CFB51 College Football Fan Community
The Power Four => Big Ten => Topic started by: OrangeAfroMan on April 13, 2026, 08:57:58 PM
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I'm moving on from the Mt Rushmore series to one inspired by a different yt video. Genetic freaks.
So it's not about production, it's just add guys who were genetically gifted from birth. Guys who were too fast at their size or too big at their speed, etc.
QBs - Vick,
RBs - A.Peterson, Dupree, Bo,
WRs - Moss, Calvin Johnson,
TEs - Pitts,
OL - Pace, Ogden,
DT - Suh,
DE - Clowney
LB - Kearse, Arrington
CB - Deion?
S - Sean Taylor, Taylor Mays,
Maybe include guys who didn't pan out, but maybe getting off the bus looked like THE legit dude.
Who else would you add on?
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Daunte Culpepper kinda had that look, certainly worthy of QB2 here.
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Daunte Culpepper kinda had that look, certainly worthy of QB2 here.
only legit answer is Cam. Freakish size and strength and speed combo. Dude was bulldozing SEC LBs and DLs and running away from DBs en route to a heisman and natty.
Barry Sanders has to be there at RB. Freakish agility and change of direction- mortal RBs knee ligaments would explode or their ankles would snap doing the shit he did.
Charles Woodson in his prime was pretty freakish. Ditto Champ Bailey.
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BO
Andy Katzenmoyer
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Purdue fans (and OSU fans lol) might add WR Rondale Moore.
He wasn't the "Greek God" version of genetic freak. He was small and fast. What made him a genetic freak was how strong he was for that size and speed. 5'7" and 170# and he could squat 600#. Had such amazing strength that he was fast in a straight line but could cut on a dime at speed, and yet was damn hard to tackle for a 170# guy.
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Tony Mandarich comes to mind.
Herschel Walker was a freak.
Big John Henderson "Baby Shaq" as he was dubbed.
Jerome Bettis.
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That huge fat QB at Kentucky a couple decades ago was pretty freakish.
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QB - Tebow and Cam come to mind. Always seemed like "more" than they physically could have possibly been. I remember in the 2007 LSU/UF game, a couple of plays where 2 or 3 LSU front 7 defenders got hold of Tebow behind the line for what seemed like a sure-fire sack, and then he somehow drug everybody for a 2 yard gain. Might seem like a small thing, but it had that "WTF? He shouldn't be able to do that" quality. He had a lot of plays like that. Cam too.
maybe VY also. His ability to gracefully sidestep defenders and then outrun everybody was insane. Jayden had that too, though he wasn't a long-strider like VY.
Some of those Ohio St. qbs.....guys like Cardale Jones, even Pryor (if we're not talking about production)....they had a few that were a hassle and a half, physically.
Megatron at WR. Maybe I'm letting NFL cloud my judgement, but just thinking about physical freaks, he seems to qualify.
Patrick Peterson at CB. 220-pounders shouldn't be able to move their hips like that, and his speed was ridiculous.
LSU had a string of DE's back in the day who were oddly freakish. 300 pounders that still moved and got after the QB like they were 240, but with all the muscle that goes with being a big lane-clogger. Spears, Hill, Jackson....maybe some others I'm forgetting.
Utility player - Percy Harvin. Guy was like a road runner on a field full of hapless Wile E. Coyotes.
LB - Patrick Willis at Ole Miss. I saw him in person one time, he stood out compared to everybody on the field....on both teams.
Um....back to QB, throw Jamarcus Russell and Ryan Mallett in there. Their arms were insane.
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What was Brian Urlacher like in college?
Again this could be "NFL clouding my judgement", but I recall a CHI/ATL game one year where the announcers said that Vick and Urlacher were the two fastest guys on the field.
There's no way someone that big should be that fast.
But I don't know if that is something that we learned more from his NFL days than his college days...
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What was Brian Urlacher like in college?
Again this could be "NFL clouding my judgement", but I recall a CHI/ATL game one year where the announcers said that Vick and Urlacher were the two fastest guys on the field.
There's no way someone that big should be that fast.
But I don't know if that is something that we learned more from his NFL days than his college days...
I think he played Safety at New Mexico, and he bulked up to take that MLB Bears position over as the heir apparent to Singletary.
But I was cornfused yesterday. Hope I get my synapses firing again before trivia night at the wine bar tonight.
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DE--Reggie White. 4.6 40
RB--Derrick Henry. Dude is a monster and ran the fastest of any player on a field last year. Still.
