Power Ranking 2010's Top 25 College Football Players In The State Of Texas
When it comes to Texas, football is king.
While the Longhorns don't seem to have gotten the memo this season, TCU has picked up the slack and Texas A&M has stepped in as the state's top Big 12 team.
But who's got the best talent of all the Texas schools?
Check out the rankings for the top 25 talents in the state of Texas this college football season.
26. Case Keenum, QB, Houston
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We give Keenum the honorary 26th spot based on his outstanding career at Houston. It likely would have resulted in him being the most prolific passer in NCAA history had his season not been cut short by a torn ACL just three games in.
Keenum passed for 10,691 yards and 88 touchdowns in 2008 and 2009 and if he'd had more than two-and-a-half games this year, his totals would have been even more staggering.
25. Brian Duncan, LB, Texas Tech
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Duncan's tackles are down from a year ago, but he's added a whole new wrinkle to his game in the pass rush.
After failing to record a sack in his first three seasons, Duncan has six sacks on the year, though they all came in the first four games of the season.
24. Wayne Daniels, DE, TCU
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Daniels has arguably been TCU's top defensive lineman this season. With the way the Horned Frogs are playing this season, that's no small feat.
With seven sacks this season, Daniels is one of the top pass rushers from Texas. He started the year with a bang, recording two sacks in TCU's 30-21 win over Oregon State and he has 27 total tackles on the year.
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23. Eddie Jones, DE, Texas
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Jones has made six starts for the Longhorns this season and the senior has made them count, leading the team in sacks.
With 46 tackles on the year, 10 tackles for loss, a forced fumble and 10 quarterback pressures, Jones has arguably been Texas' most effective defensive lineman this year.
22. Tank Carder, LB, TCU
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Carder has been the one of the anchors of TCU's top-ranked defense and he has proven to be a disruptive force in the backfield.
Of his 51 tackles this season, 17 have gone for a loss. Add in 2.5 sacks, an interception and one forced fumble and Carder has been solid for the Horned Frogs.
21. Emmanuel Acho, LB, Texas
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After starting only two games as a sophomore, Acho has settled in as Texas' starting middle linebacker this season and the junior has played well throughout the year.
He has 58 tackles on the season, including a 15-tackle effort against Oklahoma, with eight tackles for a loss, two sacks, and two forced fumbles. He's also been an underrated asset in pass coverage.
20. Jarvis Phillips, CB, Texas Tech
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After redshirting in 2009, Philips has emerged as one of the top defensive playmakers in the Big 12 this season.
He leads the conference in interceptions, he is second in the nation in interception return yards and he has returned one interception for a touchdown—good enough to tie for sixth in the nation.
19. Dustin Harris, CB, Texas A&M
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Harris is the only cornerback in the nation with more interception-return yardage than Jarvis Philips. His total is at 121 yards, including an 83-yard return against Kansas and a 38-yard return for a touchdown against Stephen F. Austin.
On the year, Harris has 28 tackles, five passes defended and three interceptions, as one of the conference's best defensive backs.
18. Phil Taylor, DT, Baylor
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Taylor is the big boy in the middle for the Bears and he has developed into one of the top defensive tackles in the nation. At 6'4" and 340 lbs, he's the ideal size for the nose tackle position and he does a great job clogging up the middle of the line.
Though Baylor's defense got embarrassed against Oklahoma State last week, Taylor has still had a solid season, with 41 tackles and a pair of sacks.
17. Bryce Beall, RB, Houston
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Beall has had to deal with added pressure this season without Case Keenum under center. He's responded well to the challenge.
Beall has only gone over 100 yards three times this season, including a season-high 195-yard, three-touchdown performance against UTEP. But he showed real guts in Houston's win over UCF on Saturday, playing well after suffering a bad knee injury the week before.
16. Ryan Tannehill, QB, Texas A&M
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Jerrod Johnson went from star quarterback to backup this season and no individual player has benefited from it more than Tannehill.
He's only seen significant action in the last three games, starting the last two and leading the Aggies to victory in all three contests. Over that stretch, Tannehill is averaging over 275 yards passing and three touchdowns.
15. Cyrus Gray, RB, Texas A&M
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After an up-and-down start to the year, Gray has been terrific the last three weeks, now that he's assumed starting running back duties for the Aggies.
He's gone over 100 yards rushing in each of his last three games, including a 122-yard game against Oklahoma last week.
14. Curtis Brown, CB, Texas
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NFL scouts have rated Brown as one of the best corners of the 2011 draft class. A starter for the last two and a half years, Brown is the type of defensive back teams avoid.
He was on the Nagurski Trophy watchlist entering the season. While he hasn't quite lived up to those expectations, Brown has registered 16 tackles, one interception, five passes defended, and he has been solid in punt-return duties, averaging nearly 15 yards per return.
