Is it my imagination, or is the firepower in college football getting more consolidated than in the past? Seven of the 10 most productive wide receivers last year came from two different schools – LSU and Ohio State.
I started looking into this when I noticed that four different Louisiana State receivers finished with top-10 numbers last year (using PPR scoring): Ja’Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, Brian Thomas and Malik Nabers. I wanted to check to see if this had ever happened before.
Sifting through the numbers, I didn’t see any other schools with four, but I did notice that most of the threes have occurred recently.
Last year was the busiest such season ever, in fact, with three top-10 quarterbacks from Oklahoma, three top-10 wide receivers from Ohio State and three top-10 backs from Alabama.
The previous season, there were three top-10 tight ends from Iowa, and in the 2022 season, there were three top-10 wide receivers from Alabama.
All of which seems typical enough. But when you look at the previous 23 years, there was only one trio (when 3 Miami running backs made the top 10 in 2007).
I’m not sure what’s fueling this. It’s easier for college players to move around, which could be a factor (Mayfield, Murray and Hurts all played for other schools, and Jahmyr Gibbs started off at Georgia Tech). And with players getting paid now, it makes more sense for the best ones to land with the biggest programs.
| SAME SCHOOL FOR TOP PLAYERS | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Pos | Player | Rk | School |
| 1991 | RB | Emmitt Smith, Dall. | 3 | Florida |
| 1991 | RB | John L. Williams, Sea. | 6 | Florida |
| 1991 | RB | Neal Anderson, Chi. | 7 | Florida |
| 1998 | RB | Terrell Davis, Den. | 1 | Georgia |
| 1998 | RB | Garrison Hearst, S.F. | 5 | Georgia |
| 1998 | RB | Robert Edwards, N.E. | 9 | Georgia |
| 2007 | RB | Clinton Portis, Was. | 3 | Miami |
| 2007 | RB | Frank Gore, S.F. | 7 | Miami |
| 2007 | RB | Willis McGahee, Balt. | 9 | Miami |
| 2022 | WR | Jaylen Waddle, Mia. | 8 | Alabama |
| 2022 | WR | DeVonta Smith, Phil. | 9 | Alabama |
| 2022 | WR | Amari Cooper, Cle. | 10 | Alabama |
| 2023 | TE | Sam LaPorta, Det. | 1 | Iowa |
| 2023 | TE | T.J. Hockenson, Min. | 4 | Iowa |
| 2023 | TE | George Kittle, S.F. | 6 | Iowa |
| 2024 | QB | • Baker Mayfield, T.B. | 3 | Oklahoma |
| 2024 | QB | • Kyler Murray, Ari. | 9 | Oklahoma |
| 2024 | QB | • Jalen Hurts, Phil. | 10 | Oklahoma |
| 2024 | WR | • Terry McLaurin, Was. | 7 | Ohio State |
| 2024 | WR | • Garrett Wilson, NYJ | 9 | Ohio State |
| 2024 | WR | • Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Sea. | 10 | Ohio State |
| 2024 | WR | • Ja'Marr Chase, Cin. | 1 | Louisiana State |
| 2024 | WR | • Justin Jefferson, Min. | 3 | Louisiana State |
| 2024 | WR | • Brian Thomas, Jac. | 4 | Louisiana State |
| 2024 | WR | • Malik Nabers, NYG | 6 | Louisiana State |
| 2024 | RB | • Jahmyr Gibbs, Det. | 1 | Alabama |
| 2024 | RB | • Derrick Henry, Balt. | 4 | Alabama |
| 2024 | RB | • Josh Jacobs, G.B. | 6 | Alabama |
—Ian Allan