Herschel Sims: 10 Reasons Oklahoma State Should Look Forward To Watching Him

The Oklahoma State Cowboys are having a fabulous season, but the addition of blue chip running back prospect, Herschel Sims, could put them over the top next year and into the short list of national championship contenders.

Part of the reason for their success—they're ranked No. 9 in the latest BCS rankings—has been the service of Kendall Hunter. He's carried the ball 248 times for 1461 yards and 16 touchdowns. 

There's just one sight problem. He's going to be going pro next year.

Enter Herschel Sims, the replacement for Hunter. Sims may have the potential to be even better.

Read on to find out just why Oklahoma State fans should be so excited. 

The Name

Shakespeare once wrote, "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

While a name may not be the most important thing, it can still help to increase a person's likability. So sorry Shakespeare, I'm going to have to disagree with you here. 

Herschel Sims just sounds like a football name. You can just hear announcers screaming it as he turns the corner and burst up the field, leaving defenders in his wake. 

Maybe it's the appeal to football stars of the past.

His last name invokes memories of Phil Simms, Chris Simms, and to a lesser extent, Matt Simms.

His first name can't help but make us think of the exploits of Herschel Walker. 

What's in a name? A whole lot. 

High School Rushing Stats

Sims has been prominently featured on Abilene High School's varsity football team for two years now. He did play during his sophomore year, but we're going to focus on the last two.

The 2009-2010 season was definitely his better campaign because injuries managed to hamper him during the following one.

During his Junior year, Sims carried the ball 264 times. His season high in carries was 35 in a big win over Bowie. 

He averaged an amazing 8.85 yards per carry that year, resulting in 2336 rushing yards. On top of that he scored 31 rushing touchdowns. Those touchdowns came in all but two of his games and he even scored four rushing touchdowns in three separate games.

Sims was only able to play in six games during his senior season, but he made it count when he was on the field. 

The running back ended up carrying the ball 83 times for 535 yards, an average of 6.45 yards per carry. On those 83 rushes, he was still able to find the end zone five times. 

High School Receiving Stats

As if the success Sims had on the ground wasn't enough, he got it done in the passing game too. 

Once again, the junior campaign was much better. 

He caught 25 passes for 429 yards and five touchdowns. Incredibly, that gave him a touchdown on average every five times he caught the ball. Also, his yards per catch average was a staggering 17.16 yards. 

The numbers dropped off a bit during his senior year due to injury. 

Sims caught 11 passes for 119 yards and a single touchdown. But even with his limited opportunities for success, he still capitalized on those he had. The running back managed to average over 10 yards per catch once again. 

High School Special Teams Success

Abilene High School wasn't content to just have Sims on the field while they were on offense. They wanted him to return kicks as well.

In the 2009-2010 season, Sims lined up deep and was kicked to 13 times. He took those 13 kickoffs for an average of 42.15 yards, amassing 548 yards. You'd think the opponents would have started to kick away from him.

Two of those 13 returns also went for touchdowns. 

During the next year, Sims only received one opportunity to return a kick. He made it count when he went 99 yards for the score, the longest play of his high school career. 

High School Team Success

Herschel Sims is also used to playing for a winning team. The pressure of high expectations aren't going to get to him.

During his junior year, his team went 16-0 and won the Division II State Championship. They went 9-3 the next year, partially because Sims was forced to sit on the sideline for much of the season. 

Oklahoma State is going to have a very good team next year. They'll be under the bright lights and national scrutiny for many of their games as they try to justify their inevitably lofty rankings. 

The big stage isn't going to scare this kid off. He'll continue to play well. 

Recruiting Rankings

It's not the most important thing in the world, but recruiting rankings do matter. They're also a great justification for getting excited about a player. 

Two of the premier recruiting databases are both quite excited about Sims. 

Yahoo! Sports has Sims as a four-star prospect. They list him as the 52nd best player in the country, the eighth best prospect from Texas, and the second best all-purpose running back in the entire nation.

Scout.com is even higher on Sims.

That site has Sims as the seventh best running back, justifying his five-star ranking. 

Skills

You know by now that Sims is an all-purpose threat. He can run, receive, play special teams and probably do many other things well. But how does he do it?

Sims is only 5'10" and 190 pounds, but he's strong for his size. He can take a hit due to his muscularity and compactness. 

His 4.43 40-yard dash may not show that he has blazing speed, but he can change directions as quick as anyone in the country. 

Sims is considered a big-play back and has the ability to break off a long play at any time. He's virtually impossible to bring down in the open field due to his elusiveness and ability to break tackles. 

Work Ethic

During his junior year, Abilene High School head coach Steve Warren had the following to say about his star running back, "There’s a lot of talented football players, but he works hard. I’ve seen in high school football a lot of kids will rely on their talent but he’s mastered the work ethic.”

It seems as though everyone has had glowing things to say about him. 

The running back himself has also said, "I want to go to college and make a name for myself. I want to be a great person, as well. I know a lot of people, they go to the pros and you hardly hear of them after that back in their hometown. I just want to be that person that doesn’t forget where you come from just because you made it.”

The kid knows the right things to say and makes them sound convincing. All accounts show that he's a very hard worker with passion for the game.

He's only going to want to get better. 

LaDainian Tomlinson

Yahoo! Sports: "He can change directions on a dime, is hard to see when he hits the line of scrimmage, and is an excellent pass receiver out of the backfield. Sims is like a pinball bouncing off defenders as he gains maximum speed on the way to the end zone. His game is a lot like fellow Texan LaDainian Tomlinson."

Scout.com: "He will remind many people of LaDainian Tomlinson, because he has great hands, so he is also able to make some big plays in the passing game."

ESPN: "On Sundays, Sims enjoys watching Texas natives Adrian Peterson and LaDainian Tomlinson tote the rock. He patterns himself after the two greats."

Herschel Sims: "I also like watching LaDainian Tomlinson. He runs hard but knows when to go down at the same time. There are certain points in the game when you have to get the pads down and get a first down, and they do that."

It's never a bad thing when you see comparisons to one of the all time greats. 

No Stranger To National Attention

Sims is widely known for his prowess on the football field, but he's also been featured off of it. 

He was the star of an MTV Show, World of Jenks, and of course, said nothing but the right things about the experience. 

The stage wasn't too big for him and he said it was a dream come true to be on television. 

Oklahoma State shouldn't worry at all that their new running back will shy away from the spotlight. 

They should be excited about watching him in it.