ESPN Calls Rudolph and Washington the Two Best 4-Year Players for 2017

OSU fans have plenty to be giddy about this coming fall. The Cowboys look poised to compete for a Big 12 championship and possibly more.

The biggest reason?

Mason Rudolph and James Washington decided to come back for their senior years and a chance to make history — both individually and as part of one of the most anticipated Cowboy offenses since 2011.

ESPN put together a list of the 10 Best Four-Year Players for this coming college football season and guess who landed on top?

Mason Rudolph

Rudolph came in at No. 1 on their list. The Bedlam hero-turned-franchise QB is set to break just about every record that matters at OSU for his position. He’ll also get to build on an already intriguing NFL resume.

Mason Rudolph edges out Wyoming’s Josh Allen as the top fourth-year QB entering the 2017 college season, and is likely to be one of the top overall signal-callers in the country. He excelled on downfield throws last season, completing 43 of 87 passes that traveled at least 20 yards through the air for 1,691 yards, 13 touchdowns and just two interceptions. With his top target returning as well (more on James Washington in a bit), Rudolph should be able to end his college career with another monster season for the Cowboys. ESPN

As a junior, Rudolph slung it for 4,091 yards and 28 touchdowns to just four (!) interceptions. The last quarterback to exceed 4,000 yards without throwing five picks was Marcus Mariota and it earned him a Heisman Trophy.

With an improving offensive line and even more talent at wide out, the sky’s the limit for Rudolph’s senior campaign.

James Washington

The second part of this dynamic duo came in right behind his QB at No. 2. The soft-spoken, small-town playmaker is set to make some noise (and some history) of his own as a senior.

Some wide receivers are freak athletes. Some are masterful route-runners. Some have great hands. Some just have a knack for being at the right place at the right time.

The fact that he’s good at all of these often allows us to take Washington for granted.

Washington is possibly the top receiver in the country regardless of class, as he has been a constant big-play threat at Oklahoma State. His 19.5 yards per reception in 2016 was the third-highest mark for a returning receiver with at least 40 catches last season, and his 516 yards after the catch ranks him ninth in the same group. He was the primary beneficiary of Rudolph’s deep passing, as he hauled in 15 of 16 catchable throws downfield for 690 yards and five scores. If Rudolph can improve his accuracy, Washington’s numbers are likely to be even better, as only 59.6 percent of short and intermediate passes (throws that traveled less than 20 yards through the air) targeting Washington were catchable last season. ESPN

Between these two (and the 15 or so other starting-caliber wide receivers OSU can field) the Cowboys should be able to improve on their 9th-place finish in passing offense from last year.

Oh yeah. They also have a running game again thanks to last year’s Freshman All-American Justice Hill and that improving O-line.

Is it September yet?