College football rankings: Top 10 wide receivers of 2021

5. Treylon Burks, Arkansas

Simply on the basis of how he’s built, Treylon Burks stands out among all of the wide receivers in college football. It’s not every day that you see a player who is 6-foot-3 and 232 pounds line up on the outside of the offense or, in some cases with the Razorbacks offense, in the backfield for different looks. But that’s what makes Burks such a special talent.

Despite his bulky frame, Burks moves much better than you would expect, even if he’s not going to run a 4.2-second 40. And despite some relatively inconsistent quarterback play in a new offense last season, Burks was Second-Team All-SEC for the year as he put forth a big season with 51 receptions for 820 yards and seven touchdowns along with 75 rushing yards in only nine games.

Burks cracks the top five of these rankings, though, because he got substantially better from year one to year two. He was largely just a deep threat as a freshman and, while that remained part of his game, he was dangerous in all levels of the field as a sophomore.

If he continues that upward trajectory and the offense is able to further come along in the second year under Sam Pittman at Arkansas, Burks could be a truly jaw-dropping player. He can burn teams all over the place and, even if defenders get near him, good luck bringing down a 232-pounder who moves the way the wideout is able to.