reads of the day 081518

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Aug 15, 2018

QB: Will Grier, West Virginia, R-Sr.

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The Florida transfer threw 34 touchdown passes in his first 10 games as a Mountaineer before a broken middle finger ended his season and put the West Virginia offense on ice. He's back to helm a veteran team with the talent and experience (especially out wide, where David Sills V and Gary Jennings Jr. both return) to play for the Big 12 title.

RB: Bryce Love, Stanford, Sr.*

The 2017 Heisman runner-up finished with 2,118 yards and 19 touchdowns—and that's in spite of a mid-October ankle injury that sidelined him for one game and limited him in several others.

RB: Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin, So.

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Taylor exploded for 223 yards and three touchdowns in the second game of his college career and never looked back, using a blend of sneaky speed and bruising power to finish third in the nation in rushing yards. If he hangs with Love in the push for 2,000, he should join him in New York in early December.

WR: A.J. Brown, Ole Miss, Jr.

Brown is the class of arguably the best receiving corps in the country, pacing the Rebels with 1,252 yards and 11 touchdowns last year even as Shea Patterson gave way to Jordan Ta'amu.

WR: David Sills V, West Virginia, Sr.

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The QB-turned-WR opened 2017 by posting multi-touchdown efforts in six of West Virginia's first seven games. If Will Grier stays healthy, Sills should have a chance to lead the nation in receiving TDs once again.

TE: Noah Fant, Iowa, Jr.

The Hawkeyes' most exciting offensive weapon led all FBS tight ends last year with a 16.5 yards per catch clip.

OT: Trey Adams, Washington, Sr.

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The Huskies' offense took a noticeable step back once Adams was felled by a knee injury in mid-October. The 6'8", 327-pound behemoth left tackle is back to keep Jake Browning clean and protect UW's playoff chances.

OT: Jonah Williams, Alabama, Jr.

Williams has started all 29 games of his two-year career, moving from right tackle to left last season for a unit that was a finalist for the Joe Moore Award, given to the nation's best O-line.

OG: Beau Benzschawel, Wisconsin, Sr.

Every starter along the Badgers' line has an All-America case worth consideration, but the 6'6" converted tight end has been as reliable as anyone on the right side of the line since midway through his freshman year.

OG: Nate Herbig, Stanford, Jr.

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Herbig, the only Cardinal O-lineman to earn first-team All-Pac-12 honors last year, played a central role in the holes Bryce Love sprinted through last fall.

C: Ross Pierschbacher, Alabama, R-Sr.

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After 42 career starts at left guard, the 6'4", 303-pound Cedar Falls, Iowa, product is expected to shift over to center seamlessly as the Crimson Tide retool up front.

DL: Nick Bosa, Ohio State, Jr.*

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Bosa and defensive tackle Dre'Mont Jones may have something to say about Clemson's claim to having the nation's best defensive line by season's end. The younger brother of Chargers centerpiece Joey Bosa led the Buckeyes with 8.5 sacks last season.

DL: Ed Oliver, Houston, Jr.*

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At minimum, he's the Group of Five's best player, but there's a vocal group of neutral observers that will take Oliver over anyone else in the country, at any position. He wrecked Baker Mayfield and Lamar Jackson as a freshman two years ago and will have a shot at Arizona's Khalil Tate in Week 2 before the Cougars begin their AAC campaign.

DL: Christian Wilkins, Clemson, Sr.

The most versatile member of the Tigers' loaded D-line (he's also a weapon on fake punts), Wilkins finished sixth on the team with four passes defended to go with his nine tackles for loss and five sacks last season.

DL: Clelin Ferrell, Clemson, R-Jr.

Ferrell paced the Tigers in sacks (9.5), tackles for loss (18.5) and forced fumbles (two, tied with two other Clemson players) last season, then joined Wilkins and Austin Bryant in passing on the draft to stock up Clemson's defensive front.

