I was watchin' SC and McShay said Tebow was the best ever that he had seen. Others say Vince Young.

For me this starts and ends with Charles Woodson.

No one was more dominate ever at his position. He made the entire UM secondary so much better then they were, and in college, he cut the field in half.

Plus, when you needed a big play, that was all #2.

So for my money, its CDub.

What about for you?

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I hate to say it but I will agree on Woodson.

Tebow is pretty damn good though.

In my college football fandom, I'd probably go with Roy Williams, Adrian Peterson, Vince Young. I'll wait and see on Bradford and Tebow.

Vince Young and Marcus Dupree.

A lot of you guys have probably never heard of Dupree, but he was a 233' guy who could run over you or run by you. He also returned punts. Watch the run at 1:50, it is just plain sick.

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Reggie Bush. Bar none.

Cecil Collins. Even out of football on a regular basis, with hardly any college experience, and out of shape he made an NFL roster as a rookie and was on pace to start for them. (Granted for a NFL team with no RBs.) That is the kind of raw talent Cecil Collins had. Before he was injured for the season, Cecil as a true freshman for LSU was getting 200 yards a game in the SEC. If he was halfway normal he would have been unreal.

Barry Sanders.

I gotta agree with Reggie Bush.

If Lavar Arrington would have been more discipline he would have been one of the best linebackers ever.

Reggie Bush couldn't carry Barry Sanders' jock strap.

Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas might have been two of the greatest college players ever, and they were teammates.

He doesn't belong on this list, because these guys are truly great. But as a UCLA fan, it's tough to beat Cade McNown as a JR and SR. He was just phenomenal.

Him totally taking a crapper in the pros was a huge disappointment for me.

ESPN.com - Page2 - Best individual college football seasons (http://espn.go.com/page2/s/list/collegefootball/seasons.html)

That is the year that began it all. Purely legendary.

Bush was good but wouldn't make my top 10 list. I don't think he was even the best player on his team.

I think I would go with Tebow. He is unreal.

See I dont even think Woodson should've won the Heisman that year. The crop that year was weak.

I guess I will go with Bo Jackson.

Honorable mention to Payton Manning.

See I dont even think Woodson should've won the Heisman that year. The crop that year was weak.

No one threw Woodsons way and he still had 8 INT. He literally was never targeted. Teams gameplanned against him on offense too, and he was only out a handful of plays every week. If you didn't know where he was you were done

I love Reggie Bush, but I wouldn't put him in my top 5. If you were asking who was the most explosive, then he would be in my top 3, but he wasn't consistent enough to be top 5 for best overall players. Not sure who I'd pick as the top, but I think Tebow is in the discussion and so is Barry Sanders.

Tough... Bo Jackson came to mind first..

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Hmm.. I was going to say Bo Jackson.. but I think the best ever college football player I remember seeing in person was Herschel Walker... I won't ever admit having rooted for the Bulldogs ever in my life as that would be an unforgivable sin.... but watching Walker play was pretty special.

Granted I don't go to college football games in person as much these days however..

Define best.

Adrian Peterson.

How would you rate Michael Vick and Randy Moss?

I saw an Ohio State game where Keith Byars ran for a couple of TDs, caught one and threw for one. Easily the most dominant performance I've seen live.

The Michael Vick championship game was the greatest performance I've seen on TV.

Overall it's tough not to go with Tebow right now. He won't make it in the pros, but he's unlike anything I've ever seen.

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Barry Sanders, Marshall Faulk, Orlando Pace, and Dwight Freeney are the names that come to mind for me.

OJ Simpson. He was the very first college star I saw and he had made such an impression as an 8 yr old that it had stayed with me all of these years (and one of the reasons I've been a Trojans fan for 40 years). Really.

OJ Simpson. He was the very first college star I saw and he had made such an impression as an 8 yr old that it had stayed with me all of these years (and one of the reasons I've been a Trojans fan for 40 years). Really.

I thought for sure Bucc was going to go with Jim Thorpe.... ;)

Thank you for starting this thread DeTox. It got me looking up old Sanders highlights and remembering just how much I used to love watching him play. He did things that seem physically impossible, almost seeming to make a 90 degree cut without even slowing down. His feet were in constant motion and he seemed to see the entire field at all times. Where there was no hole he made it through, when it looked like the play was about to be over out of the pile he came and usually streaking into the end zone.

If I recall he never had great 40 times, not bad ones by no stretch of the imagination, but on the field he seemed to be moving twice as fast as everyone.

SAMMY TRANKS

I saw LaDanian Tomlinson run all over my Miners a couple of times. Definitely the best player I've ever seen in person...

In person? Jovon Bouknight. Not a pro prospect by any means, but the kid did more with nothing at wideout (given the QB throwing to him) than any other young player I've seen at his level. Maybe someday he can be a coach. They brought him back as a GA, but who knows if he'll decide to go the coaching route for real. I'd love to see it, if he does.

