Today is Day 7 of our countdown of the Big 12's 25 best players entering the 2010 season. The full results are locked in a vault in an undisclosed location, but we'll be revealing one player per day until we reach the top of the list.
Remember, this isn't a list of the top-25 NFL prospects in the league. It's heavily weighted toward actual accomplishment in players' college careers, as well as the likely impact for their teams in the 2010 season.
No. 19: Kendall Hunter, RB, Oklahoma State
2009 numbers: Rushed for 381 yards and a touchdown on 89 carries. Also caught 11 passes for 83 yards.
Most recent ranking: Hunter was ranked No. 8 in last offseason's ranking of the conference's top-40 players.
Making the case for Hunter: He led the Big 12 in rushing in 2008 with 1,555 yards, over 300 more than any running back in the conference had in 2009. But his disappointing junior season means a slide down the rankings. He missed five games last season with an ankle injury and Keith Toston picked up the slack, rushing for 1,218 yards. But Hunter's back and healthy, and should be due for a big year--even if he'll do it differently. In the Cowboys' Air Raid offense, he'll get around 170-180 carries and 70-80 receptions and should be able to make plenty of tacklers miss in the open field.
The rest of the list: