Top Breakout Freshmen

SI Staff | Jul 16, 2008

Top Breakout Freshmen /

Top Breakout Freshmen

Derrick Rose

No freshman in the nation had a bigger coming out party than Rose, who led Memphis to the national championship game before being tabbed the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. Here are some other freshmen who had breakout seasons during the 2007-08 college sports year, including the nation's best first-year quarterback and hockey goalie.

Michael Beasley

The nation's leading rebounder and third-leading scorer, Beasley was a first-team All-America and Naismith Award finalist thanks to his 27.6 points and 12.4 rebounds per game. His Wildcats got the best of another freshman phenom, O.J. Mayo, when Beasley scored 23 points to lead K-State to a second-round tournament win over USC.

Michael Crabtree

The unanimous first-team All-America wideout rewrote the freshman record book, setting first-year records for receptions (134), yards (1,962), and touchdowns (22). He broke the freshman touchdown mark in just his first five games, and fell just eight catches short of the NCAA single-season receptions record.

Jeremy Maclin

Playing primarily at wide receiver, the All-America set the NCAA freshman record for all-purpose yards in a season, averaging 198.3 yard per game. He had a school-record 360-yard game against Kansas State.

Chris Hernandez

The ACC's Freshman of the Year struck out 112 batters and allowed opposing hitters to bat just .218 as he racked up a perfect 11-0 record. A cut fastball and 2.62 ERA helped land the left-hander on the Louisville Slugger All-America second team.

Cody Loe (Cal-State Northridge)

Playing on different coasts and at different positions, Loe and Del Valle were the lone freshmen volleyball All-Americas last season. Loe had the nation's sixth-best hitting percentage while Del Valle led No. 1 Penn State in digs on its way to a national championship.

Kevin Love

The Pac-10 Player of the Year and first-team All-America averaged a double-double (17.5 points, 10.6 rebounds) in leading UCLA to the Final Four. Love scored in double figures in all 39 of the Bruins' games.

O.J. Mayo

Hyped as the best prospect in a stacked freshman class, Mayo scored over 30 points on four occasions while averaging 20.7 points and shooting 41 percent from behind the three-point line.

Maya Moore

The first freshman to be named Big East Player of the Year, Moore tied Diana Taurasi's Connecticut record of 31 straight games in double figures, averaging 17.9 points to go with 1.6 blocks per game. She was second-team All-America, the only freshman on one of the top three teams.

Knowshon Moreno

After taking over as the full-time starter for injured senior Thomas Brown, Moreno ran off five straight games of over 100 rushing yards (the first Bulldog since Herschel Walker to do so), including a 180-yard, three touchdown outburst against Florida. His 1,334 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns earned him SEC Freshman of the Year and first team All-SEC honors.

Sam Bradford

Bradford had the nation's highest pass efficiency rating (176.5) and threw for 3,121 yards and a NCAA freshman record 36 touchdowns. The honorable mention All-America and finalist for the Manning Award set a school record with 22 consecutive completions, two short of the NCAA mark.

Chance Ruffin

One of only two freshmen named to the Baseball America All-America team, the right-hander made the third team after holding opposing batters to a .191 batting average on his way to an 8-3 record. He was the only member of the Big 12 champion Longhorns named to the All-America team.

Eric Gordon

After a quick start, scoring over 30 points in three of his first four games, Gordon's slashing drives helped him lead the Big Ten in scoring with 20.9 points per game. Named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and first team all-conference, Gordon scored fewer than 12 points only twice the entire season.

Jerryd Bayless

Playing in the shadow of Pac-10 freshmen O.J. Mayo and Kevin Love, Bayless "quietly" averaged 19.7 points, third-best in the conference, and four assists a game.

J.P. Smith

A first-team All-America and SEC Freshman of the Year, Smith charged through the NCAA Tournament, dropping only one set against five ranked opponents on his way to the championship match, which he eventually lost.

Richard Bachman

Just the second rookie to be named conference player of the year, the Colorado College goalie set school records for goals against average (1.85) and save percentage (.931) while winning nine of his first 10 starts and compiling a 25-9-1 record.

Ingrid Wells

The first Hoya named to the women's soccer All-America team, Wells was also the only freshman on this year's team after scoring six goals and delivering a Georgetown record 13 assists, second-best in the ACC and eighth-best in the nation.

Jantel Lavender

The first freshman, male or female, to be named Big Ten Player of the Year, Lavender helped lead Ohio State to the Big Ten title. An honorable mention All-America, she averaged 17.6 points on 51 percent shooting to go with 9.9 rebounds per game.

Bianca Knight (Texas)

Knight ran the second-fastest time ever for an American woman to win the 200 meter title at the NCAA Indoor Championships, while Jungmark won the high jump title at the same meet by clearing 6 feet, 2 1/4 inches, a personal-best. They were the only freshmen to win individual titles at the indoor meet.

Jake Locker

The Pac-10 Offensive Freshman of the Year set a conference record for rushing yards by a quarterback (986) while also passing for 2,062 yards and scoring 27 total touchdowns. His 3,048 all-purpose yards were second-best in UW history, and his 98-yard touchdown pass to Marcel Reese set a Pac-10 record for longest pass play.

Jeshua Anderson

Anderson won the outdoor 400 meter hurdles title after playing in all 12 games at wide receiver for the Cougars in the fall.

Ngonidzashe Makusha

Makusha snared the long jump title two months before he will compete in the Beijing Olympics for Zimbabwe. Only one other freshman won a field event title at the outdoor championships: Maston Wallace of Texas, who took pole vault to help Texas place fourth in the team standings.

Published Jul 16, 2008

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