ESPN College Football

The Lott IMPACT Trophy watch list for 2013 has been announced and the Pac-12 is well-represented. Of the 42 players on the watch list, 11 hail from the Pac-12 with a wide range of players from all levels of defense.

The award, named in honor of USC and San Francisco 49ers great Ronnie Lott, goes to the country's Defensive IMPACT Player of the Year (IMPACT stands for Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community and Tenacity) and, per its website "is unique because it represents the first trophy to give equal weight to personal character as well as athletic performance from a defensive college player and is the first national college football award based on the West Coast."

Here are the Pac-12 players on the watch list:

• Henry Anderson, DL, Stanford
• Anthony Barr, LB, UCLA
• Scott Crichton, DL, Oregon State
• Alden Darby, DB, Arizona State
• Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, CB, Oregon
• Jake Fischer, LB, Arizona
• Eric Kendricks, LB, UCLA
• Devon Kennard, DL, USC
• Ed Reynolds, S, Stanford
• Danny Shelton, DT, Washington
• John Timu, LB, Washington

The lone winner of the award from the conference was Cal's Dante Hughes, who won in 2006.

I just want to tell you both good luck. We're all counting on you.

• BYU's offensive coordinator gets a strong endorsement from Rich Rodriguez.
• Arizona State is still fighting to get the Notre Dame game in Tempe. Brady Hoke rumored to arbitrate.
• Cal hired a new strength and conditioning coach.
• Colorado's defensive linemen are trimming up.
• Five of the most influential Oregon plays of the past 10 seasons.
• The Oregon State spring tour continues with USC.
• Tracking Stanford's third-down efficiency.
• Johnathan Franklin brings good competition to the position in Green Bay.
• USC appears twice on Athlon's ranking for the 25 greatest dynasties of the AP era.
• A look at the running back hopefuls to replace John White.
• Can Jonathan Amosa make it with the Packers?
• Washington State news and notes.

 

Continuing to look ahead to the top prospects of the 2014 draft, Mel Kiper looks at the top quarterback and cornerback prospects.

Unlike yesterday's post, which enjoyed a wealth of Pac-12 players on the running backs and safeties list, there is only one name each for the QBs and CBs. Both are from Oregon.

Starting off with the slingers, Kiper has Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota currently tabbed as the No. 4 prospect .

Here's Kiper's take:

You watch the Oregon offense and you're not just seeing Mariota play pitch and catch on short routes, or simply flinging it across the line of scrimmage as the Ducks stretch out tired defenses and force them to tackle. They take their shots, and they can because Mariota sees the whole field, and has the arm to deliver strikes.

He completed almost 70 percent of his throws last year, and they went for 8.0 yards per attempt. I also like the way he mixes up his targets, using wideouts, tight ends and his backs as the situation demands. His athleticism and ability to make reads as a runner are pluses, but Mariota can also get it done with his arm.

Surprised to see Brett Hundley absent from this list -- but it's still early. Others who could make appearances are Arizona State's Taylor Kelly. You may remember from yesterday's post that KC Joyner is particularly high on the ASU quarterback.

Hundley does make an appearance in another Insider article, however. ESPN's Travis Haney is looking at quarterbacks who could have "Make of Break" seasons. Hundley is one of the QBs he breaks down -- and he places him in the "make" category.

Writes Haney:

This is an incredibly gifted guy who is bulking up and maintaining his athleticism. The Bruins were surprise Pac-12 title-game competitors in Jim Mora's first year, so Hundley could flourish in his second year in the system. Mazzone sure seems sold, and scouts could follow as they watch him this fall.

He also places Mariota in the "Make" category.

On Mariota:

In terms of size, Mariota is precisely what the NFL wants. If he even replicates what he did a year ago -- a 68.5 completion percentage and plus-26 in TDs-to-INTs -- NFL teams will begin to salivate to have someone like him. I know some coaches who believe he could become the name in the coming college season (as in the Heisman race) and draft lead-up. He's that big and gifted.

On the other side of the ball, Kiper taps cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu as the No. 3 CB prospect.

Writes Kiper:

Extremely good when the play is in front of him, Ekpre-Olomu is explosive out of his backpedal and will close quickly to deliver a big hit or jump a throw to take it the other way. He has good ball skills and led the conference in passes defensed last season.

Also a wide receiver and running back in high school, he's a physical corner who understands routes and will step up to make tackles or put his hat on the ball.

