against Air Force and New Mexico, he might have led Boise to the Mountain West title game.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 10 vs. Washington State, Sept. 24 at Oregon State
Brent Stockstill, QB, Middle Tennessee
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It was a calculated risk when Middle Tennessee coach Rick Stockstill chose his son over incumbent Austin Grammer at quarterback for 2015—not just because of the potential for nepotism gripes but also because Stockstill was a redshirt freshman and Grammer had put together a solid effort the previous season. No one is questioning the move anymore after Stockstill had one of the best years ever by a first-year QB.
The 6'0”, 206-pound Stockstill threw for 4,005 yards and 30 touchdowns last year, completing 66.7 percent of his passes. All three stats were tops among FBS freshmen, as was his quarterback rating of 151.92.
Stockstill had seven games with at least three TD passes, but his most impressive performance may have come when he didn't throw a score. He was 22-of-42 for 174 yards with an interception in a September loss at Alabama—the only FBS starting quarterback the Crimson Tide's stout defense didn't manage to sack in 2015.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 10 at Vanderbilt, Oct. 22 at Missouri
Austin Valdez, LB, Bowling Green
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Bowling Green became an offensive juggernaut during Dino Babers' two seasons as head coach, averaging more than 42 points per game last season with the nation's leading passer (Matt Johnson) and a 1,200-yard rusher (Travis Greene). Those big numbers helped Babers land the Syracuse job in the offseason.
What Babers leaves behind is a good team but one that may skew more toward the defensive side of the ball, which means Austin Valdez takes on an even greater role after his breakthrough sophomore season.
The 6'1”, 236-pound Valdez had 144 tackles in 2015, tied for second most in the country, to go along with 11 tackles for loss and two interceptions. Seven of his games included 10 or more tackles, with 20 (nine solo) against Memphis and 13 against Tennessee.
Valdez won't be the most celebrated linebacker on the field going into Bowling Green's season opener, but with the chance to outplay Ohio State's tacklers, he could drastically improve his notoriety.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 3 at Ohio State
Greg Ward Jr., QB, Houston
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When Tom Herman was offensive coordinator at Ohio State, he was praised for the ability to take an untested player such as J.T. Barrett and turn him into a superstar. Last year with Houston, now as head coach, Herman managed to repeat that feat by getting the most out of a talented athlete who just needed some proper guidance.
The Cougars recruited Greg Ward Jr. as a quarterback, but he spent as much time in his freshman season in 2013 at wide receiver as in the backfield. He started out at wideout in 2014 as well before getting switched back to quarterback midway through the season, ending up with 2,010 passing yards along with 573 rushing yards.
It was in 2015, though, that the 5'11”, 185-pound Ward was able to hone all his skills into a complete package. This resulted in 2,828 passing yards with 17 touchdowns, as well as 1,108 yards and 21 rushing scores. He ran for two or more TDs seven times, including in the Peach Bowl against Florida State.
2016 games against power-conference opponents: Sept. 10 vs. Oklahoma (in NRG Stadium), Nov. 17 vs. Louisville
All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports, unless otherwise noted. All statistics provided by CFBStats, unless otherwise noted.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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