LB: Devin Bush, Michigan, Jr.

Bush stepped up on a talented Wolverines defense that had to replace several starters last year—now he's one of the leaders of a seasoned group that should challenge its Big Ten East rivals as the conference's best unit.

LB: Cameron Smith, USC, Sr.

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Smith has led USC in tackles in back-to-back seasons. If fellow linebacker Porter Gustin misses regular season action with the meniscus injury he recently sustained, even more responsibility for the success of the Trojans' defense falls on Smith's shoulders.

LB: Devin White, LSU, Jr.

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During a breakout sophomore year, White finished second in the SEC only to former Georgia star Roquan Smith in tackles with 133, five of which were sacks. A freak athlete, he may have the chance to follow Smith's example and rocket into the top 10 of next year's draft.

CB: Greedy Williams, LSU, So.

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True to his nickname (his given first name is Andreaz), Williams led the SEC in interceptions last season with six, becoming the first LSU player in a decade to do so.

CB: Deandre Baker, Georgia, Sr.

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Baker was on the other side of the field when Tua Tagovailoa crushed Georgia's national title dreams, but he had picked the Crimson Tide QB earlier that night to cap off a solid junior campaign. He led the Bulldogs with nine passes defended and then passed on the draft to bring some much-needed stability to Kirby Smart's 2018 unit.

S: Taylor Rapp, Washington, Jr.

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Rapp flashed early on as a true freshman two years ago and brought home All-Pac-12 honors in 2017. He's a big part of the reason the Huskies have a strong case for the best secondary on the West Coast.

S: Jaquan Johnson, Miami, Sr.

The key source of havoc for Miami's opportunistic defense, Johnson tied for the team lead with four picks, along with four pass breakups, three forced fumbles and two recoveries.

K: Rodrigo Blankenship, Georgia, R-Jr.

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The bespectacled kicker Bulldogs fans call Hot Rod hit the go-ahead 30-yarder against Notre Dame, a momentum-swinging 55-yarder in the Rose Bowl and a clutch 51-yarder in overtime of the title game to cap off a 20-for-23 season.

P: Mitch Wishnowsky, Utah, Sr.*

Last year's Ray Guy Award winner finished with 10 kicks downed inside the 10-yard line and a 43.9 yard average that landed him top-25 in the nation.

All-Purpose: Deebo Samuel, South Carolina, R-Sr.

Samuel had a kick return TD in each of the first two games of 2017, but he was lost for the year to a broken leg in the third. Somehow, he still ended up tied for the team lead in touchdowns. If the Gamecocks emerge as an SEC East dark horse, it'll be because their offense runs through their best receiver.

Returner: Tony Pollard, Memphis, R-Jr.

Pollard has six career kick-return touchdowns in two years, including four last year to tie for the national lead. He averaged a whopping 40.0 yards per return as a sophomore.

Second-Team Offense

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QB: Khalil Tate, Arizona; RB: Rodney Anderson, Oklahoma; RB: AJ Dillon, Boston College; WR: Anthony Johnson, Buffalo; WR: Marquise Brown, Oklahoma; TE: Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri; OT: David Edwards, Wisconsin; OT: Mitch Hyatt, Clemson; G: Alex Bars, Notre Dame; G: Michael Deiter, Wisconsin; C: Jesse Burkett, Stanford

Second-Team Defense

Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire; John Peterson/Icon Sportswire; Christopher Mast/Icon Sportswire

DL: Dexter Lawrence, Clemson; DL: Sutton Smith, Northern Illinois; DL: Rashan Gary; Michigan DL: Jeffery Simmons, Mississippi State; LB: Shaq Quarterman, Miami; LB: Mack Wilson, Alabama; LB: TJ Edwards, Wisconsin; CB: Byron Murphy, Washington; CB: Damon Arnette, Ohio State; S: Lukas Denis, Boston College; S: Marvell Tell, USC