The Washington State wide receiving corps had a very strong spring.

All players are equal, but some players are more equal than others. That's the basis of our Most Important Player series.

First off, quarterbacks are excluded to make things more interesting. It goes without saying, for example, that Oregon's Marcus Mariota is the Ducks' most important player.

And most important doesn't necessarily have to be "best." An All-American's backup can be pretty darn good, too.

Our most important guys are players who could swing a win total one way or the other, based on their living up to expectations. Or their absence.

Utah: LB/DE Trevor Reilly

2012 production: Posted 69 tackles, 6.5 tackles for a loss and 4.5 sacks. He also had an interception, broke up four passes, forced three fumbles and recovered another.

Why Reilly is so important: Strong consideration was given to Jeremiah Poutasi, an All-American candidate on the offensive line who is making the switch from right to left tackle this season after starting 10 games as a true freshman last year. There might be no more important job than protecting Travis Wilson's blind side.

But as the Utes' defense looks to adjust to life without Star Lotulelei and the Kruger brothers on the defensive line -- 75 percent of a defensive front that is gone after ranking second in the league against the run -- players like Reilly take on even greater importance. Mainly because Reilly will be asked to transition between defensive end and linebacker much more frequently than he did last year.

For starters, he returns as Utah's leading tackler. That's always nice to have. And though he's versatile enough to play all over the field, he'll be asked to take on a greater role as a pass-rusher while also maintaining his stop-the-run approach. When he's at linebacker, look for Jason Whittingham to be on the right end -- which means lots of speed crashing on the backfield. That should also open things up for Nate Orchard and Brian Blechen, who is making the move from the secondary to linebacker.

Plus, Reilly is a proven commodity, which never hurts when you lose six starters from your defense. After redshirting in 2009, Reilly has appeared in 36 games with 20 starts. When he's around the football, bad things happen for the other team. He's forced seven career fumbles -- which ties him for third in school history -- and he's tallied 21 tackles for a loss and 11.5 sacks.

His performance in 2012 was enough for him to earn honorable mention all-league honors and he was already considered one of the Utes' defensive leaders. That role will need to increase as Utah rebuilds its front seven with a lot of new/moving parts.

It's very possible that Utah's offense and defense swap places in 2013. Last season it was the defense that carried the Utes, but the impact of new co-offensive coordinator Dennis Erickson and the rise of Wilson at quarterback could be game-changers. As the offense gets better, it's possible that the defense takes a hit during the rebuilding process. It's Reilly's job to make sure that doesn't happen. No pressure.

Unlike last year, there aren't nearly as many questions surrounding the Washington defense as the Huskies head into the final stretch before fall camp.

Last year a new scheme and new coaches were being installed, headlined by new defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox. The Huskies' defense was abysmal in 2011 -- so head coach Steve Sarkisian blew it up and started from scratch.

Now the Huskies are looking to build off of the momentum they gained in 2012 when they made huge strides in one year under Wilcox & Co.

"The numbers don't lie," Sarkisian said.

They certainly don't.

The biggest advances were in the secondary, where the Huskies jumped from 87th to 27th in pass efficiency defense, 106th to 31st in total defense, 108th to 39th in scoring defense and 116th to 23rd in pass defense. They had 17 interceptions last year compared to 10 the year before.

"Our secondary really had a very good season for us last year," Sarkisian said. "I thought Justin Wilcox, Keith Heyward, our secondary coach, really came in and did a great job. ... You look at the increase in play we had in the secondary -- our pass defense numbers, our ability to create turnovers -- I think really speaks volumes to their coaching and their ability to develop our players."


That's what Sarkisian is banking on in 2013 -- player development. More specifically, at the cornerback spot where they have to replace first-round draft pick Desmond Trufant. Sarkisian called the competition "healthy" this spring, but isn't anywhere closer to declaring anyone as the leader in the clubhouse for that starting spot. And it might end up being by-committee or which player has the hot hand that week. A few defensive backs have switched positions or spent time at safety and corner in an effort to make the defensive backfield deeper and more versatile.

With Marcus Peters, who started the final eight games opposite Trufant last season, back on one side, the competition heated up over spring between Travell Dixon and Greg Ducre. Sarkisian said that redshirt freshman Cleveland Wallace has also made a big push. Dixon is a JC transfer (once committed to Alabama) and Ducre had 15 tackles while appearing in 13 games last season.

