Taylor, Fromm lead USA TODAY’s freshman All-American team

Meet the next wave of college stars: USA TODAY’s freshman All-American team features several players destined to take center stage in 2018 and beyond, including Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm, Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor and Memphis defensive back T.J. Carter.

Fromm is the pick at quarterback after leading Georgia to the College Football Playoff, capping his regular season with two touchdowns and no interceptions in the Bulldogs’ win against Auburn to win the Southeastern Conference.

Taylor is joined at running back by another freshman from the Big Ten Conference, Ohio State’s J.K. Dobbins. They are joined by a third Big Ten skill player in Nebraska wide receiver JD Spielman, who finished his first-year campaign with 55 receptions for 830 yards.

Arizona and Northwestern each had two defenders earn honors, joining a defense that includes Carter, Arizona State cornerback Chase Lucas and Oklahoma linebacker Kenneth Murray.

OFFENSE QB: Jake Fromm, Georgia

Fromm tossed 21 touchdowns, averaged 9.4 yards per attempt and completed 63% of his attempts in helping Georgia win the SEC title.

RB: Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin

Taylor was the only freshman to earn USA TODAY All-American honors after leading the Big Ten with 1,847 yards.

RB: J.K. Dobbins, Ohio State

Dobbins was superb as a true freshman and at his best in key moments, rushing for 174 yards in the Buckeyes’ win against Wisconsin to take the Big Ten and accounting for 1,364 yards on 7.5 yards per carry overall.

WR: JD Spielman, Nebraska

Spielman was perhaps the lone bright spot during Nebraska’s otherwise dismal season, setting up the freshman as a future star in the Big Ten.

WR: Greg Dortch, Wake Forest

Despite missing four games because of injury, Dortch finished with 53 receptions for 722 yards and nine touchdowns while leading the way in Wake Forest’s return game.

TE: Matt Bushman, Brigham Young

Bushman led all FBS freshmen tight ends with 49 receptions for 520 receiving yards, with both totals good for fifth among all players at the position during the regular season.

OL: Tyler Roemer, San Diego State

Roemer earned second-team all-conference honors as one of several new faces on an offensive line that paved the way for running back Rashaad Penny’s 2,000-yard rushing season.

OL: Jack Anderson, Texas Tech

One of the Red Raiders’ top recruits during the Kliff Kingsbury era, Anderson occupied a starting role for every game of the regular season and helped Tech’s offense remain among the nation’s best.

OL: Tyler Biadasz, Wisconsin

With little fanfare, Biadasz held down the fort at the middle of Wisconsin’s powerful offensive line to open holes for Taylor and the running game.

OL: Trey Smith, Tennessee

The future is bright for Smith, who started his freshman season at right guard but shifted to left tackle in November to become the first UT rookie to start on the blind side in at least 30 years.

OL: Andrew Thomas, Georgia

Georgia’s offense flourished with Fromm under center and Thomas, a day-one starter, holding down the fort at right tackle.

DEFENSE DL: Curtis Weaver, Boise State

Weaver led all FBS freshmen and the Mountain West Conference with 9.0 sacks while adding an interception and a fumble return for a touchdown.

DL: Lamonte McDougle, West Virginia

The 5-10, 300-pound spark plug finished the regular season with 22 tackles after starting the Mountaineers’ final eight games.

DL: Sam Miller, Northwestern

With his 51⁄ sacks and 81⁄ tackles for 2 2 loss, Miller was a catalyst for a Northwestern defense that ranked third in the Big Ten in rush defense and 38th nationally in yards allowed per game.

DL: Kylan Wilborn, Arizona

The first of two Arizona defenders on this team, Wilborn’s freshman year was highlighted by a four-sack performance in the Wildcats’ 47-30 win against UCLA in October.

LB: Colin Schooler, Arizona

Schooler posted 131⁄ tackles for loss, all 2 coming in Pac-12 play, to be the only freshman to rank in the nation’s top 100 in the category.

LB: Paddy Fisher, Northwestern

With 110 tackles, Fisher became the first Big Ten freshman to crack the century mark in stops since former Northwestern defensive back Ibraheim Campbell in 2011.

LB: Kenneth Murray, Oklahoma

Murray made 69 tackles in starting all 13 games for the Sooners, earning co-Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year and honorable mention all-conference.

CB: T.J. Carter, Memphis

Carter raked in five interceptions, sec- ond in the American Athletic Conference, to more than live up to his fourstar billing and serve as the bright spot in the Tigers’ otherwise subpar pass defense.

CB: Chase Lucas, Arizona State

Lucas turned heads during the offseason and delivered during the fall, making 53 tackles and pulling down two interceptions to become the only freshman to earn first- or second-team allconference honors in the Pac-12.

S: Grant Delpit, LSU

Delpit was a fixture in the Tigers secondary throughout the year but hit another gear with the start of SEC play, with his uptick in production coinciding with a three-game winning streak against Florida, Auburn and Mississippi that turned around LSU’s season.

S: Tariq Thompson, San Diego State

Thompson looks like the next elite SDSU defensive back after starring for a secondary that allowed just one team, Arizona State, to toss multiple touchdowns without at least one interception.

SPECIALISTS K: Jared Sackett, Texas-San Antonio

Sackett made 19 of his 22 attempts, five coming beyond 40 yards and none bigger than his field goal in the final seconds to clinch a 9-7 win against Marshall on Nov. 18 and make UTSA bowl-eligible.

P: Cade Coffey, Idaho

Idaho’s latest potential All-America punter, Coffey averaged 44.6 yards per punt and effectively negated the opposition’s return game.

RET: Marcus Jones, Troy

Jones tied for second nationally with three kickoffs returned for TDs and ranked fourth nationally with 32.9 yards per return.