The 2021 college football season is set to be the most anticipated in recent memory. With a new coach at the helm, a new playoff system, and an all-star cast of players, it’s shaping up to be one of the best seasons yet.
The all-american college football 2021 is a new midseason All-American team that will be released in 2021.
Georgia, Alabama, Oklahoma, and Ohio State are among the teams in contention for a place in the College Football Playoff, with Georgia, Alabama, Oklahoma, and Ohio State all in contention for one of the coveted four slots. However, many of the players who are leading those teams and others have taken their initial steps into the spotlight.
At the conclusion of the 2020 season, none of the players on the 2021 ESPN Midseason All-America squad were named to the All-America team. With three picks, Alabama leads the way, followed by Georgia and Iowa, each with two. The 24 players chosen for attack, defense, and special teams represent 20 different clubs in total.
Offense
Alabama quarterback Bryce Young
Through six games, the first-year starter is just the sixth player in the College Football Playoff history to throw for at least 1,700 yards, 20 touchdowns, and no interceptions. Cal’s Jared Goff, Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, LSU’s Joe Burrow, and Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray were all selected in the first round of the NFL draft. Last season, Kyle Trask of Florida was the other.
Michigan State running back Kenneth Walker III
Walker, a Wake Forest transfer, leads the FBS in running yards per game with 152.2 yards per game, more than 20 yards more than the next player. In addition, he’s averaging 7.1 yards per rush, which is the highest among FBS players with at least 100 carries. Through six games, Walker is one of just seven Power 5 running backs with 900 rushing yards, nine rushing touchdowns, and more than 7 yards per carry in the CFP era. Bryce Love of Stanford and Leonard Fournette of LSU were among the others.
Bijan Robinson (Texas) is a running back.
When the Longhorns give Robinson the ball, he can do incredible things. With 131.5 yards per game, he is fourth in the FBS and has already rushed for more yards than he did all of last season, with twice as many running touchdowns. He has 59 missed or broken tackles, which is ten more than any other FBS rusher.
Drake London (USC) is a wide receiver.
Don’t hold London responsible for the Trojans’ 3-3 start. He has 64 receptions for 832 yards and five scores, almost three times as much as any other player on the USC roster. In all but one game, he had 16 receptions, 13 against Washington State, and more than 100 yards receiving. London had the most catches by a Power 5 receiver after six games since Tavon Austin of West Virginia had 68 in 2012.
Josh Downs (North Carolina) is a wide receiver.
In the Tar Heels’ dismal start, Downs is still working his magic. With 49 catches and 741 receiving yards, he leads the ACC. Since Davante Adams of Fresno State accomplished it in nine straight games in 2013, he is the only FBS player to have at least eight catches and a score in six successive games. Downs has a touchdown grab in seven consecutive games dating back to the Capital One Orange Bowl last season. He leads the Power 5 with 451 yards after the catch, 162 more than London, who is second.
Isaiah Likely, Coastal Carolina tight end
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Likely’s stat line after six games this season (27 receptions, 513 yards, eight touchdowns) resembles that of Florida’s Kyle Pitts a year ago (27 catches, 513 yards, eight touchdowns) (29 catches, 513 yards, 11 touchdowns). Likely made eight receptions for 232 yards and four touchdowns in Coastal Carolina’s unbeaten 52-20 win against Arkansas State on Oct. 7, including a school-record 99-yard reception on the Chanticleers’ second play from scrimmage. He’s the only tight end in Sun Belt Conference history to score four touchdowns in a single game.
Alabama tackle Evan Neal
The Crimson Tide have had some offensive line issues recently, allowing 14 sacks in six games, but Neal isn’t one of them. In Alabama’s 42-21 win against Ole Miss, he received a team-high 89.3 grade from PFF. During his collegiate career, Neal has showed flexibility by starting 13 games at left guard in 2019 and 13 games at right tackle in 2020. In 206 dropback snaps, he has only allowed one sack and has not been flagged for a penalty in 415 snaps total.