"Desmond Trufant was a great player for us," Sarkisian said. "Anytime you have a first-round draft pick at corner it tells you the quality of player you have. But I think we've got some really capable guys that are stepping in."

If the Huskies can shore up that spot, expect the secondary to make even bigger strides in 2013. Sean Parker, who started all 13 games at safety, returns as the unquestioned leader of the secondary. Will Shamburger, who started two games last year, will see a larger role. But there's some good competition there as well. Tre Watson (who can pitch in either at corner or safety) is in the mix, and early enrollee Trevor Walker had a strong first spring. Brandon Beaver, who converted from corner to safety late last season but was limited in the spring, is also going to press for playing time.

Lots of names. But that also means lots of depth.

"We've got a good amount of talent back there," Sarkisian said. "It's about finding the right combination of those guys. For some of those guys who were redshirt players for us last year, Travell, Brandon, Cleveland, fall camp is going to be big for them. This spring was good to get the terminology and fundamentals and techniques after spending all year on the service team last year. There is a healthy competition going on back there and the end result is we're fortunate to have good depth and good coaches and we feel good about our pass defense when the fall rolls around."

On this week's ESPNU College Football podcast, Ivan Maisel chats about the latest College Football Hall of Fame class, among other topics.

He's joined by former Arizona great Tedy Bruschi -- one of the 12 newest members of the Hall. Bruschi talks about his time with the Wildcats and his thoughts on the current state of Arizona football.

I went to the University of Arizona and I knew there were better facilities at UCLA and USC and all those other places. You can go out there and find athletes that want to play hard. I think that's the job of recruiting coordinators. That's the job of head coaches.

Also from Maisel is a nice piece on how elite academic schools have found success on the football field. Here's a snippet:

STANFORD, Calif. -- At a meeting of college administrators a few years ago, Howard Wolf found NCAA president Myles Brand eating breakfast by himself.

Wolf, the president of the Stanford Alumni Association, would chat up the guard at Buckingham Palace. Of course, he asked Brand if he could join him.

They talked about the NCAA and they chitchatted. Breakfast done, Wolf expressed his gratitude and got up to leave. Brand stopped him and said he had something to say. The NCAA membership needed Stanford to win. "Excuse me?" Wolf said.

"It is vital that Stanford succeed athletically," Brand said, "not only in the Olympic sports but in the marquee sports. If Stanford succeeds across the board, it shows the world of intercollegiate athletics that it can be done and done the right way. If, however, Stanford does not succeed in these arenas, it gives everyone else an excuse for how it isn't possible to be great in both academics and athletics.

"Don't let that happen," Brand said. "Don't give others that excuse."

You can read all of Maisel's story here.

The name's Dangerously. Johnny Dangerously.
Did you know your last name is an adverb?

• Can Rich Rodriguez lead Arizona to a major bowl game in five years? One writer says yes. (But no to Washington and California).
• A post-spring exit interview with ASU linebackers coach Paul Randolph.
• Sad news for the Cal family with the passing of Chuck Muncie.
• Mike MacIntyre is waiting for all the facts before passing judgment on Jordan Webb.
• An analysis of Oregon's special teams.
• Are the Beavers lucky to be missing UCLA this year?
• Another vote for Shayne Skov as Stanford's Most Important Player (at least on defense).
• Tough break for the Bruins, who likely lose defensive end Owamagbe Odighizuwa for the 2013 season.
• The Trojans are looking to ramp up the power running game in 2013.
• Utah's new football facility is to be ready by July.
• What are the expectations for Desmond Trufant in 2013?
• A WSU defensive lineman was given a liar-liar-pants-on-fire citation.
• Eager to stir the pot in mid-May, Jon Wilner predicts the first-and-second team all-league teams. Very ambitious. Very brave.

It's a Pac back attack!

Continuing with his look at the best NFL prospects by position in 2014, ESPN's Mel Kiper projects that four of the top 10 running backs hail from the Pac-12.

Oregon's De'Anthony Thomas is No. 1, which is understandable, but also a little bit surprising simply because he doesn't fit into any one category. I could see traditionalists arguing this point. But Kiper strongly supports his claim.

Kiper on Thomas: Is he a running back? He's a little bit of everything, but he's a running back on my board because handing him the ball is the quickest way to get it to him, and getting him the ball is the most important thing. Last year, Thomas turned 92 carries into 701 yards, good for 7.6 yards per carry. This after a freshman year where he averaged an absurd 10.6 yards per carry on his 55 touches. So over his first two years, Thomas averaged 8.8 yards per carry, and the sample size is no longer miniscule.

