2008 Geek Fantasy All-Americans - First Team

QB - Chase Clement (Rice)
The highest scoring player in all of college fantasy football.
RB - Javon Ringer (Michigan State)
Started off on a torrid pace, faltered a bit down the stretch.
RB - MiQuale Lewis (Ball State)
Became the center-piece of the Ball State attack.
WR - Dez Bryant (Oklahoma State)
Two words:  Man Child.
WR - Austin Collie (BYU)
His 1,538 receiving yards led the nation.
TE - James Casey (Rice)
Receiving:  111-1,329-13.  Rushing:  57-241-6
PK - Jeff Wolfert (Missouri)
Top kicker all season long.
DE - Florida Gators
The national champs scored 7 TD’s, forced 32 turnovers, had 31 sacks, and sported an impressive points against average.

2008 Geek Fantasy All-Americans - Second Team

QB - Case Keenum (Houston)
RB - LeSean McCoy (Pittsburgh)
RB - Dennis Kennedy (Akron)
WR - Jarett Dillard (Rice)
WR - Michael Crabtree (Texas Tech)
TE - Mark Hafner (Houston)
PK - Louie Sakoda (Utah)
DE - Boston College

2008 Geek Fantasy All-Americans - Third Team

QB - Graham Harrell (Texas Tech)
RB - Donald Brown (Connecticut)
RB - Shonn Greene (Iowa)
WR - Jeremy Maclin (Missouri)
WR - Chris Williams (New Mexico State)
TE - Chase Coffman (Missouri)
PK - Kevin Kelly (Penn State)
DE - Boise State

The “From Out of Nowhere” Team

QB - Jeremiah Masoli (Oregon)

Preseason Position Rank:  100+, Final Rank:  32

Masoli was forced into action due to injuries at the top of the Oregon depth chart. He filled in more than admirably, and played great ball down the stretch.
RB - MiQuale Lewis (Ball State)

Preseason Position Rank:  100+, Final Rank:  2

Ball State was supposed to be a pass-happy offense, but wound up relying on Lewis to shoulder the load.  His 2007 stats:  601 total yards, 3 TD’s.  2008:  2,061 yards, 22 TD’s
RB - Shonn Greene (Iowa)

Preseason Position Rank:  98, Final Rank:  6

The Iowa RB situation was unclear in the preseason.  Mr. Greene cleared things up in a hurry. 
WR - Mardy Gilyard (Cincinnati)

Preseason Position Rank:  100+, Final Rank:  19

Gilyard played third fiddle to Marcus Barnett and Dominick Goodman in ‘07.  In 2008, he became the go-to man, posting 81-1,276-11
WR - Brandon Banks (Kansas State)

Preseason Position Rank:  100+, Final Rank:  14

Banks had not registered a catch prior to this season.  The 142-pounder exploded onto fantasy rosters in 2008, catching 67 balls for 1,049 yards and 9 scores.
TE - Nobody worthy of this great honor
PK - Graham Gano (Florida State)

Preseason Position Rank:  50+, Final Rank:  4

Gano connected on five kicks over 50 yards on the year.
DE - San Jose State

Preseason Position Rank:  50+, Final Rank:  22

The Spartans had a surprisingly productive fantasy defense.  22 TO’s, 33 sacks and 4 TDs.

The Disappointing, Underachieving, “You Screwed Me Over and I Hold Grudges”, Bust Squad

QB - (tie) Kellen Lewis and Curtis Painter

Preseason Position Rank:  8 & 20, Final Rank:  90 & 79

Both Big Ten QB’s had disastrous seasons.  Poor play, knagging injuries, losing the job to a backup, winning it back - it was a rollercoaster ride for owners.  The smart ones cut them loose early.  The stubborn ones suffered.
RB - Arian Foster (Tennessee)

Preseason Position Rank:  10, Final Rank:  100+

Went from 1,500+ yards and 14 TD’s to 700+ yards and 1 TD.  That, my friends, is the definition of a fantasy bust.
RB - Darrell Mack (Utah)

Preseason Position Rank:  11, Final Rank:  100+

In the preseason, if you would’ve told me Utah would go undefeated and Mack would be relatively healthy all year, I would’ve told you the Ute RB would’ve had a monster season.  Sadly that wasn’t the case.  His production dropped from 1,300+ total yards and 15 TD’s to 600+ and 3.
WR - Aaron Kelly (Clemson)