Kentucky’s Eli Cox is a guard.
Cox has helped establish Kentucky’s “Big Blue Wall” in his debut season as the starting right guard, paving the way for Chris Rodriguez Jr., the SEC’s top rusher. Kentucky is 6-0 for the first time since 1950, and just the second time in the last 111 years, thanks to their devastating ground game. Cox, who has been described as the team’s strongest pound-for-pound player, had seven knockdown blocks, 15 point-of-attack blocks, and didn’t miss an assignment in last week’s 42-21 win against LSU. This season, he has an overall grade of 80.8 percent with 15 knockdown blocks. He also scored the game-winning touchdown against Missouri after recovering a fumble in the end zone.
Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum is in the center.
During Iowa’s 6-0 start, the Hawkeyes’ homegrown standout from Solon, Iowa, has been utterly dominating. Linderbaum has a 92.8 run-blocking grade, which is 11 points higher than any other center in the FBS, according to Pro Football Focus. In Iowa’s 23-20 win against No. 4 Penn State last week, PFF observed that he didn’t allow a sack, hurry, or quarterback hit. As the country’s best center, he’s a strong favorite to win the Rimington Trophy.
Boston College’s Zion Johnson is a guard.
Johnson did not begin playing football until his final year of high school, and he spent his first two college seasons at Davidson. After switching from left guard to left tackle last season, the Maryland native was rated as Boston College’s best lineman. This season, he’s back at guard, and he’s been just as brilliant. In five games, the Eagles have allowed just six sacks, the fewest in the ACC. They are also sixth in the league in running with 185.6 yards per game.
NC State tackle Ikem Ekwonu
Through five games, the Wolfpack’s left tackle hasn’t allowed a sack in 371 plays. Even more remarkable, he has zero blown blocks on 152 run-play snaps this season, and just three blown blocks overall. This season, Ekwonu was named ACC offensive lineman of the week twice, including 11 pancake blocks against Louisiana Tech and eight more against Clemson.
Defense
Aidan Hutchinson, Michigan, at the end
Hutchinson, a two-time captain at Michigan, is in charge of a resurgent defense that has propelled the Wolverines to a 6-0 start. Hutchinson, a senior from Plymouth, Michigan, ranks ninth in the FBS with 512 sacks. According to PFF, he has a 29.7% pass rush victory percentage, which places him eighth in the nation. With a rating of 92.7, he is PFF’s highest-rated edge defender.
Georgia tackle Jordan Davis
Davis was on the verge of turning pro after the 2020 season, but Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart persuaded him to return to school, get in shape, and play with more effort and energy. His choice to return has paid off handsomely, with ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. projecting him as a top-15 selection. Davis, who is 6 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 340 pounds, is a space eater on the inside. Davis’ exceptional speed for a guy of his stature, though, enables him to pursue quarterbacks in the backfield and running backs on the periphery.
Tre Williams, Arkansas, comes to a close.
Under second-year coach Sam Pittman, the Missouri transfer has played a key role in the Hogs’ comeback. With 21 quarterback pressures, the fifth-year senior is tied for first in the FBS and leads the Razorbacks with four sacks to go along with 15 tackles and 412 tackles for loss. With two sacks and three quarterback hurries, he was at his finest in a 20-10 upset of No. 7 Texas A&M.
Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean
On the top defense in the FBS, Dean has the same effect as Davis. The Mississippi native has more than lived up to his high-profile recruiting reputation. Through six games, he has 23 tackles, four tackles for loss, 312 sacks, 11 quarterback hurries, and one interception. With an 89.3 rating, Dean is PFF’s highest-rated linebacker.
Alabama linebacker Will Anderson
Anderson has 12 tackles for loss in the last 13 games after just having one in his first six games at Alabama. With 11 tackles for loss in six games this season, he leads the SEC and is second in the FBS. He also has 21 quarterback pressures, which ties him for most in the FBS, and leads all Power 5 defenders with 16 tackles at or below the line of scrimmage.