Yes, he can also catch it, as he has 91 receptions over his first two seasons. And he's terrifying in the return game. Thomas will never be a bulk-carry runner, and he doesn't have the route-running skills of a guy like Tavon Austin, who he might be compared to based on the burst. But he's a 180-pound game-breaker, a sprinter with the shiftiness to make people miss and he has added more muscle to his frame since he broke USC's heart and headed to Eugene.

The next two Pac-12 running backs are Arizona's Ka'Deem Carey at No. 3 and USC's Silas Redd at No. 4. They fit the more traditional role.

Kiper on Carey: Extraordinarily productive in 2012, Carey piled up a whopping 1,929 yards rushing. He does it by exploding upfield when he gets a seam, and running through arm tackles with good pad level and strong leg drive and determination. Carey looks like an early-impact NFL running back because of the way he reads plays, and puts his foot in the ground to get vertical and maximize yards when they're available.

On Redd: He was a little bit forgotten about in what was a disappointing season, but you turn on the tape and see a guy who often made the most of what was just average blocking last season. Redd isn't what I'd call an explosive runner, but he does a very good job of running through contact and grinding out extra yards.

Kiper also offers an "up next" segment of five more players to watch. Included in that mix is Washington's Bishop Sankey.

Stanford fans looking for validation that they have the best safety duo in the country just got a bump from Kiper, who also released his top safety prospects for 2014 . He ranks the Stanford duo of Ed Reynolds and Jordan Richards as the Nos. 2 and 3 best safety prospects, respectively.

Kiper on Reynolds: Stanford often had Reynolds playing, essentially, a deep center field, but even from there he was able to make a big impact. He doesn't have elite speed, but he anticipates really well, does a good job of not getting pushed out of position by quarterbacks who can use their eyes well, and gets himself in position to jump passes.

Kiper on Richards: Safe to say the Cardinal will be well-covered at safety in 2013. Richards is themore physical of the Stanford safeties, an in-the-box presence who is capable of making more plays against the run. He has a great sense of angles on the field, perhaps in part due to the fact he excelled in high school as a running back, wide receiver and as a cornerback.

Worth noting that also on the list is former UCLA safety Tevin McDonald, who was dismissed from the team and is now at Eastern Washington. He's No. 4 behind the Stanford tandem.

Finally, ESPN's KC Joyner offered up five prospects who could have breakout seasons in 2013 . Thomas is one of them. The other is Arizona State quarterback Taylor Kelly.

Writes Joyner: Arizona State coach Todd Graham has a long history of dominant offensive performances -- his Tulsa teams produced three top-five national finishes in yards per game -- so it should come as no surprise that he was able to get this type of showing out of a redshirt sophomore in his first season as a starter. Now that Kelly has a year under his belt to go along with a great 1-2 punch in the backfield and an influx of highly talented pass-catchers, he should be a front-runner for all-conference status this year.

UCLA coach Jim Mora talks about Brett Hundley's progress, holes at running back and the secondary and his thoughts on the College Football Playoff.

All players are equal, but some players are more equal than others. That's the basis of our Most Important Player series.

First off, quarterbacks are excluded to make things more interesting. It goes without saying, for example, that Oregon's Marcus Mariota is the Ducks' most important player.

And most important doesn't necessarily have to be "best." An All-American's backup can be pretty darn good, too.

Our most important guys are players who could swing a win total one way or the other, based on their living up to expectations. Or their absence.

USC: LB Devon Kennard

2012 production: Did not play

Why Kennard is so important: While approaching the USC portion of this series, I started asking myself what was different in 2012 from 2011? Why the drop off? You could easily make a case for Marqise Lee. But his outstanding season last year didn't do much to help out in the win/loss department. I considered his stat-heavy season. With 118 catches, surely the Trojans were more unbalanced in 2012 -- so the most important player should be running back Silas Redd.

Then I compared the numbers. In 2011, USC rushed the ball 392 times for 1,951 yards, 12 touchdowns, 5.0 yards per carry and an average of 162.6 yards per game. They were 55-45 pass to run.

In 2012, USC carried the ball 392 times for 1,958 yards, 12 touchdowns, 5.0 yards per carry and an average of 150.6 yards per game. They were 54-46 pass to run. The only major discrepancy is they played one more game in 2012, but the numbers are staggeringly similar. So the running game wasn't the problem.

