30 college football players with the biggest shoes to fill in 2018

Shoes to Fill: Mason Rudolph

Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph capped an incredible career with 4,904 passing yards and 37 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 489 pass attempts (a solid 1.84 percent interception rate) as a senior. Rudolph led the nation with an average of 377.2 passing yards per game and ranked third with an average of 10.0 yards per pass attempt.

A three-year starter and four-year contributor to the Cowboys, Rudolph amassed 13,618 passing yards and 92 touchdowns through the air, which ranked No. 11 and No. 8 in Big 12 history, respectively. Rudolph ranks in the top 10 in Big 12 history in completions (915), pass attempts (1,447), yards per attempt (9.4), and total yards (13,646). He also scored 17 rushing touchdowns.

Rudolph’s favorite target was James Washington, who graduates No. 2 on the all-time conference leaderboard with 4,472 receiving yards and won the 2017 Biletnikoff Award. Incredibly, Washington averaged 19.8 yards per catch during his career and was on the receiving end of 39 touchdown passes.

Rudolph and Washington were one of the greatest quarterback-receiver combos in college football history, so it’s very difficult to imagine Tyler Cornelius or Keondre Wudtee finding a similar connection in 2018. But, with Mike Gundy still at the helm, Oklahoma State should still light up the scoreboard.

Cornelius has waited patiently for his chance and is the likely Week 1 starter for the Cowboys next season. A 6-foot-6, 225-pound rising senior, Cornelius has completed 15 of 24 career pass attempts for 220 yards in three seasons. Wudtee was 1-for-3 for seven yards as a freshman in 2017. The two will battle it out with newcomer Spencer Sanders, a four-star dual threat quarterback and one of the highest rated recruits ever for Gundy at the position, this fall.