30 best college football wide receivers of the 21st century

23. Ryan Broyles – Oklahoma Sooners

It’s so hard to rank Ryan Broyles because unlike a lot of the receivers on this list, he did a lot with not as much as the others. He was a three-star recruit coming out of Norman High School. Yes, he played high school ball in the same town he played college ball.

He redshirted his first year with the Sooners, but it didn’t take him long to make an impact in year two on campus. In his very first game, he 141 yards and a touchdown against Cincinnati. The next week, he scored two touchdowns against Washington. The rest of his freshman season was average at best, but he still broke freshman records for receptions and yards in Oklahoma history.

His sophomore season is when he became a household name. It was his first of three-straight 1,000-yard seasons.

He finished his career as the all-time NCAA receptions leader and he’s still third on that list today. His 131 receptions in 2010 were the 11th-best of all time. His 45 touchdowns were 4th best at the time and are still 6th best in history. He accumulated stats, but he was also someone who could make a play at every snap. He’d be even higher on these lists if he didn’t tear his ACL in his senior season.

Broyles was one of the best stories in college football history. A 5-foot-10, 188-pound receiver out of Norman, Oklahoma going across town and playing for the Sooners. Not only did he play for them, but by sure will he became the best receiver to ever wear the uniform. He was a two-time All-American and finished second in the Biletnikoff Award twice to Justin Blackmon.