Top-26 Players in SEC Football History

The SEC is the greatest conference in college football history, with the greatest players and traditions. Today, we will look at the greatest players in SEC history.

Criteria

The criteria is the dominance in the player’s time playing in college. NFL career will have no bearing on these rankings. Check out our greatest song traditions in college football history.

26) Don Hutson, Alabama WR

Hutson was truly the first great threat at the wide receiver position, whether in college or professional football. He is known as the father of the modern pass route, as he created forward offense from his split-end position. Hutson led Alabama to the 1934 national championship.

25) Billy Cannon, LSU RB

Cannon was a big powerful running back with speed. He also played linebacker and was a sure tackler and one of the best defenders in the country. In his LSU career, he gained 1,867 yards rushing, 522 yards receiving, 965 yards returning kicks and led the Tigers in tackles. He led LSU to a national title in 1958, and he won the Heisman in 1959.

24) Darren McFadden, Arkansas RB

McFadden was one of the most dangerous backs in college football history, he gained over 4,700 total yards and a very solid 51 touchdowns in his Arkansas career.

McFadden won the Doak Walker Award two years in a row, was selected as the Southeastern Conference Offensive Player of the Year by SEC coaches and was awarded the Walter Camp Award, given to the nation’s best overall player.

23) Charley Trippi, Georgia RB

Trippi played QB and Rb while at Georgia. He ran for 672 yards and passed for 567 yards in Georgia’s 1942 national championship season. He was a two time All American and won the Maxwell award in 1946, after a break from football, for war, in 1945. In 1945 and 1946, he combined for 39 total touchdowns.

22) Charles Alexander, LSU RB

Alexander was a big powerful back, who was also fast. He ran for over 4,000 yards in his career and scored 40 touchdowns in a 44 game LSU career. He was a two-time first-team All-American in 1978 and 1979, and had 13 100-yard rushing games as a Tiger.

21) Steve Spurrier, Florida QB

Spurrier threw for 4,848 yards and 36 touchdowns in his career. He also could run, and rushed for over 400 yards from the quarterback position. He sealed the 1966 Heisman trophy with a game-winning field goal as time expired against Auburn. Spurrier never panned out in the NFL, but he was as good a college QB as you could find in the 1960s.

20) Eli Manning, Ole Miss QB

He passed for an impressive 10,119 passing yards and 81 touchdown passes in his Ole Miss career. In 2003, he won the Maxwell Award as the nation’s top offensive player and finished third in the Heisman voting. More importantly, he helped turn Ole Miss football program around, in his time there.

19) Joe Namath, Alabama QB

He threw for 2,714 yards and 25 touchdowns in his career, pailing compared to others in history. His leadership on the field is what puts him this high. He led Alabama to the 1964 National Championship.

18) Tommy Casanova, LSU DB

Tommy Casanova is the only player in LSU history to have been selected as the first-team All-American three times. He played free safety and running back in games and excelled at both. Casanova also returned the kicks and punts for LSU. He was all over the field. Casanova became a very good player for the Cincinnati Bengals in the NFL.

17) Champ Bailey, Georgia DB

Bailey was an amazing player on both sides of the ball, producing at wide receiver and defensive back. In 1998, he racked up 52 tackles and three interceptions and added over 1,000 yards of total offense. He won the Bronko Nagurski Award as the nation’s top defensive back in 1998.

16) Frankie Sinkwich, Georgia RB

He was a top running back and a top quarterback. He passed for 30 touchdowns and rushed for 30 touchdowns in his Georgia career. He ran for 2,271 yards and passed for 2,331 yards during that span. In 1942, he won the Heisman Trophy and led the Bulldogs to a national title. Frankie was the heart and soul of that Bulldog team.

15) Archie Manning, Ole Miss QB

He threw for 4,753 yards and 31 touchdowns and ran for 823 yards and 25 touchdowns in his Ole Miss career. Like his NFL career with the Saints, Manning was not surrounded by a lot of talent at Ole Miss. Still, Manning made the most of his time as a Rebel, making Ole Miss competitive.