"" --Christian Okoye. Nigerian Nightmare at full head of steam was a fright, although--
S Steve Atwater caught him one time--and he was a Hitter as well.
WR--Randy Moss. Best deep threat ever, imo
RB--Ricky Williams. Size and speed combo, just didn't translate like Henry's has.
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WR Ted Ginn JR at tOSU. He had football speed that was insane. There are a few games that stand out but even against top tier opponents if he had a step he was gone because NOBODY was going to catch him. I remember against Texas in 2006 he caught a pass that was just a short crossing route but the top-flight Texas DBs just couldn't keep up and he turned a routine first down into a long TD. Against Michigan in 2004 (his freshman season) he had a punt return that was the same way. He juked a guy and then it was all over. I specifically cited Texas and Michigan here because they have top-tier 5* DBs. I'm not talking about outrunning some walk-on playing for a MAC opponents, I'm talking about top-tier 5* DBs at Texas and Michigan who looked like they were running in quicksand next to Ted Ginn.
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Charles Woodson in his prime was pretty freakish.
I second this. Dude was stronger than LBers and faster than DBs.
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I managed a post without a homer twist a minute ago. Gotta correct that.
Talking about a small guy doing things nobody else's legs would stay together attempting, Barry Sanders, I submit another Kansas kid that just made tacklers look silly--Darren Sproles.
Wild Bill Snyder didn't even pay attention to freshman back in those times, but the starting defense looked like the keystone cops trying to tackle him in practice, so he went on the field as a frosh eventually.
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Sproles was scary as an opponent - the 2003 game in Lincoln - 25 carries = 140 yards
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I managed a post without a homer twist a minute ago. Gotta correct that.
Talking about a small guy doing things nobody else's legs would stay together attempting, Barry Sanders, I submit another Kansas kid that just made tacklers look silly--Darren Sproles.
Wild Bill Snyder didn't even pay attention to freshman back in those times, but the starting defense looked like the keystone cops trying to tackle him in practice, so he went on the field as a frosh eventually.
All Saints fans love Tiny Sproles.
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Talking about a small guy doing things nobody else's legs would stay together attempting, Barry Sanders, I submit another Kansas kid that just made tacklers look silly--Darren Sproles.
He played 14 seasons and that's not including missing his 2nd season with a broken ankle.
Didn't know this:
- Sproles holds the NFL record for most single-season all-purpose yardage, with 2,696 yards in 2011.
- He shares the record for most receptions in a playoff game with 15.
- He is ranked 6th in career all-purpose yards in NFL history (19,696 yards)
Dayum - Ya he was a Baller
Sort of reminds me of an Offensive version of London Fletcher @ LB all over the the place, only he was a Cleveland kid. Led the whole league in tackles in 2011 and he finished his career having played in 256 consecutive games and starting 215 consecutive games, which is the NFL all-time record of consecutive starts at the linebacker position
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Sproles was scary as an opponent - the 2003 game in Lincoln - 25 carries = 140 yards
The Good Ole Days. Ell Roberson and Sproles running the ball.
And that was so long ago, our QB from 9 yrs after they were done is now our head coach.
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time flies when yer havin fun!
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Alstott was a beast.
Ron Dayne.
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Craig Heyward....in that he had the body of a plumber, but with cardio.
College-wise, he played for Pitt and finished 5th for the Heisman in 1987.
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Iron head
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Ted Ginn Jr, especially as a freshman, was crazy to watch
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Jim Brown
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Butkus.
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at Center
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Jordan Davis was pretty much a freak at DT.
Refrigerator Perry back in the day ...
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I don't remember the fridge in college but I assume he was a physical freak then, too.
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He was. Had like 6 credits at Clemson.
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TE: Lance Kendricks: too big to be a WR, too fast to be at TE. Was a matchup problem for defending teams.
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Speaking of TEs, is Bowers a "freak"?
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Ron Dayne.
Jordan Davis was pretty much a freak at DT.
Good calls.
Jonathan Allen at Bama around 10 years ago was pretty freakish. They had a lot of great DTs for a string of years, but he stood out physically to me, as far as how he could move and some things he did on the field.
Speaking of TEs, is Bowers a "freak"?
Yes.
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Fournette was a freak athlete.
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at Center
At anywhere. He was just a great football player who would kill to win a game.
Played two-way football at Illinois.
(https://i.imgur.com/tcXYEZR.png)
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Beast.
(https://i.imgur.com/ubForPc.png)
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Ted Ginn Jr, especially as a freshman, was crazy to watch
yeah his speed was pretty freakish, for sure one of the fastest I’ve ever witnessed on a football field.
