CFB Players Primed for a Monster 2021 Sophomore Season.

Freshman years don’t always work out as planned for first-year players. Between moving away from home, learning an entirely new system, adjusting to college life, and balancing classes. It’s a lot, we’ve been there.

Sophomore year is when we really see some of these players break out and announce their future in the NFL. Jameis Winston, as an example, redshirted his freshman year at Florida State before winning a national championship as a sophomore. Justin Fields didn’t start as a freshman either, and I think that’s turned out ok for him.

There’s plenty of examples of this, and everyone has their own story. In this list, I’m going to pick some players to break out in their sophomore season. Whether it be from good to great, bad to good, etc. It’s a little harder to evaluate guys who have redshirted, and I haven’t seen them play yet.

I’ll also set a rule not to pick the obvious choices who we can almost assume will break out (Bijan Robinson, Bryce Young, DJ Uiagalelei, etc.). Let’s try and be a little creative here? Now for the list:

Jaxson Smith-Njigba & Julian Fleming (Ohio State WR)

I’m going to throw these both in the same section because they are in the same situation. The Ohio State receiving game was dominated by Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson (the two of them both eclipsed 700 yards, the next-closest mark was 154 yards), and saw little production from the top two receivers in the Buckeyes’ stacked 2020 recruiting class.

Olave announced earlier in the year that he would (surprisingly) be returning to school for the 2021 season despite his projection to go early in the 2021 NFL Draft. That hurts my selection of these two soon-to-be-sophomores and how much production we can project from the two of them next season. However, there is too much talent between Fleming (No. 1 WR in the 2020 class) and Smith-Njigba (No. 5 WR in the 2020 class) for them to be kept off the field much more.

The two didn’t see the field much in 2020 (despite this insane touchdown from Smith-Njigba), and will also have to work with breaking in a new QB after the departure of Justin Fields. Let’s get them some targets!

Graham Mertz (Wisconsin QB)

While not a true sophomore (redshirted in 2019 before starting in 2020), Mertz has too much breakout potential to leave off this list. Mertz was primed to have an excellent freshman season before a combination of COVID-19 and inexperience knocked it off the rails. The former top recruit struggled after a 5-touchdown opener against Illinois and should add elements to the passing game that the Badgers haven’t seen since Russell Wilson in 2011. A full offseason should help immensely.

Myles Murphy, Bryan Bresee (Clemson DE)

Another pairing that I want to touch on. While both of these two had solid seasons on the Clemson DL (each had 4.0 sacks), there's another gear or two in the toolbox of the pair. Bresee (No. 1 overall player) and Murphy (No. 7 overall player) are going to be key in getting Clemson back on top of the college football world.

Justin Fields tore apart this Clemson defense in the National Semifinal, and for the most part, was kept clean from the Tigers’ pressure. That’s a moment where you need your star freshman to step up and make a play. We will see that as time goes on.

Michael Mayer (Notre Dame TE)

“Baby Gronk” lived up to the billing his freshman season, tied for the lead in receptions (42) and second in yards (450) as a true freshman. We can only imagine how much better Mayer will get as he grows into the game for the next two seasons. With Ian Book leaving for the NFL, a new QB (such as Jack Coan) could give Mayer a couple more targets in the end zone. Nonetheless, Mayer is the complete package. Blocking, pass-catching, YAC, it’s all there.

Jordan Addison (Pitt WR)

Addison burst onto the scene as a freshman in 2020. In 10 games, the frosh led Pitt in catches (60), receiving yards (666), and receiving touchdowns (4). He became the go-to guy in the Panthers’ offense as a true freshman with great hands and crisp route-running. A lot on Addison improving in his sophomore season will be on QB Kenny Pickett, who decided to return to Pitt in 2021. Pickett is fine, but a career-high of 13 touchdown passes last year won’t bode well for Addison if there’s any marginal improvement.

Chip Trayanum (ASU RB)

Trayanum flies under the radar a little thanks to sharing a backfield with JC transfer Rachaad White (10.0 YPC in 2020) and former four-star Daniyel Ngata. Trayanum split first-team carries with White and looked every bit the part like a seasoned veteran in the body of a true freshman (5-11 230). The freshman averaged nearly 6.0 YPC and found the end zone four times. He’s going to have to split carries again in 2021 with White, but don’t be fooled. Trayanum has the build of a future NFL back and will continue to thrive into his sophomore season.

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-By: TJ Mathewson