So we look to the defense. Well, they gave up 23.6 points per game in 2011 and 24.3 in 2012. They allowed 17 rushing touchdowns in 2011, and 17 in 2012; 17 passing touchdowns in 2011, 20 in 2012. Pretty comparable.

You can compare the 2012 and 2011 stats and you'll see that almost all of the numbers are similar -- give or take. Except one: Rushing yards allowed.

In 2011 they allowed 111.4 yards per game on the ground. In 2012, that number ballooned to 167 yards per game. Lane Kiffin talked about wanting to switch to a 3-4 even before hiring Clancy Pendergast as his defensive coordinator to do a better job against the run.

That brings us -- finally -- to Kennard. After earning a starting gig as a defensive end in 2012, he tore his pectoral muscle and was forced to take a redshirt year. He, by the way, was also missing from the equation between 2011 and 2012.

So why Kennard over, say, Morgan Breslin or Leonard Williams or Dion Bailey (who by the way should flourish back at his natural safety spot)? Because Kennard could blow up in 2013 in this new scheme. There is going to be so much focus on Breslin -- we know what we're getting with him -- that Kennard is going to get plenty of one-on-one opportunities to make plays in the backfield and/or stuff the run.

Conversely, if he proves to be as good as many think he's going to be on the outside, he'll force teams to scheme extra blockers his way, which should open things up for Breslin. It's a pick-your-Trojan scenario that could end badly for opposing offenses.

He's experienced as a defensive end and he's also played middle linebacker, so being on the edge and playing with a stop-the-run-first mentality will come naturally to him.

USC is a team that has several potential All-Americans on both sides of the ball. But in this case, it's the return of Kennard that could prove most beneficial to the Trojans and their new-look defense. He could be the game-changer.

Here's a look at where each Pac-12 teams stands in the recruiting game post-spring.

Arizona

2014 verbal commitments: 3
Spotlight: Running back Nick Wilson (Fresno, Calif.) has good size, so he's capable of running over defenders. But he's also shifty with good breakaway speed. His highlight film offers examples of both.
ESPN 150 members: 1 (Cameron Denson, ATH, Tucson, Ariz.)

Arizona State

2014 verbal commitments: 3
Spotlight: A commit since January, athlete Jaleel Wadood (Bellflower, Calif.) has good closing speed as a defensive back and projects as a corner or safety at the next level. Per his scouting report, there is room to grow on his 5-11, 165-pound frame.
ESPN 150 members: 0

California

2014 verbal commitments: 2
Spotlight: Tagged as an athlete, Koa Farmer (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) could end up as a big-bodied receiver or possibly a safety. His highlight film offers snippets of both.
ESPN 150 members: 0

Colorado

2014 verbal commitments:0
Spotlight:
ESPN 150 members: 0

Oregon

2014 verbal commitments: 3
Spotlight: Four-star linebacker Jordan Hoiem (Wailuku, Hawaii) has good size at 6-5 and should fill out his frame when he gets into a college lifting program. Could develop into a dangerous speed rusher off the edge -- as his highlight film indicates.
ESPN 150 members: 0

Oregon State

2014 verbal commitments: 1
Spotlight: OSU's lone commit, quarterback Nick Mitchell (Snoqualmie, Wash.), looks to be another prototypical Mike Riley pro-style quarterback. Tall and lean with room to grow, he excels at accuracy and timing patterns, per his scouting report.
ESPN 150 members: 0

Stanford

2014 verbal commitments: 3
Spotlight: Stanford's most recent commit, athlete Christian McCaffrey (Highlands Ranch, Colo.), has more than 20 offers -- including the bulk of the Pac-12. He's the top-ranked player in Colorado (you might recognize the name) and, as you can see from his film, has a very diverse offensive skill set.
ESPN 150 members: 0

UCLA

2014 verbal commitments: 1
Spotlight: Wide receiver Barry Ware (Corona, Calif.) has a good frame at 6-2, 195. Per his scouting report, he's got big, soft hands with a large catch radius.
ESPN 150 members: 0

USC

2014 verbal commitments: 5
Spotlight: Offensive tackle Jordan Poland (La Jolla, Calif.) already has the size at 6-7, 333. Having already had one de-commit on the offensive line, the Trojans are hoping for early enrollments from Poland and offensive guard Toa Lobendahn.
ESPN 150 members: 0