Devin Lloyd (Utah) is a linebacker.
This season, Lloyd has been a one-man wrecking crew for the Utes. With 10.6 tackles per game and nine tackles for loss in five games, he leads the league. In the past three games alone, he has 612-tackles-for-loss. Lloyd made eight tackles, one tackle for loss, and one pass breakup in the Utes’ 42-26 victory over USC last Thursday, their first against the Trojans in Los Angeles since 1916. He also leads the conference with 10 run stuffs and 13 tackles at or beyond the line of scrimmage, as a two-time All-Pac-12 pick.
Arizona State linebacker Darien Butler
Butler is the first true sophomore captain in Arizona State history, and he leads a defense that ranks first in the Pac-12 in scoring defense (16.2 points) and overall defense (26 points) (299 yards). Butler has six tackles for loss and is tied for the team lead with 39 tackles, two sacks, and two interceptions in six games for the Sun Devils. He has 12 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and nine tackles for loss of yardage or at the line of scrimmage.
Iowa cornerback Matt Hankins
Hankins has been one of the finest players on an Iowa defense that has 16 interceptions, the most in the FBS. Hankins has only allowed 44 passing yards in coverage, according to PFF statistics, and his 0.19 yards per coverage snap ranks first among FBS players. In six games, he has three interceptions, tied for second in the Big Ten behind Riley Moss’ four.
Ahmad Gardner (Cincinnati) is a cornerback.
Gardner, a junior from Detroit, was the key to Cincinnati’s wins against Indiana and Notre Dame, which propelled the Bearcats to No. 3 in the AP poll and into contention for the College Football Playoff. When targeted, he limited opposition quarterbacks to 2-for-9 throwing for 19 yards in those two games. In five games, Gardner has two interceptions, ten tackles, and two pass breakups.
Kyle Hamilton, Notre Dame safety
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Hamilton is rated as the second-best player available in the 2022 draft by Kiper, and he has mostly lived up to that expectation this season. He has three interceptions and is second on the team with 33 tackles, as well as 212 tackles for loss and four pass breakups. Hamilton, who is 6-4 and 219 pounds, is large and powerful enough to make plays at the line of scrimmage, as shown by his huge fourth-down stop in a 27-14 win against Purdue.
Penn State’s Jaquan Brisker is a safety.
The transfer from Lackawant to College is a team captain and the defensive leader of a Penn State defense that ranks second in the Big Ten with 13.8 points per game allowed. In six games, Brown has accumulated 25 tackles, 312 tackles for loss, two interceptions, three pass breakups, and one quarterback pressure. Brisker intercepted a pass at the Nittany Lions’ 2 and returned it 41 yards with 2:16 remaining in Penn State’s 16-10 victory against Wisconsin in the season opener.
Special forces
Wake Forest’s Nick Sciba is the game’s kicker.
When it comes to kicking for the unbeaten Demon Deacons, Sciba is almost unstoppable. He’s 12 for 12 on field goals this season and has made 24 in a row, the longest current streak in the FBS. It’s ten less than his NCAA record of 34 established in 2018-19. In his career, Sciba has made 69 of 76 field goal attempts for a 90.8 percent success rate. That’s the most in NCAA history among players who have attempted at least 50 shots. In 152 point-after attempts, he has never missed. On his 22nd birthday, he kicked a 29-yard field goal with 22 seconds remaining in a 37-34 win against Louisville.
Matt Araiza of San Diego State is the punter.
Through five games, Araiza has been a field-position weapon for the Aztecs, who are undefeated. With a 54.1-yard average, he leads the FBS by 3.08 yards above Texas A&M’s Braden Mann, who established the FBS record in 2018. 14 of his 33 punts have landed within the opponents’ 20-yard line, and 20 of them have been longer than 50 yards, including three of more than 70 yards.
College football’s 2021 midseason All-American team high school is a list of the top players in the country. Reference: all-american football team high school 2021.
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