Preseason Position Rank:  13, Final Rank:  100+

Kelly followed up a stellar (1,081-11) 2007 season with a stinker.  He was only able to muster up 722-4.  His output was a microcosm of Clemson’s woeful year.
WR - Trae Johnson (Tulsa)

Preseason Position Rank:  19, Final Rank:  100+

Ah, the perils of drafting a WR from Tulsa.  You know one or two will hit it big, and one or two will fail to live up to their draft billing.  Trae put up a modest 20-475-3, which is not exactly “getting it done” in the high-flying Tulsa offense.
TE - Darius Hill (Ball State)

Preseason Position Rank:  1, Final Rank:  10

Hill wasn’t awful, but for those owners who thought they were being savvy spending a top pick on the Ball State TE, he was a fantasy disappointment.  His stats decreased by 22 catches, 250 yards and 4 TD’s from a stellar 2007 campaign.
PK - Mark Buchholtz (Clemson)

Preseason Position Rank:  4, Final Rank:  39

The Clemson kicker was considered to be a Top 5 fantasy kicker by most experts.  He fell well short of those lofty expectations.
DE - South Florida Bulls

Preseason Position Rank:  6, Final Rank:  54

USF just didn’t make enough big plays on defense this season.

The Freshman All-Americans - First Team

(true and redshirt freshman)

QB - Robert Griffin (Baylor)
We usually scoff when a freshman is compared to a legend.  However…...in this case the comparisons of Griffin to Vince Young appear to be, well, at least reasonable.  The Baylor QB’s rookie year was staggering.  He completed 60% of his passes with a TD-INT ratio of 15-3.  The former track star was a lethal runner, gaining 836 yards and scoring 13 TD’s. 
RB - Bryce Beall (Houston)
Over 1,700 total yards and 17 TD’s.  And the dude didn’t become a staple of the Cougar offense until Week Four!
RB - Jacquizz Rodgers (Oregon State)
Ryan McCants was supposed to take over the reigns for the departed Yvenson Bernard.  But this compact frosh had something to say about that. Quizz posted 1,500 yards and 12 TD’s on the year - and he missed the final two games due to injury.
WR - De’Andre Brown (Southern Miss)
Here’s a freshman that lived up to the hype.  He finished the year as a Top 12 fantasy WR.  Who could forget his spectacular 12-221-4 performance against Rice?  Unfortunately, his season ended with an ugly leg injury in the New Orleans Bowl.  We hope he’s ready to roll in 2009.
WR - T.Y Hilton (Florida International)
The rookie finished the year with over 1,000 receiving yards and 9 total TD’s.
TE - Ladarius Green (La-Lafayette)
The pickins’ were slim here.  Green only posted 21-263-4, but that was the best we could find.
PK - Jimmy Stevens (Oklahoma)
Stevens rode on the coattails of the nation’s best offense, and finished the year as a Top 10 kicker.

The Freshman All-Americans - Second Team (true and redshirt freshman)

QB - Austin Davis (Southern Miss)
RB - LaGarrette Blount, JUCO (Oregon)
RB - Darren Evans (Virginia)
WR - Damaris Johnson (Tulsa)
WR - Tyron Carrier (Houston)
TE - Brandon Barden (Vanderbilt)
PK - Philip Welsh (Wisc)

The All-Injury Team

(Highly rated preseason players whose fantasy seasons were tarnished - or completely ruined - by injury)

QB - Jake Locker (Washington)
Jake was hurt in the fourth game of the year.  And with his injury went the hopes of the Huskies actually winning a game.
RB - Luke Lippincott (Nevada)
Lippincott watched as backup Vai Taua ran roughshod over the competition.  It will be interesting to see how this tandem works together in 2009 if Luke is granted a medical redshirt and returns.
RB - Ryan Mathews (Fresno State)
“He’s going to play.  He’s not going to play.  He’s a game time decision.  He’s questionable.”  Mathews was a waiver wire nightmare for owners this year.  His season started with much promise, but he never realized his vast potential.
WR - Dante Love (Ball State)
Love’s neck injury was the most catastrophic of the season.  We are just glad Dante is recovering nicely.
WR - Chris Gilbert (Houston)
Gilbert is 2008’s “Mr. What If”.  What if he hadn’t been injured in the preseason?  He would’ve likely been the top WR option for Case Keenum and the benefactor of his 9 billion passing attempts.  Gilbert could’ve easily been a Top 5-10 fantasy WR. What if?
TE - Travis Beckum (Wisconsin)
Here’s another guy that was a waiver wire nightmare.  The Badger tight end went from a 2007 statline of 75-982-6 to a measly 23-264-2 this season.