ESPN ranks the Top 25 college football players since 2000
Ahead of a new era of college football due to a myriad of reasons beginning this season, ESPN’s Bill Connelly has ranked the Top 25 college football players since 2000.
It’s a borderline impossible task, considering the sheer talent that’s come through the sport over the last two and a half decades. Still, Connelly made his attempt, even though it won’t please each fan base with a player in the rankings.
Check out the full Top 25 below. From Heisman quarterbacks to multiple time national championship winners at multiple positions, some of the biggest names in the history of the sport adorn it.
1. DT Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska
The former Nebraska defensive superstar comes in at the top spot in Conelly’s rankings. His accomplishments include being named the 2009 AP college football player of the year, and recognized as a Heisman finalist in 2009.
While Suh may not be everyone’s first pick for the top college football player since 2000, Connelly is more than sure: “I realize we don’t give Heismans to defensive players, but it’s still utterly inexcusable that he didn’t win the Heisman that year,” he wrote. “Best player of the 2000s and one of the best of all time.”
2. QB Baker Mayfield, Texas Tech/Oklahoma
Baker Mayfield is Connelly’s first quarterback on the list. He comes in at No. 2 overall, due to accomplishments like his 2017 Heisman, and leading Oklahoma to the College Football Playoff.
While his time at Texas Tech was brief, Mayfield elevated Oklahoma to dominance, becoming an icon for the Sooners. Connelly believes the one blemish on his resume was not winning a national title, he is of the opinion that, “It took the greatest game of the CFP era to keep him from having a shot at it.”
3. QB Cam Newton, Florida/Auburn
Cam Newton’s college career didn’t follow the path it was expected to, but it had arguably the greatest ending. He was believed to be Tim Tebow’s heir at Florida, but off-field troubles led him to Auburn.
That’s where Newton put together one of the greatest quarterback seasons of all time, capturing the 2010 Heisman and winning a national title. Connelly also harkened back to Newton leading the Tigers to an insane comeback against Alabama in the Iron Bowl that season.
4. QB Vince Young, Texas
Vince Young defined what was one of the more memorable periods in college football’s recent history. The former Texas star has immense hardware to show for it, capturing the Maxwell Award and the Davey O’Brien Award in 2005.
Alas, the game that defined his legacy is of course the Rose Bowl against USC. “In Young’s final game, he threw for 267 yards and rushed for 200 and three scores as Texas knocked off USC in probably the greatest game of the 21st century,” Connelly wrote.
5. S Ed Reed, Miami
The Top 25 couldn’t be complete without some love for the Miami Hurricanes. Who better for Connelly to emphasize than the heart and soul of the championship-winning program, Ed Reed.
The superstar defender’s list of accomplishments is vast, but it can all be summed up in one phrase, College Football Hall of Fame inductee. Reed’s spot on the list is impossible to argue, as there hasn’t been anyone like him to grace the game since.
6. QB Tim Tebow, Florida
Perhaps there hasn’t been a more polarizing figure than Tim Tebow in college football. His legacy has been highly publicized since his time in Gainesville, complete with two national titles and a Heisman.
During his playing days, Connelly believes Tebow was the “sport’s best and most defining player.” He changed everything for the Gators, and he’s an immortal part of the sport’s history.
7. RB Reggie Bush, USC
Connelly started off his soliloquy on Reggie Bush with the perfect line, “It was like watching a player from the future.” When the USC star had the ball in his hands, it was must-see, every time.
During his time with the Trojans, Bush captured the 2005 Heisman, which was recently returned to him, and he did a little bit of everything. He was a once in a lifetime offensive superstar, and college football fans were lucky enough to watch him during his time with USC.
8. OT Bryant McKinnie, Miami
When you finish eighth in Heisman voting as an offensive lineman, you’re going to be on the list as one of the all-time greats in the sport. Them the rules, and Connelly followed them by putting Bryant McKinnie is his top ten.
While the skill players and intense defenders Miami deployed during their championship window are remembered well, their offensive line set the table, and McKinnie led the group. He was awarded handsomely for his efforts, with the Outland Trophy, and being named a unanimous All-American during his time with the Hurricanes.
9. QB Joe Burrow, Ohio State/LSU
Joe Burrow’s time on top of the college football world might’ve been swift, but it was dominating. He never got his chance at Ohio State, but he turned LSU into the top team in all of college football during his time with the Tigers.
During arguably the greatest season for a quarterback in college football history in 2019, Burrow won the Heisman, Davey O’Brien, Walter Camp and Maxwell awards. Of course, he led the Tigers to a national title, and his success has continued on to the NFL as well, with the Cincinnati Bengals.
10. WR Larry Fitzgerald, Pittsburgh
The top wide receiver on the list could be none other than Larry Fitzgerald. He was a transformative player for the Pittsburgh Panthers, becoming the 2003 Heisman runner-up, and winning the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s top pass catcher.
As Connelly noted, Fitzgerald’s 2003 season was magical, but that’s not the only reason why he’s one of the best to lace up his cleats. The wide receiver’s speed, technique and everything in between made him feel like he was built in a lab, and while he was incredible with Pittsburgh, he wasn’t too shabby in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals, as well.
ESPN’s Top 25 CFB players since 2000 — 11-25:
11. DE Terrell Suggs, Arizona State
12. OT Joe Thomas, Wisconsin
13. LB Khalil Mack, Buffalo
14. DT Aaron Donald, Pittsburgh
15. DE David Pollack, Georgia
16. QB Deshaun Watson, Clemson
17. S Roy Williams, Oklahoma
18. QB Kyler Murray, Texas A&M/Oklahoma
19. WR DeVonta Smith, Alabama
20. QB Lamar Jackson, Louisville
21. WR Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma State
22. LB Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
23. S Tyrann Mathieu, LSU
24. DE Julius Peppers, North Carolina
25. RB Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin
First team out, listed in alphabetical order: WR Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech; DE Dwight Freeney, Syracuse; OT Robert Gallery, Iowa; QB Robert Griffin III, Baylor; WR Calvin Johnson, Georgia Tech; LB Derrick Johnson, Texas; LB Luke Kuechly, Boston College; QB Trevor Lawrence, Clemson; QB Marcus Mariota, Oregon; RB Christian McCaffrey, Stanford
As you can see, Bill Connelly of ESPN believes Ndamukong Suh takes the top spot in all of college football since 2000, with Baker Mayfield following him. Championship quarterbacks like Cam Newton and Vince Young are also among the top choices. Regardless, each player ranked has left an undeniable legacy that lives on in the history of college football.