8. Christian McCaffrey, drafted by the Carolina Panthers
As the son of a former NFL player, McCaffrey always had the genes to be a star. In high school, he set several state records and was Colorado’s Player of the Year twice. That made it easy for him to contribute right away as a true freshman at Stanford, averaging over seven yards per carry and nearly 15 yards per catch in a part-time role.
As a sophomore, McCaffrey blew up, rushing for over 2,000 yards, collecting over 600 receiving yards, and amassing over 1,000 return yards. He scored 15 total touchdowns and was a consensus All-American in addition to being the Heisman runner-up. While he didn’t match those numbers the following year, McCaffrey still led the nation in all-purpose yards, averaging 211 yards per game, while winning Pac-12 Player of the Year honors for the second straight year.