The Michael Vick championship game was the greatest performance I've seen on TV.

I agree. I had not really seen much of Vick until that game and he was astoundingly good. Every play seemed like it was 1 vs 11. He single handedly kept Virginia Tech in the game until the middle of the 3rd quarter or so when he just ran out of gas.

Cade

Vick was certainly a spectacular athlete, but it seems to me his weaknesses as a player were evident even in college.

I don't remember seeing Barry Sanders in college, although that video clip is something.

Ricky Williams was probably the best college RB I ever saw, although maybe Ron Dayne.

Personally seen would be probably Woodson. Tough to go against that... he looked slow, but that's the same way that Vince Young looked slow:the game just changed around him.

All time it's tough to go against Barry, but Tom Harmon should get at least honorable mention.

Earl "The Pearl" Campbell when I saw him play about 4 times when I was a kid back in the late 70s.
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Since 1995 the only person that made me think "man I want to watch that game just to see him play" was Randy Moss.

Woodson is a great nomination, and even though I think Jamar Fletcher might have been as good just on a slightly worse team, that INT vs. MSU is still probably the most amazing single play I've ever seen. I think me and my friends spent the next 3 hours trying to recreate it and still mention it to this day. The only other defensive players coming to mind were all U Miami weirdly - Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Sean Taylor.

Although statistically (and because his team was better) Vince Young's Rose Bowl puts it at #1 for single-game performance, I agree Vick vs. FSU was better, but that might just be fond memories. I wish I could find tape of that and not just highlights.

Some WR's have to be thrown in there - Moss first, Warrick, Fitzgerald and Charles Rogers, plus my unsung favorite Derrick Mayes of 1995-era ND. Michael Crabtree is approaching this level if he sticks around.

The two best I've seen in person at the 1-AA level are Armanti Edwards from App St and RJ Cobbs from UMass - he might have only bounced around practice squads, but he was A10 freshman of the year at RB, then started at CB, WR, PR and KR his JR/SR years.

If I was forced to pick one though, I'm going with Tommie Frazier. Him running the option was absolute perfection.

Just kidding, the correct answer is Michael Bishop. Too bad he had the lowest wonderlic score of any QB ever.

In person? Garrett Wolfe. He ran for 200+ yards practically every game I went to.

This will sound insane to most...he had no supporting talent but if he played in Florida's system, people would question whether Tebow even measured up to him...

Antwan Randle El

Vince Young

I really cant say Barry Sanders is the best I have seen because I was around 7 or 8 when he played. I can barely remember what i ate for dinner last night, let alone compare someone who played when I was 8 to today.

I was young, but it's gotta be Herschel.

In person - Jim McMahon

On TV Bo Jackson or Reggie Bush

This will sound insane to most...he had no supporting talent but if he played in Florida's system, people would question whether Tebow even measured up to him...

Antwan Randle El

Agreed. If he had had a talented team around him, the sky was the limit.

For me, Herschel Walker was the name that came to mind first. But several more mentions here that would be on my list -- Barry Sanders, Orlando Pace, Charles Woodson, Reggie Bush, and Marcus Dupree.

I also like the "honorable mention" list for this sort of thing... Cecil Collins? Awesome.

Anyone here remember Cornelius Bennett at Alabama? He was a monster college LB, not as flashy as Brian Bosworth (also a monster) but probably more sound at the position. It's tough to weight positions like that against guys who touch the ball 20+ times a game, but if you could do so, he might actually get my vote here, on further reflection... but would be a lock for my all-time team.

Reggie Bush, Tim Tebow, Vince Young

Hmm.. I was going to say Bo Jackson.. but I think the best ever college football player I remember seeing in person was Herschel Walker... I won't ever admit having rooted for the Bulldogs ever in my life as that would be an unforgivable sin.... but watching Walker play was pretty special.

Granted I don't go to college football games in person as much these days however..

I was thinking about this more. Many people are listing fairly recent players, many of which were outstanding college players. Something about the game now, these players are great, but everyone seems faster/stronger and they just don't stand out in my mind as well.

Something about Herschel Walker or Bo Jackson when I watched them play.. they were so much better then anyone else on the field it was like a man playing with boys. Perhaps it is just a case of me remembering them better then they really were, but I do not get that same feeling watching any college players these days. The average player has not caught up to the college elite, but they definitely have closed the gap greatly in my mind.

Darren McFadden

Honorables (esp. when you reword to best performances)
Tim Couch (believe it or not. I was on the sideline for his game in LR in 98 and man he was just in the zone and shredding our defense)
Matt Jones

Never got to see many of the biggest names, so that will have to do (for instance, I'm sure if I saw Bo or Herschel they would be up there, but I did not). I did get to see Vince Young but he sucked in the game I saw.

