ESPN names college football breakout stars for 2021

The first day of Week 1 FBS games starts in just under 48 hours, and if you haven’t heard of the following names, you should take the time to familiarize yourself with them. You will probably hear them a lot this season.

Eight ESPN experts provided their candidates for biggest breakout players for the 2021 season:

David Hale – Bryce Young, Alabama: 

All eyes will be on Bryce Young this fall as he takes over an Alabama offense that was arguably the most prolific of all time last year. As Hale discusses, Young is hardly an unknown player, but he has yet to prove himself on the field. He is working behind one of the best offensive lines in the country, and although the Tide are young at the skill positions, you can rest assured Nick Saban has everything under control.

Chris Low – Bijan Robinson, Texas:

The Texas running back had a dynamic freshman season with 703 rushing yards and four touchdowns. His 8.2 yards per carry shows he has explosiveness in him, it just needs to be further unlocked. Enter Steve Sarkisian. The mastermind behind the Alabama offense listed above takes over the ship in Austin for a team that has won double digit games just once since 2009. Sarkisian has already said he wants to get the ball in the sophomore’s hands approximately 20 times per game. Can Robinson become the next Najee Harris? He has already been compared to Reggie Bush. 

Alex Scarborough – Jerrion Ealy, Ole Miss:

Ole Miss may be known for its high-powered, Air Raid offense, but Lane Kiffin had a pretty dynamic run game in Oxford last season too.  Ole Miss led the SEC in rushing last season with 217.2 yards per game, nearly 15 yards ahead of No. 2 Texas A&M. Ealy was a big part of that rushing attack and figures to have an even better 2021. He ran for 745 yards and nine touchdowns last season. Scarborough points out Ealy wasn’t just a threat in the run game. He had 15 receptions with 155 yards and a touchdown. Scarborough expects Ealy will be more involved in the pass game this season after wide receiver Elijah Moore departed for the NFL. 

Tom VanHaaren – Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ohio State: 

Smith-Njigba will compete for targets with receivers Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson in the nation’s best wide receiver room. As VanHaaren acknowledges, that may bode very well for Smith-Njigba, as defenses will focus a lot of their energy on the two upperclassmen. The Ohio State receiver had 10 catches for 49 yards and one touchdown last year over seven games as a true freshman and is likely to play a bigger role this season as a sophomore after an impressive fall camp. 

Dave Wilson – C.J. Stroud, Ohio State: 

As Wilson states, it’s pretty difficult to bet against an Ohio State quarterback after the recent line of them. Sure, Stroud is a new starter working with an inexperienced offensive line, but he is also a former high-level four-star recruit. The Buckeyes led the conference last season in total yards per game with 519.4, and Stroud will likely put up big, Buckeye-like numbers with his arm and his elite wide receiving corps. 

Bill Connelly – Haynes King, Texas A&M:

Jimbo Fisher named King his starting quarterback last week. The Texas A&M redshirt freshman is a 6-foot-3, 200 pound dual-threat player. He had two completions for 59 yards and a touchdown and six rushing attempts for 43 yards last season as a backup to Kellen Mond. At wide receiver, the Aggies have Ainias Smith and Demond Demas. Tight end and 2020 Mackey Award finalist Jalen Wydermyer also returns to College Station. Basically, King has a multitude of weapons and a relatively easy schedule (aside from Alabama). Everything is in place for a breakout season. 

Andrea Adelson – Charleston Rambo, Miami: 

The Miami wide receiver room is loaded. Plus, they have proven commodity D’Eriq King under center. As Adelson cites, Rambo had a breakout performance in the spring game. He has also had a productive camp; Rambo had a touchdown catch and 60 yards in the Hurricane’s first scrimmage. Rambo’s best season was in 2019 when the then-sophomore had 743 receiving yards and five touchdowns. He averaged 17.3 yards per catch. Adelson thinks he can improve upon that season and become the first 1,000-yard receiver the Hurricanes have had since 2013. 

Adam Rittenberg – Tyler Goodson, Iowa: 

Running back Tyler Goodson is poised to make a big impact for Iowa this year behind a veteran offensive line. In 2019, Goodson was the first true freshman in school history to lead the Hawkeyes in rushing yards with 638. He led the Hawkeyes’ rushing attack once again last season with 143 carries for 762 yards and seven touchdowns. Goodson shared carries with Mekhi Sargent in 2020, but with Sargent on to the NFL, Goodson is the clear No. 1 guy.