Greatest college football player you've ever seen?

bamanator

Scout Team
Jan 20, 2005
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BamaTodd said:
Bo started at D-end in high school. They rested him when McAdory was on offense, and played him sparingly. Yes, if he had played full time at RB, he would have been one of the most highly recruited players ever.

My dad went to McAdory in the 1960's, so he decided to go to a high school playoff game at McAdory to see Bo play back in the early 80's. He said that it was a tight game, 6 points or so, and the Jackets were ahead and backed up against their own goal line. They didn't have a good punter, so the coach decided to take a safety. Bo was the kick-off guy. Instead of punting from the 20 for the free kick following the safety, they let Bo tee it up on the 20 and kick. Dad said he split the uprights 90 yard away. McAdory went on to win.
I went to McAdory and was 3 or 4 years behind Bo and he literally did everything back then , including the kicking duties...In a previous post it mentioned McAdory playing other backs and that is correct..I remember 3 backs playing signifigant snaps : Bo, Edwin Mack and a 3rd back names Larry or Leroy Mason ,which went on to play in the USFL for the Jacksonville Bulls..seems like McAdory would have a great regular season and then meet Gardendale in the playoffs and lose....
 
May 4, 2003
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When I was 7, my Dad took me a game in Tuscaloosa. I don't remember much about the specific game except the loudest roar to this day I ever heard at a game. I asked my dad what happened? He said "LEEroy Jurdan just tore a guy in half." That was in 1961. So I'd have to say Lee Roy Jordan was the great football player I ever heard.

The greatest CFP I personally ever saw was Kenny Stabler. Alot of people forget he played DB in pass prevent situations as a Soph. Also, in our 10-10 tie with Tenn in 1965, he was the QB in the final minutes.

I'll have to admit Herschel was dang-near awesome at Ga.
 

Bama Lee

Hall of Fame
Oct 13, 1999
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I gotta go with Tommy Wilcox.... pound for pound, he is the best football player I have ever seen. Second place would go to Joey Jones. Third to David Palmer.
 

bamaslammer

All-American
Jan 8, 2003
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I can't say about the old guys like Hudson and Nameth, its before my time.

The most dominant I saw were

1. Cornelius Bennett: didn't have the stats of Thomas, but put more folks in the hospital, apposing QB's genuinly feared this guy, If he hadn't hurt his knee his Jr season nobody would ever talk about Lawrence Taylor cause he would be second fiddle to Bisquit.

2. Marcus Dupree: very short career but was just unstoppable, He was up around 250 and could outrun most defensive backs. If the linebacker didn't take him down it was 6.

3. Emmit Smith: Never saw our defense look worse.
 

Nate Harris

All-SEC
Dec 7, 2003
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This is a bit different from what most people will choose, but the best college player I ever saw was Orlando Pace. I saw a show about him when he won his second Lombardi Award and the highlights of him were awe-inspiring. He just destroyed people. On top of that, he's the only offensive lineman I've ever seen whose mobility compares with John Hannah's in his prime, only thing being that Pace has more brute power. I looked back and it turns out he's the only offensive lineman to have been drafted number one overall by the NFL since the mid-1960's. Frankly, it doesn't surprise me. Not many people are going to get very excited about offensive tackles, but if you've ever seen the kind of things Pace does on the field it'll just leave your jaw on the floor.
 
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Scott Free

Scout Team
Oct 20, 2003
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Phenix City, Al USA
If I had to pick one

It would be Barry Sanders. During his Heisman year every time he touched the ball it seemed like he took it to the endzone! He was a man among boys that year. I had my doubts he would do it in the NFL with his size, but he proved me wrong.
 

CE83

BamaNation Citizen
Dec 12, 2004
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Reggie Collier

The best I ever saw in person especially in 1982, unfortunately.
 

oskie

All-SEC
Jan 28, 2005
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CE83 said:
Reggie Collier: The best I ever saw in person especially in 1982, unfortunately.
Reggie was amazing!

...if I'm not mistaken, he was the first to pass for 1k & run for 1k in a season (Div I)

...used to see him play basketball, also - he carried himself like Michael Jordan - he had an incredible physique and natural God-given ability

.
 

TommyMac

Hall of Fame
Apr 24, 2001
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Anyone know why Reggie Collier wound up at USM? He was too great an athlete to have simply slipped through the cracks. Did he have USM ties or something like that?
 

PsychoJoe

Suspended
Jul 5, 2002
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that is a tough one:

60s LeRoy Jordan (leaving out Namath, Stabler)

70s Ozzie Newsome (leaving out Hanna, Stevenson, Musso and a host of others

80s Cornelius Bennett

90s David Palmer (but Jay Barker and several players on the 92 defense haveto be considered as well).
 

tidemaniac

Suspended
Nov 29, 1999
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David Palmer, what was it 86% of the total offensive put out on a national championship team. I dont know of any defensive player that has ever produced 25% of the tackles, or any offensive player that had an entire team only watching him on every play, and still produced every time he touched the ball. The closest reciever to him was Anthony Carter from Michigan. I just think he did the most i've ever seen in college. Defensively the best player i ever saw in college was Arrington, but i never really got to watch our great defensive players play ball.