4th and 10
Busted: College Football Recruiting
By Levi Dunagan & Sam Pouncey
Most often we hear about players who become NFL busts, never fulfilling their potential. Sam came up with the idea of doing the biggest busts in college football. The rise in popularity of the college football recruiting process has led to more attention for potential recruits. Fans see every high school star and commitment as the savior of their program. Unfortunately, for the players who made our list that promise never came to fruition. The players on this list are like the guy or girl you meet for the first time and think they are incredible. Then you realize a few weeks down the road that they just make a great first impression and are in fact, not cool.
Remember to follow us on Twitter: @4_DownTerritory
Sam Pouncey
1. Fred Rouse, Florida State
2. Bryce Brown, Tennessee
3. Vidal Hazelton, USC
4. Tyler Love, Alabama
5. Torrey Davis, Florida
6. Ryan Perriloux, LSU
7. Mitch Mustain, Arkansas
8. Rhett Bomar, Oklahoma
9. Burton Scott, Alabama
10. John Brantley, Florida
Fred Rouse– He was the rated the sixth overall player in the country in high school, according to Rivals, which is equal to the number of passes he caught at Florida State. Rouse finished his college career at Concordia College in Selma, AL.
Vidal Hazelton– The seventh rated player in the 2006 recruiting class, Hazelton recorded 586 receiving yards and four touchdowns in his career at USC. He was the team’s leading receiver in 2007, but an ankle injury the following season led to him being benched and he transferred after the 2008 season.
Tyler Love– The 5-star offensive lineman from Mountain Brook, Alabama only played in 13 games in his career at Alabama. He did receive two national championship rings in his injury-plagued career.
Ryan Perrilloux– The highlight of his career came when he was named the 2007 SEC Championship player of the game. The lowlights included claiming he’d win four Heisman Trophies and start over JaMarcus Russell. He was redshirted as a freshman and dismissed from LSU’s team after two seasons.
Rhett Bomar– Bomar headlined a notoriously bad 2004 QB class, whose household names are Chad Henne, Brian Hoyer, and Curtis Painter.
Levi Dunagan
1. Bryce Brown, Tennessee
2. Kyle Wright, Miami (FL)
3. Fred Rouse, Florida State
4. Ryan Perriloux, LSU
5. Burton Scott, Alabama
6. John Brantley, Florida
7. Mitch Mustain, Arkansas
8. Torrey Davis, Florida
9. Tyler Love, Alabama
10. Lorenzo Booker, FSU
Bryce Brown– Despite finding a role with the Philadelphia Eagles, Brown was a huge disappointment at the collegiate level. Rivals rated Brown as the top player in the entire 2009 recruiting class. Brown scored four touchdowns in his only season at Tennessee. Could it have been the Kobe Bryant-esque afro that slowed down Brown?
Kyle Wright– Wright was rated the top quarterback in 2003 and was a flop. If you were expecting more information, I would like to mention he threw 38 touchdowns and 31 interceptions. Injuries hurt his career and he is now working in the real world.
Burton Scott– Scott was an elite high school player for Vigor High School in Alabama. He unfortunately found himself in a tough spot at Alabama. Scott didn’t fit into the system and struggled as a defender and as an offensive player. The worst part of Scott’s failure was the countless hours fans and sports writers had spent concocting “Great Scott” headlines. One that I think would have been great: “We Can’t Scott.” I want you to let the subtle, pop culture reference sink in.
John Brantley- I would like to point out that Brantley had fantastic statistics in two years as a backup to Tim Tebow. However, when Brantley became the starter for the Gators he struggled a great deal. The irony is how long into Brantley’s tenure announcers referred to Brantley as “elite.” I watched him play for two years and if there is one word I would refrain from, it’s elite. It seemed like every game the hype around Brantley would speak to his NFL arm or his ability to make “all the throws.” I could be wrong here, but hopefully in his repertoire of throws it would have been nice to have thrown some touchdown passes. Brantley wouldn’t have led your intramural team to the 2nd round of the playoffs.
Mitch Mustain- Mustain began his career 8-0 as a starter. Yet, Houston Nutt opted to go with Casey Dick down the stretch of the Arkansas season. Mitch Mustain, the biggest recruit in the history of the Arkansas football program got replaced by Casey Dick. Let that sink in and then remember Houston Nutt ruins quarterbacks more often than he texts his secretaries.
4 Down Territory 