13. Patrick Edwards, WR, Houston
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Edwards has been solid this season, particularly as of late. In his last four games, Edwards has 497 receiving yards and nine touchdowns—among the highest totals in the nation over the last month.
That's particularly impressive considering he had just 305 receiving yards and two touchdowns in his first five games. Just imagine how much better those totals would be if Case Keenum were still on the field.
12. Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor
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Wright was held without a touchdown for the first time in three weeks on Saturday, as Baylor fell to Oklahoma State. He and the entire Bears passing attack was relatively quiet on the night, despite the fact that they were playing from behind.
Wright has been Robert Griffin's top receiving target all season long though and ranks 18th in the nation in receiving yards with 780.
11. Taylor Potts, QB, Texas Tech
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Potts had to watch from the sidelines Saturday as Steven Sheffield got the nod as the Red Raiders starting quarterback. It was the first time this season that Potts hasn't started.
He was the difference maker in this one though, coming off the bench to throw three touchdown passes in Texas Tech's 24-17 upset over Missouri. Potts is 11th in the nation in passing yards and fourth in touchdown passes.
10. Sam Acho, DE, Texas
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Acho was expected to take the next step in his development this season. While he's been stellar, the results haven't been quite what we expected. But that can be attributed to Texas' overall lack of success this season as well.
Acho is on pace to have a career year in tackles, but his sack totals are down from a year ago. Still, he's got five sacks on the year and a couple of forced fumbles.
9. Jeff Fuller, WR, Texas A&M
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After two huge games against Kansas and Texas Tech in which he totalled 292 yards and four touchdowns, Fuller was more pedestrian against Oklahoma, as the Aggies leaned on the running game.
With 886 yards on the year, Fuller ranked 10th in the nation in receiving yards and his 11 touchdown catches are tied for fourth.
8. Ja'Gared Davis, LB, SMU
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No one in the state of Texas has had more sacks in 2010 than SMU's Ja'Gared Davis. He's only failed to bring down the quarterback in two games this season, with 10 total sacks on the year.
The sophomore is quickly developing into one of the top defenders in the nation, with 70 tackles on the year, 10 sacks and two passes defended.
7. Marcus Cannon, OT, TCU
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Cannon has been outstanding for the last three years and he has developed into one of the top offensive tackles in the nation.
After being named first-team All-MWC last season without allowing a sack, Cannon has been just as good, if not even better, this season. What's most impressive about his game is his elite athleticism for a big man.
6. Keenan Robinson, LB, Texas
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Robinson has been arguably the top defensive playermaker in the state of Texas this season. After a good year in 2009, he's been one of the few bright spots for the Longhorns in 2010.
He's posted 74 tackles, six tackles for a loss, two sacks, two interceptions, two fumble recoveries, one forced fumble and one defensive touchdown.
5. Von Miller, DE, Texas A&M
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Miller led the nation in sacks in 2009 with 17, but he's found the going tougher this season, as teams have keyed in on him and done their best to double and triple team.
As the season has wore on, Miller has begun to hit his stride. He was held without a sack through the first four games of the season, but has five in his last five games, including a pair in the Aggies huge win over Oklahoma.
4. Aaron Williams, CB, Texas
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Williams has been terrific this season, but his statistics just don't do him justice. He has 30 tackles, a sack and two forced fumbles on the year, but it's what he doesn't do that's most impressive.
Williams doesn't allow his opponent to pass the ball anywhere near him. Quarterbacks avoid him like the plague and his presence essentially cuts off a third of the field in the passing game.
3. Ed Wesley, RB, TCU
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Wesley has proven throughout the year that if you feed him the ball, he'll make things happen. In the five games he's received 15 or more carries, Wesley is averaging over 140 rushing yards.
With 988 yards, he's the 12th-leading rusher in the nation and he is ranked in the top 20 in touchdowns and yards per carry. But he is only 35th in total carries.
2. Andy Dalton, QB, TCU
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In TCU's biggest game of the season, Dalton had his biggest game. In the Frogs 47-7 win over Utah, Dalton was flawless on his way to 355 yards and three touchdowns.
He's the leader of this team on and off the field. With a couple of lower-tier opponents remaining on the schedule, he's going to lead TCU to another undefeated regular season and its second-straight BCS bowl.
1. Robert Griffin, QB, Baylor
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Griffin has been outstanding this season. While he came up short in Baylor's ugly loss to Oklahoma State, he's been the driving force behind the Bears success all year long.
Griffin is third in the nation in passing yards, tied for 13th in passing touchdowns and he is on pace to finish the regular season with nearly 4,000 yards of total offense and over 30 scores.
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