1. Ed Oliver, Houston
In his much anticipated debut, Oliver delivered one of the best seasons ever by a true freshman interior lineman. Whatever learning curve that existed was immediately flattened, like a back trying to work between the tackles. Oliver abused blockers with his strength, burst and non-stop motor, amassing 66 tackles, 23 stops for loss, five sacks and nine pass breakups to earn a smattering of All-American recognition. At 290 pounds, he moves at a different speed than those around him, and he has the hunger to achieve greatness.