Fansided

15 college football teams losing the most talent in 2018

By Nicholas Ian Allen

ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 08: Lamont Gaillard #53 of the Georgia Bulldogs prepares to snap the ball against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the College Football Playoff National Championship held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. Alabama defeated Georgia 26-23 for the national title. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 08: Lamont Gaillard #53 of the Georgia Bulldogs prepares to snap the ball against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the College Football Playoff National Championship held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. Alabama defeated Georgia 26-23 for the national title. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 15
Next

As we look ahead to the 2018 college football season, we explore 15 teams that lost the most talent to graduation and the NFL Draft.

Every college football offseason follows a similar pattern. First, we take a quick look back at all the great moments that made last year so special. Then, we go through the rosters, depth charts and stat sheets for each team, and cross off the names of the seniors that have run out of eligibility. In mid-January, the NFL publishes its list of players who have decided to leave school early for the draft. We cross those players off our list, as well as various transfers and disciplinary actions – a process we must stay on top of until September.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve added up those crossed-off names to determine which programs have the biggest holes to fill. For instance, Colorado State lost 15 players to graduation from last year’s roster, which is more than any team in the nation. Navy lost 21 players listed on the two-deep roster, the most in the country, followed by UTSA with 20.

They may have lost the largest numbers of experienced players, but few would argue Colorado State, Navy or UTSA lost the most talent. After all, none of the three lost a player early to the NFL Draft, and none of the three recruit at a particularly high level anyway. Therefore, we set out to rank the top 15 teams in terms of lost talent, focusing on bowl-eligible teams from Power Five conferences.

LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 09: USC (25) Ronald Jones II (TB) runs off the field after a touchdown flanked by USC (14) Sam Darnold (QB) and USC (1) Joseph Lewis IV (WR) during a college football game between the Stanford Cardinal and the USC Trojans on September 9, 2017, at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 09: USC (25) Ronald Jones II (TB) runs off the field after a touchdown flanked by USC (14) Sam Darnold (QB) and USC (1) Joseph Lewis IV (WR) during a college football game between the Stanford Cardinal and the USC Trojans on September 9, 2017, at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Early NFL Draft Entrants: 4 (WR Deontay Burnett, DE Rasheem Green, RB Ronald Jones II, QB Sam Darnold)

  • Starters Lost: 8 (4 Offense, 4 Defense)
  • Two-Deep Lost: 10 (5 Offense, 5 Defense)
  • Passing Yards Returning: 43 (1.03 percent)
  • Rushing Yards Returning: 976 (34.5 percent)
  • Receiving Yards Returning: 2,213 (53.2 percent)
  • Tackles Returning: 511.5 (70.94 percent)

There are other Power Five schools that lost a higher percentage of starters but missed our list, such as Colorado, Maryland, Vanderbilt, Iowa State and Nebraska, among others. However, the eight starters USC lost are far more talented on average. Also, the Trojans must replace four players who left school early for the 2018 NFL Draft. Only four programs lost more nationally. One, Texas, lost a punter among its five early draft entrants, which skews its total slightly, while Auburn and Clemson, who like the Trojans and Longhorns lost four players, return enough talent to narrowly miss our list.

The USC headliner is Sam Darnold, who is a surefire first round pick and a player in the running to be selected No. 1 overall. Darnold accounted for 99 percent of the Trojans passing yardage last season (4,143) and combined with Ronald Jones II (1,550 rushing yards) to account for nearly two-thirds of rushing yardage.

USC has talented quarterback prospects to turn to, but whoever wins the job next fall will be unable to rely on leading receiver Deontay Burnett, who led the Trojans in targets (131), catches (86), receiving yards (1,114) and touchdown catches (9). Senior Steven Mitchell, who ranked third on the team in all three categories, is also gone.

Home/College Football