Predicting College Football's Most Clutch Performers in 2022

Having clutch players on your team is key for any successful college football program. Players who step up and make big plays in critical moments can win or lose games. 

Identifying which players in college football are clutch is difficult. But we'll go off some of the biggest plays and moments from last season to predict who will be the most clutch in 2022.  

Alabama QB Bryce Young

Michael Ainsworth/Associated Press

Yes, the Crimson Tide fell short of winning the national title last year, but Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young showed a lot of clutch moments during the season. On the year, he threw for 4,872 yards, 47 touchdowns and just seven interceptions.

One of his more unforgettable games came against Auburn. Alabama trailed 10-0 for the majority of the game, but Bama's offense came alive in the fourth quarter.

Alabama cut the Auburn lead to just seven after making a 30-yard field goal with 8:44 left. Young and the Tide's offense got the ball back on their own 3-yard line with 1:32 left. Young rushed for 12 yards and completed four passes for 85 yards on the drive, including a 28-yard touchdown pass to Ja'Corey Brooks on 3rd-and-10. The Tide's extra point sent the game into overtime.

This game ended up going to four overtimes. Young threw a touchdown pass in the first overtime period and found John Metchie III for both of Alabama's 2-point conversions in the third and fourth OT. The last one gave Bama the win.

Young's other clutch performance came against Georgia in the SEC Championship. In the second quarter alone, Young threw for 248 yards, and scored three touchdowns to give Bama a 24-17 lead.

On the day, he threw for 421 yards—270 more yards than UGA had allowed per game all season. His performance cemented Alabama's spot in the College Football Playoff and likely won him the Heisman Trophy a week later.

Ohio State WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Jay LaPrete/Associated Press

Buckeye receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba had a breakout season last year. The sophomore finished with 1,606 yards and nine touchdowns, the former of which ranked third nationally.  

Smith-Njigba put up those big numbers while sharing reps with potential 2022 NFL first-rounders in Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave. His best game of the regular season came against a 26-17 win over Nebraska when he recorded 15 receptions for 240 yards and a touchdown.

But Smith-Njigba's most clutch performance came in the Rose Bowl against Utah. Wilson and Olave both sat out of this game, and Smith-Njigba rose to the occasion. The receiver set an Ohio State postseason record with 347 receiving yards, averaging 23.1 yards per reception. He caught three touchdowns, including OSU's last touchdown of the fourth quarter. 

Ohio State will return 70 percent of its offense from last season, per ESPN's S&P+ returning production rankings, including Heisman finalist C.J. Stroud. However, Smith-Njigba should be the unquestioned alpha receiver with Wilson and Olave gone, and that—paired with his huge performance in the Rose Bowl—should lead to a lot of big moments next season. 

Oklahoma State QB Spencer Sanders

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

Spencer Sanders was a big reason Oklahoma State finished 12-2 last season. He threw for 2,831 yards, 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions and rushed for another 664 yards and six touchdowns. 

Sanders' best game of the regular season came against Kansas State. Sanders threw for 344 yards, averaging 10.1 yards per attempt, and two touchdowns. He rushed for another 18 yards and a touchdown on the day, as well. 

One of his most clutch performances came against Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. Oklahoma State trailed 28-7 at the end of the second quarter. But Sanders quickly put together a four-play, 75-yard scoring drive capped off by a nine-yard touchdown pass to make it 28-14 at halftime. 

Sanders lit up Notre Dame's defense in the second half, throwing two touchdown passes in the third quarter to tie the game up at 28. He led the Cowboys to three more field goals to give Oklahoma State a 37-35 comeback victory. Sanders set a new Fiesta Bowl record with 496 total yards of offense, and the 21-point comeback win was the largest in school history. 

Georgia DB Kelee Ringo

Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images

Kelee Ringo saw a lot of playing time as a redshirt freshman in 2021—he started in the Dawgs' last 12 games. On the season, he had 34 total tackles and eight pass breakups, the latter of which was second on the team. 

Ringo's best game of the regular season came against then-No. 18 Kentucky. Ringo finished with five solo tackles, a sack and seven total tackles. 

But Ringo's most clutch moment came in the national championship against Alabama. Georgia led 26-18 with 3:27 left in the game, and the Tide had a chance to put together a game-tying drive. With 1:14 to go, Bama QB Bryce Young led the Tide down to Georgia's 44-yard line. But on 3rd-and-10, Ringo intercepted a Young pass attempt and returned it 79 yards for a touchdown. The score sealed Georgia's first national title in 41 years. 

