Anyone who wonders what kind of impact a freshman can have on a team only needs to look at the University of Alabama football program last season.
While many would think the Crimson Tide might probably be the least likely team for a freshman to contribute about half of the 2015 recruiting class, they did with wide receiver Calvin Ridley joining Amari Cooper as the only first-year players in program history to have 1,000-yard seasons.
“Well, he didn’t go into the year replacing a guy like Amari; that’s not our expectation for him,” head coach Nick Saban said.