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Ranking the Top 25 Big 12 players: No. 13

The official list of the Big 12's top 25 players is locked away in a vault in an undisclosed location, but we're revealing the list day by day here on the blog. Here's a refresher on my exact criteria.

No. 13: Kelechi Osemele, LT, Iowa State

2010 numbers: Helped Iowa State's offense run for 1,715 yards and 15 touchdowns, and throw for 2,091 yards and 14 touchdowns while giving up 32 sacks.

Most recent ranking: Osemele was unranked in our postseason list of the Big 12's top 25 players.

Making the case for Osemele: I would argue that of all the players on my top 25, Osemele has the largest number of Big 12 fans who have never heard of him. Which is a shame. (It's pronounced "kuh-LEH-chee oh-SEM-lee, by the way).

But, alas, such is life as both an offensive lineman and an Iowa State Cyclone, neither of whom are exactly media darlings.

Osemele, however, is a physical lineman that possesses great size for his position (6-foot-6, 347 pounds) and has extremely quick feet that make him one of the most underrated players in the league. He's been a two-time All-Big 12 honoree and will be a fourth-year starter on the Cyclones offensive line in 2011.

He'll be a star once again, and a player likely to hear his name called in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft.

The rest of the list: