AL.com All-Access: Who is your favorite college football player ever?

Today's question is a simple one: who is our favorite college football player of all-time?

To get the conversation started, I'm going to list five of my favorites over the years. I'm limiting this to players I actually watched play -- not those I just heard about.

I was born in 1973, and the first college football season I remember vividly is 1982. So all the players on my list will come from that year forward (your mileage may vary).

Anyway, here's my five-man list:

1. Derrick Thomas, LB, Alabama (1985-88) -- No defensive player was ever more dominant in one season than Thomas was as a senior in 1988. He totaled an astounding 27 sacks that year in 11 games, a mark that will likely never be equaled.

2. Herschel Walker, RB, Georgia (1980-82) -- I don't remember Walker's entire college football career, but his fantastic Heisman-winning junior season helped make me a college football fan. I also remember following his USFL career with great interest.

3. Peyton Manning, QB, Tennessee (1994-97) -- Even if you hated the Big Orange (as many people in this state do), it was hard not to admire Manning for his outstanding play on the field. That he's gone on to be an hilarious TV pitch man as well only adds to his legacy.

4. Patrick Willis, LB, Ole Miss (2003-06) -- No one played with more intensity or hit harder than Willis, a two-time All-American and Butkus Award winner for the Rebels. As an aside, he came within inches of taking me out on the sideline during overtime of the 2006 Alabama-Ole Miss game.

5. Tracy Rocker, DT, Auburn (1985-88) -- I remember waiting in line for what seemed like an hour to get Rocker's autograph during Senior Bowl Fan Day in 1989, thinking he'd be an NFL superstar. He wasn't, but that doesn't take away from what was an outstanding college career.

So that's my list. What's yours?

I'll take your questions and comments on that or anything else on your mind beginning at 10 a.m.

from Auburn Sports Impact http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2018/05/alcom_all-access_who_is_your_f.html