De'Anthony Thomas is easily one of the most explosive player's in America. (Scott Olmos-US PRESSWIRE)
If your team is not playing and you’re in the mood to watch college football, where will you turn?
The marquee matchups of the week, pitting two ranked teams, are an obvious choice. An important conference game is another must-see for college football fans.
It takes a unique talent for a player to pique a viewer’s interest. College football offers a few of these players that will make a viewer take a seat and not flip the channel.
The following are the five top players in 2013 who are worth the price of admission, or a Nielsen ratings booster:
1. Jadeveon Clowney of South Carolina, born on Valentine’s Day 1993, has talent that everybody loves, except his opponents. Clowney is a freakish athlete at 6-6 and 270 pounds. He is a physically strong, relentless, quick pass-rusher who tallied 13 sacks in 2012 despite drawing double-team blocking assignments from the opposition.
He recently was timed in the 40-yard dash at 4.5 seconds. To put that into perspective, in the NFL Combine, the fastest 40 time for a defensive end was 4.57 seconds by UConn’s Trevardo Williams. He was drafted as an outside linebacker at 6-1, 240 pounds. Clowney is five inches taller and 30 pounds heavier.
Clowney’s spectacular tackle of Michigan’s Vincent Smith in the Outback Bowl is legendary. Viewers will watch to see if Clowney can duplicate the feat of bulleting through the line, tackling the runner, making the helmet fly off, causing a fumble and scooping the ball up all in a matter of seconds.
2. DeAnthony Thomas of Oregon is listed as the top running back prospect on Mel Kiper’s Big Board, ahead of more established backs such as Lache Seastrunk of Baylor and Ka’Deem Carey of Arizona – both are must-see backs in their own right.
Thomas is similar to Sammy Watkins of Clemson (No. 5 on this list) in that he is a multi-faceted threat. As a running back last season behind featured player Kenjon Barner, Thomas rushed for 701 yards on 92 carries, an astounding 7.6 yards per carry. In his first two seasons with the Ducks, Thomas has averaged a ridiculous 8.8 yards a carry.
Although he is not a power running back, Thomas (5-9, 173) is very elusive with his speed and running instincts. He can turn a broken play into a long gain and touchdown like few other players in college football.
3. Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M is a must-see player as the reigning Heisman winner. Viewers will watch him either to see that he builds upon his success of 2012, or if he’ll come back down to earth —with SEC defenses figuring out how to defend him and the Aggies.
Every time Manziel takes a snap, he has the potential to produce a highlight-reel play. That can’t be written about most college football quarterbacks.
All eyes will be on the Alabama-Texas A&M rematch on Sept. 14, even if a fan has no rooting interesting in either team. The game will be hyped to the extreme because of the Aggies’ victory over Alabama in Tuscaloosa last year behind Manziel’s exploits.
The play against Alabama in which Manziel scrambled, fumbled the ball in the air, retrieved it, scrambled again and threw a touchdown pass was one of the snapshots of the 2012 season. He is capable of making more those awe-inspiring plays.
4. Marqise Lee of USC is the best big-play threat in college football, as long as Lane Kiffin can find a quality quarterback to get him the ball. Lee led the country with 118 receptions last year, finished second with 1,724 yards and tied for third with 14 touchdown catches.
Lee, who has 30 receptions for at 25 yards in the last two seasons, will be a leading Heisman candidate in 2013.
His leaping ability allows him to play taller than his listed height at 6-foot. He also has breakaway speed unlike most receivers. The next USC quarterback will be asked to get the ball to Lee in stride and let Lee do the rest.
5. Sammy Watkins of Clemson should return to the form that made him one of the most accomplished freshmen in college football in 2011. He joined Herschel Walker, Marshall Faulk and Adrian Peterson as the only freshmen to be named a first-team Associated Press All-American.
Following a two-game suspension and injuries last season, Watkins became a secondary receiver behind DeAndre Hopkins, who is off to the NFL. With Hopkins gone and efficient quarterback Tajh Boyd back, Watkins is in store for another highlight-reel season in 2013.
Watkins is fun to watch and viewers will have the opportunity to see him handle the ball on many occasions. He is a big-play receiver and can run the ball on reverses. He is also an accomplished kickoff returner with elusiveness and breakaway speed.