Roy Williams at OU was pretty insane, but a lot of it was his highlights were so good, I don't think it told the whole story. The fact he couldn't cover just never was exposed in college vs inferior talent, but man was he awesome at what he did

I can't go into the wayback machine like some guys so I have to think about more recent ones.

The Michael Vick championship game was the greatest performance I've seen on TV.

Overall it's tough not to go with Tebow right now. He won't make it in the pros, but he's unlike anything I've ever seen.

I agree. I had not really seen much of Vick until that game and he was astoundingly good. Every play seemed like it was 1 vs 11. He single handedly kept Virginia Tech in the game until the middle of the 3rd quarter or so when he just ran out of gas.

Amen on Vick and that game.

I just don't get the Tebow love, tho- I heard Todd McShay say that and almost fell over in my chair. Then again, the other person he listed was VY so I think he has the memory of an elephant.

Ricky Williams was probably the best college RB I ever saw, although maybe Ron Dayne.

I can't believe it took so long to get a Ricky Williams mention. I really thought coming out of the draft that he was going to be that once-in-a-generation back.

SI

Randy Moss was incredible to watch in college.

Steve Emtman was a beast as well.

Michael Vick, Peter Warrick, and Adrian Peterson.

Chuck Long. Man he was a great college QB.

Chuck Long. Man he was a great college QB.

And he could throw the ball pretty far...

And he could throw the ball pretty far...

lol, but don't quit your day job ;)

lol, but don't quit your day job ;)

You realize I've been waiting to use that joke for like 15 years.

Steve Emtman. He dominated the line of scrimmage like no other player I've watched at the college level, though of course I saw almost all of Emtman's games and very few or none of other great DT's in college, so it's a biased view.

You realize I've been waiting to use that joke for like 15 years.

Did it feel good to finally get the chance?

Vince Young.

An absolute man among boys. In the biggest game of his career in college he put up 200 yards rushing, 267 yards passing and 3 TD's, against the #1 team in the country.

First three guys that popped into my mind were herschel walker, bo jackson, and barry sanders.

a couple of intriguing guys were Rocket Ishmail[sp?] and Tommy Frazier.

a couple guys i remember being pretty dominant were junior seau, zach weigert, a miami offensive tackle whose name escapes me, reggie white,

Some really compelling choices. I want to just say that, if the question was "Most Amazing Single Game Performance by a College Player (Non-Fluke Subcategory)", I'd without question go with VY against the Trojans. I don't think I'd ever watched a texas game with him at the helm to that point, and I was mesmerized watching that game.

"Most Amazing Single Play by a College Player (Non-Fluke Subcategory)"? Tommy Frazier's 75-yd TD run against my Gators. Watching it live, I almost threw up. But afterward as the pain began to subside I look back almost fondly at the really incredible team that beat Florida that day, and the spectacular effort of Frazier, all game long, but especially that play.

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The Rocket. Stat wise he probably wasn't that great but a threat to take it to the house every time he touched the ball. I haven't watched college muvh the last 15 years tho.

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I thought of him as well...for me, he was the perfect QB for that system.

Pretty cool topic. In terms of who I've seen live, I'd have to with:

Keyshawn Johnson- I went to a Stanford/USC game at the Rose Bowl, and Keyshawn made an incredible catch in traffic to give the Trojans the game winning score.

Marques Tuiasasopo- I went to a game at Stanford Stadium when Tui was a senior, I believe (this was the game where Curtis Williams was paralyzed). It was horrible weather, and my friend and I left in the third quarter, with Stanford down a couple scores. By the time I got back home, and turned on the radio, Stanford was somehow winning with a little over a minute left. I couldn't believe it. Then, Tuiasasopo took Washington something like 75 yards in something like 4 plays, and they (he) took the victory.

I'll list the best guys I've seen on TV tomorrow.

Steve Emtman

Marques Tuiasasopo- I went to a game at Stanford Stadium when Tui was a senior, I believe (this was the game where Curtis Williams was paralyzed). It was horrible weather, and my friend and I left in the third quarter, with Stanford down a couple scores. By the time I got back home, and turned on the radio, Stanford was somehow winning with a little over a minute left. I couldn't believe it. Then, Tuiasasopo took Washington something like 75 yards in something like 4 plays, and they (he) took the victory.
And the year before vs. Stanford is when Tui set a record by passing for 300+ yards and running for 200+ yards. All this after suffering a severe ass bruise early in the 1st quarter that sent him to the locker room for x-rays.

Roy Williams at OU was pretty insane, but a lot of it was his highlights were so good, I don't think it told the whole story. The fact he couldn't cover just never was exposed in college vs inferior talent, but man was he awesome at what he did

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Yeah, he essentially had a position just for him at OU, the hybrid LB/SS now called "Roy" here. It never really translated to the NFL as well just because of the speed of the game being higher there. But a damn good college player.

Marshall Faulk was pretty dominant at a small school.