Utah

2014 verbal commitments: 4
Spotlight: Offensive tackle Jackson Barton (Salt Lake City) is a hometown prospect whose father played minor league baseball and his mother was an All-American honorable mention basketball player for the Utes. Plenty of room to grow in his 6-6, 275-pound frame.
ESPN 150 members: 0

Washington

2014 verbal commitments: 3
Spotlight: Athlete Rahshead Johnson (Long Beach, Calif.) could, per his scouting report, "literally be a legit threat on both sides of the ball." He's been a Washington commit for almost 11 months so it will be interesting to see where he fits into the scheme.
ESPN 150 members: 0

Washington State

2014 verbal commitments: 3
Spotlight: If he keeps his commitment, quarterback Peyton Bender (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) will be the fourth quarterback Mike Leach has recruited. Like the rest, Bender is at least 6-1 and while he's not a threat to run, per his scouting report, he does a good job extending plays.
ESPN 150 members: 0

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned for Sega.

• Catching up on some Arizona news and notes.
• Todd Graham and Jaxon Hood give a shout out to the moms.
• What are Cal's expectations in 2013?
• More details are emerging about the Webb-Lewis assault case.
• Who is Oregon's next in line after Marcus Mariota?
• The spring tour of Oregon State's 2013 schedule continues with Cal.
• David Shaw: Football coach, motivational speaker.
• Datone Jones weighs in on Colin Kaepernick.
• The Trojans are hoping to avoid drama in 2013.
• Missed this one last week. My bad. Utah's John White is headed to the CFL.
• Justin Glenn signed with the Kansas City Chiefs.
• Washington State picked up a linebacker commit.

ESPN's Mel Kiper continues his look forward to the 2014 draft with some position-by-position rankings all this week.

Kicking it off are the top-10 wide receivers . And, no surprise, USC's Marqise Lee is right at the top of the list. After an outstanding 2012, that saw him capture the Biletnikoff Award for the nation's top receiver, Lee will be adjusting to life with a new quarterback. There is a question how much that will impact his 2013 numbers, but no one is denying his next-level ability.

Writes Kiper: At maybe 6-foot-1, 195 pounds, Lee isn't the kind of physical presence that you'd expect of a game-changing matchup problem like recent top-10 picks A.J. Green, Julio Jones or even Calvin Johnson. But he plays a little bigger than his size, is extremely reliable and productive, and we just witnessed a draft where a 5-8, 175-pound wide receiver went in the top 10 -- and a team traded up to get him. Lee has proven extremely difficult to cover, and as you watched USC last year you'd see teams roll extra coverage to him -- and it still didn't work, as evidenced by the 118 passes he caught.

His challenge this year is to stay productive, and to not get frustrated by both the coverage attention and his new QB. Say what you want about what happened with Matt Barkley in the draft, but the guy was an accurate QB at the college level and got his best players the ball.

This last part is interesting -- because there are those who would submit that the Trojans became too one-dimensional and forced the ball to Lee, getting away from other aspects of the offense and losing balance.

During the Pac-12 blog's spring visit to USC, head coach Lane Kiffin talked extensively about the mental challenges facing Lee in 2013. Here's a link to that story from last month.

It's also a little odd not to see more Pac-12 names -- which goes to show how special last year's crop was -- including Lee's teammate Robert Woods, Markus Wheaton, Keenan Allen and Marquess Wilson, who were all drafted.

Kiper also looked at the top-10 defensive end prospects , and Oregon State's Scott Crichton checks in on the list at No. 4.

Writes Kiper: Crichton has a big-time motor. As a freshman, he was second in the Pac-12 with 14.5 tackles for a loss, and that jumped to 17.5 tackles for loss in 2012. He also forced six fumbles as a freshman. Crichton has a quick get-off, gets defenders off balance with his burst and does a pretty good job of clearing his inside arm and bending to turn the corner. But what makes him special is his effort level, and if he marries that to more technical savvy as a pass-rusher, he's going to have a huge season.

Curious to not see USC's Morgan Breslin, who should be among the nation's top pass-rushers, on this list. Wondering if Kiper is counting him as a defensive end or a hybrid outside linebacker/rush end -- which is his new role in the Trojans' re-worked odd front. If that's the case, the list of outside linebackers from the Pac-12 should be impressive.

Oregon State head coach Mike Riley talks about OSU's quarterback competition, the running game and offers his thoughts on the College Football Playoff.