14) Reggie White, DL Tennessee

One of the greatest pass rushers in the history of football played anywhere. White was a special; talent no matter what level of football he played. He was an emotional leader on and off the field and was named first-team All American and SEC Player of The Year in 1983.

13) Cornelius Bennett, Alabama LB

Bennett racked up a big 287 tackles in his career and added 21.5 sacks. He was a three-time All-American and finished seventh in Heisman voting in 1986.

12) Peyton Manning, Tennessee QB

Would be ranked top 5 if he could have beaten Florida. Tennessee was 39-5 with Manning as a starter, making him the all-time winningest SEC quarterback. He threw for 11,201 yards, and a ridiculous 89 touchdowns in his college career.

11) Emmitt Smith, Florida RB

Unlike his time in the NFL, Emmitt was not surrounded by great players in college. Under these constraints, he still compiled a stat sheet with over 4,000 total yards and 36 touchdowns. He had an impressive 23 games of 100 yards or more rushing in his college career.

10) Pat Sullivan, Auburn QB

Pat Sullivan was a dynamic quarterback who could run and pass. As an Auburn Tiger, he threw for a big 6,284 yards and 53 touchdowns. He also ran for 18 touchdowns in his career. Sullivan won the Heisman in 1971 and was a first-team All-American selection.

9) Danny Wuerffel, Florida QB

He threw for an impressive 10,875 yards and 114 touchdowns—yes, 114 touchdowns. Wuerffel led Florida to two national title matchups in a row and won the national championship in 1996. He was a two-time All-American and won the 1996 Heisman Trophy.

8) Derrick Thomas, Alabama LB

Derrick Thomas is the all-time sack leader in the SEC, with an impressive 52 QB sacks in his college career. Thomas won the Butkus Award and finished 10th in Heisman voting in 1988. He was a first-team All-American and All-SEC selection.

7) Lee Roy Jordan, Alabama LB

He played on both sides of the ball and dominated at each position. For example, in an Orange Bowl game against Oklahoma in 1963, Jordan graded out 100 per cent at Center and made 31 tackles on defense. He was an All-American and at both positions in his college career.

6) Joe Burrow, LSU QB

This is going off just one season but that one season may have been the single greatest season any quarterback in College football history ever had.

5) John Hannah, Alabama OL

John Hannah was a first-team All-American in 1972 and won the Jacobs Blocking Trophy as the best blocker in the conference. While it is tough to rank a lineman against other positions, anyone who saw Hannah play would agree that he belongs near the top of any list. Hannah is considered by most the greatest guard ever to play the game of football.

4) Dwight Stephenson, Alabama OL

Coach Bear Bryant called Dwight the greatest player he had ever coached. Stephenson is considered one of the greatest centers to ever play football. Stephenson participated in consecutive National Championships and very nearly three straight, but the Tide was robbed by voters in 1977.

3) Bo Jackson, Auburn RB

The 6’1″, 220-pound back was big and fast, making him a nightmare for opposing defenders. In his Auburn career, he rushed for 4,303 yards and 43 touchdowns. Jackson won the 1985 Heisman and was a two-time All-American selection. The legend of Bo Jackson was cut short in the NFL after an injury ended his career. In the end, the injury may have cut short Jackson’s career, but it probably made his legend even bigger.

2) Tim Tebow, Florida QB

Tebow passed for 9,286 yards and a huge 88 touchdowns and ran for an additional 2,947 yards and 57 touchdowns in his prolific Gator career. Tebow won the Heisman Trophy in 2007, and the Gators won the national title during his freshman and junior seasons (2006 and 2008). Tebow was a great leader and winner in college, those facts can not be denied.

1) Herschel Walker, Georgia RB

Herschel Walker led Georgia to an undefeated season and a national championship in his 1980 freshman season. Georgia won three SEC titles and went 33-3 in Walker’s three seasons as a Bulldog. He gained an impressive 5,259 yards and scored 52 touchdowns in three years. That is an ridiculous average of 159 yards per ball game.