Week 8: College football breakout stars
Week eight of the college football season is in the books, and with it came many standout performances. Here are three players who had what could be breakout weeks as they take the next step in their progression.
Mark Pszonak contributed to this report
BREAKOUT 2016 STARS: Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7
The skinny: Allen committed to Penn State in May of his junior year and never looked back. He had some major offers from programs such as Clemson, Michigan and Nebraska, but he jumped on the Nittany Lions' offer once they began running out of room. This past weekend he jumped as well, blocking a field goal attempt that led to Penn State's go-ahead touchdown in a 24-21 upset of No. 2 Ohio State. Allen also had seven tackles in the game, giving him 57 stops on the season. This year he is set to break his career high in almost every defensive category.
Farrell’s take: Allen was a hard-hitting defender who had the size to grow into a linebacker if needed. He was solid in coverage, but his calling card was his willingness to hit and come up in run support. He was a mid three-star prospect we saw either being a big, physical strong safety or a weakside linebacker. He has lived up to his ranking and then some so far.
The skinny: Pettway, a one-time Florida State pledge, was Auburn's first commitment in the 2014 recruiting cycle. After being a feature back at Prattville, he played some H-Back at the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Game because of his size and power. Pettway showcased that power over the weekend with 192 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries in Auburn's 56-3 rout of Arkansas. While he’s had some big games this season against Arkansas State and Mississippi State and he was excellent against Texas A&M, this was clearly a breakout performance on national television.
Farrell’s take: Pettway was a controversial prospect because we had him as a fullback and everyone, Florida State fans and then Auburn fans especially, wanted him listed as a regular running back. We saw more of a blocking and pass-catching role in his future, especially with the way Auburn recruits talented backs. He has done a great job stepping into that feature role with depth limited and Kerryon Johnson banged up. Pettway still lacks great speed, but the power he runs with and the way he wears down defenses is the same as when we had him as a high three-star.
The skinny: Williams signed with UConn out of prep school as a three-star prospect, but ultimately needed to take the JUCO route. He inked with Utah out of ASA College as a two-star; the Utes took him late because they needed a second back. After “retiring” from football earlier this fall, injuries lured Williams back and he followed up a 179-yard game against Oregon State with a 332-yard effort with four scores in a 52-45 win over UCLA this weekend. He is clearly back to loving football again.
Farrell’s take: Williams was a guy who could run inside and catch the ball in the passing game coming out of prep school. However, he had to head JUCO, headed out west to play for Utah and has overcome numerous obstacles to get to where he is now. This is a breakout game for him even after his Oregon State success because of the national attention he is now getting. Could this be a jumping off point for Williams after so many ups and downs?