"When I got the interception, I knew there was much more time left on the clock, and if I did end up scoring, we'd have to get back on defense and keep going," Ringo said of the play via Dawg Nation. "I feel like I had seen enough green, and I feel like I could get in the end zone and close it out."

Ringo's clutch interception will go down as one of the best plays in Georgia football history.

Auburn QB Zach Calzada

Derick Hingle/Associated Press

Auburn will have a new addition to its quarterback room in 2022 in Texas A&M transfer Zach Calzada. In 2021, Calzada finished the year with 2,185 yards, 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions. 

But Calzada will be remembered for his impressive performance against then-No. 1 Alabama. 

Although TAMU led 24-10 at halftime, this game had a wild finish. With five minutes left in the fourth, Alabama took a 38-31 lead—its first lead since the first quarter. But Calzada responded by putting together a 65-yard touchdown drive that tied the game at 38 with three minutes to go. 

Calzada subsequently went into the injury tent after taking a big shot on his touchdown pass to Ainias Smith. Following a Bama three-and-out, Calzada came out of the tent and went back on the field. He drove the Aggies offense down to Alabama's 30 to set up a game-winning field goal to complete the thrilling upset.

"We had two straight drives that we scored," TAMU head coach Jimbo Fisher told reporters after the game. "To get down 38‑31, to be behind after being up like that, and to respond back, and Zach stood in there and made throws. He got hit in the mouth, but our guys made plays."

Calzada finished the game with 285 passing yards, three touchdowns and just one interception. If he can win the starting job at Auburn, Calzada will have a chance to beat Alabama twice with two different teams.

USC Quarterback Caleb Williams

Eric Gay/Associated Press

Despite starting in just seven games, Caleb Williams posted 1,912 yards, 21 touchdowns and four interceptions through the air and another 435 yards and six touchdowns on the ground last season for Oklahoma.

Williams has since transferred to USC, following his head coach Lincoln Riley out west. But the QB will best be remembered for his performance against Texas last season.

Coming off the bench for a struggling Spencer Rattler, Williams led a furious OU comeback. Williams led his team to a field goal before halftime, but OU still trailed 38-20 entering the break.

Williams had an incredible second half, though.

The QB threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to receiver Marvin Mims with 1:02 left in the third quarter to make it 41-30 Texas heading into the fourth, where he added four scoring drives, including a 52-yard bomb to Mims that tied the game at 41 with 7:25 left.

Following a fumbled kickoff return by Texas recovered by OU, Sooners RB Kennedy Brooks had an 18-yard touchdown run to give Oklahoma a 48-41 lead. Although Texas tied it up again late, Brooks broke free for a 33-yard touchdown to give Oklahoma an unforgettable 55-48 victory.

It was Williams, though, who put the team in a position to win and helped reignite the offense. He finished with 212 passing yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions and another 88 yards and a touchdown on the ground, too.

USC fans certainly hope Williams can come up just as big for the Trojans next season.

NC State QB Devin Leary

Karl B DeBlaker/Associated Press

Wolfpack quarterback Devin Leary was eligible for the 2022 NFL draft, but the signal-caller will return to NC State as a redshirt junior.

Leary had the best season of his career in 2021, throwing for 3,433 yards, 35 touchdowns—a new school record—and just five interceptions. Some of his most clutch performances came in an upset against Clemson and a win over UNC.

NC State played Clemson in Week 4. The Tigers entered as the ninth-ranked team in the country. Despite losing to Georgia in Week 1, Clemson's College Football Playoff hopes were still alive, but Leary and the Wolfpack made sure to end those completely.

Leary threw for 238 yards and four touchdowns in NC State's 27-21 double-overtime victory. Two of his touchdown passes came in overtime, and he completed 72.7 percent of his passes in the victory.

Following Leary's 22-yard touchdown pass in the second overtime, the Wolfpack defense stopped Clemson's scoring attempt to seal the 27-21 win. The victory snapped an eight-year losing streak to Clemson.

Leary showed off some late-game heroics later in the season against UNC, as well. With 2:22 left, UNC made a 50-yard field goal to take a 31-20 lead. But on NC State's ensuing possession, Leary hit Emeka Emezie for a 64-yard touchdown bomb to pull within two.

NC State then recovered an onside kick to get the ball back at its own 46. Leary led yet another scoring drive capped off with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Emezie. The Wolfpack's two-point conversion failed, but NC State picked off UNC in the end zone on the final drive to seal the 34-30 victory.