Percy Harvin up there too.
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Speaking of TEs, is Bowers a "freak"?
Yes without a doubt.
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I lean to thinking a "freak" is something different from just an elite level talent. It's a player with a very unusual set of physical characteristics, like weighing 350 pounds and running a 4.6 40 and dunking a basketball. He might not even be a great football player.
Bowers is an elite talent, no doubt, but maybe not a freak using my restrictive criteria.
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freak is way above elite in my book
It's man against boys stuff - check some Jim Brown highlights
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Bowers was productive and great. But it's hard for a 6'4", 230 lb TE to be considered a physical freak. I think we're leaning on great players and not solely physical freaks.
I'm thinking guys you see on a roster who's height/weight/position stand out, but maybe he never even plays much.
I name recognizable guys to give you an idea of what a "freak" might be.
Joe Milton would be a good example at QB.
He could Uncle Rico it over 'that mountain,' but was never an elite productive talent. I think he started maybe 1 season overall?
That one UM QB comes to mind - Drew Henson. Great, special talent.....but his career mimicked Cade McNamara's in terms of stats.
Sticking with UM, just because we're all familiar with them, a Tyrone Wheatley would be a freak - that size of a RB returning kicks and such.
Guys like that, who may or may not have been productive, but would dominate an NFL combine-type situation.
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LSU had one such guy around ~15 years ago, who was even nicknamed "Freak." Anthony "Freak" Johnson, a DT. So named because his weight room ability was legendary, especially when he was a freshman and hadn't had any time in a college-level weight-training program. We had high expectations for him but nobody's ever heard of him because he had crappy technique and for whatever other reasons, never made much of a dent, and passed through with very little playing time.
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I would think about a player with an unusual physical ability and who might well not have been a great or elite player, but was 5'8" and could double dunk for exeample.
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How about this one. He tried to play football.
Brock Lesnar
D-I Wrestling Champ, Heavyweight UFC Champ, tried to play for the Vikings. Still a bad MF in his 40's. Absolutely a freak.
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I lean to thinking a "freak" is something different from just an elite level talent. It's a player with a very unusual set of physical characteristics, like weighing 350 pounds and running a 4.6 40 and dunking a basketball. He might not even be a great football player.
Bowers is an elite talent, no doubt, but maybe not a freak using my restrictive criteria.
I'm with you on that. Although not necessarily that I mean the two can't coexist, but a "freak" is someone that you look at and think "there's no way that person should physically be capable of that".
In this vein, someone like a Calvin Johnson can be a freak. Because literally nobody on earth should be capable of what he is capable of. And he did it at, what, 6'5" and 240 lbs? It was like he broke that mold of size != speed. (Much like my previous example, Brian Urlacher).
But at the same time, there's Rondale Moore. 5'7", 180 lbs. And yet he could squat 600 lbs, could change direction like Barry Sanders, and was shedding tacklers like he was greased in Crisco. Doesn't fit.
Bowers was productive and great. But it's hard for a 6'4", 230 lb TE to be considered a physical freak. I think we're leaning on great players and not solely physical freaks.
I'm with you on Bowers. He's great. But we've seen his type. The "too big to be a WR so he plays WR but is labeled TE" guy.
The freaks to me are the ones like George Kittle. Yeah, he's all of that when it comes to being a pass-catcher. But he's also not coming off the field when being a blocker is required.
The TEs that are both fast and talented enough to be serious pass-catching threats, but at the SAME time strong enough to take on a rushing D end and their QB lives to tell the tale? That's the genetic freak territory for me at TE.
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Mark Schellen #25 - Position - FB
Weight - 225 lbs / Height - 5-10
Honors & Awards
Set a Nebraska fullback record with nine touchdowns in 1983
Held Nebraska's all-time bench press record with a best of 475 pounds
1983 (Senior)
Schellen was a key part of the 1983 Husker Offense, scoring 9 touchdowns, which was a Nebraska fullback record at the time. He gained 450 yards on 77 carries, 5.8 ypc as a senior, and his crunching blocks were responsible for freeing Mike Rozier on many of his longest runs during his Heisman Trophy season.
1981 (Sophomore)
Schellen enrolled at Nebraska in the fall of 1981 and walked on in the spring of 1982. Schellen originally enrolled at Nebraska-Omaha in 1979, then dropped out of school for a year to focus on power lifting.
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The Freak part is that Mark is said to have been the only guy on the roster to beat Irving Fryer in the 40 yard dash.