Where do Sam Leavitt, Rocco Becht rank? The 25 best players in the Big 12 in 2025
Heisman trophy winner Travis Hunter from Colorado and Arizona receiver Tetairoa McMillan were the two first-round picks among 13 players selected on the first two days of the draft. There were 18 players selected in rounds four through seven.
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How many draft picks will the Big 12 produce in 2026? The Athletic's Dane Brugler projected only two first-round selections for the league in his first mock draft in April.
Still, this is a conference loaded with intriguing players and teams. Let's dive into the best of the best.
The 6-foot-6, 302-pound junior is widely considered to be the best run-blocking right tackle in college football, earning second-team All-America honors last season from the Associated Press. The former four-star recruit from Spanish Fork, Utah, has started 25 games in his college career. Brugler lists Fano as a top-five pick.
Tyson, a redshirt junior from Texas, transferred from Colorado last season and earned third-team All-America honors from the AP and won the Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year award. He caught 75 passes for 1,101 yards and 10 touchdowns before getting hurt in the second half of the team's final regular-season game and missing the Big 12 Championship Game and College Football Playoff.
The 6-2, 210-pound redshirt sophomore transferred from Michigan State last season and earned the Big 12 Freshman of the Year award. The former four-star recruit from Oregon ranked 23rd nationally in passing efficiency, completing 61.7 percent of his 350 attempts for 2,885 yards, 24 touchdowns and six interceptions. He also ran for 443 yards and five scores in leading the Sun Devils to the Big 12 championship.
SAM LEAVITT FOR 6️⃣#Big12FB | 📺 ABC pic.twitter.com/9ETcQL8Gn0
— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) December 7, 2024
The 6-1, 335-pound senior known as 'The Godfather' earned first-team All-Big 12 honors last season. The former three-star recruit from Cincinnati's Colerain High School produced 26 tackles, including five for loss and 3 1/2 sacks, despite being sidelined with blood clots for three months prior to the start of the season.
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The former three-star quarterback recruit from Wichita Falls, Texas, returned home and switched sides of the ball after spending one season at Virginia. Rodriguez, now a senior, led the Big 12 in tackles last season (127) and had 10 1/2 for loss and five sacks to earn first-team all-conference honors. He also forced three fumbles and had one interception.
The 6-2, 224-pound redshirt junior from Jacksonville, Fla., went from being a first-team junior college All-American at Northeast (Miss.) Community College to earning first-team All-Big 12 honors last season. Thomas racked up 114 tackles, including seven for loss and 2 1/2 sacks last season. He will have a new running mate next to him at inside linebacker this fall: Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year Travion Barnes.
The former blue-chip recruit — known as the 100 Yard Landlord on social media — is finally thriving at his third college program. The one-time Texas Longhorn and USC Trojan was a first-team All-Big 12 pick last season, tallying 85 tackles, two interceptions and five pass breakups.
The 6-1, 218-pound redshirt senior and former walk-on from Cedar Park, Texas, earned first-team All-Big 12 honors and second-team All-America honors (FWAA) as a return man last season. Cameron also led the Bears with 52 receptions — 43 of which went for first downs — for 754 yards and 10 touchdowns.
UNREAL SIDELINE CATCH ‼️
After review, Josh Cameron's second TD catch of the day stands and @BUFootball has brought this one within one score in the fourth quarter 🍿#Big12FB | 📺 FS1 pic.twitter.com/mPZKCKwWTZ
— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) September 28, 2024
Romaine, a former three-star recruit from Hillsboro, Mo., was a second-team All-Big 12 selection last season when he recorded 96 tackles, 7 1/2 TFLs, two sacks and three forced fumbles.
The former five-star prospect from Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy was a Freshman All-American in 2024 as the Buffaloes starting left tackle. He graded out the best among all true freshman offensive tackles in pass protection with at least 100 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.
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The 6-1, 205-pound former three-star recruit from Florida led the Cyclones to a school-record 11 wins last season, completing 59.4 percent of his passes for 3,505 yards, 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He also ran for 318 yards and eight touchdowns in leading Iowa State to the Big 12 Championship Game.
Royer transferred home to Cincinnati after three seasons at Ohio State and was a first-team All-Big 12 pick after catching 50 passes — breaking Travis Kelce's single-season school record — for 521 yards and three touchdowns.
The 6-2, 186-pound sixth-year senior and former four-star recruit out of Alexandria, La., earned second-team All-Big 12 honors in 2024. He tallied 67 tackles, one forced fumble, one blocked kick and three interceptions over 12 starts.
The 6-4, 325-pound senior from Mobile, Ala., earned second-team All-Big 12 honors last season at UCF before landing at his third college program in the offseason. The former top-100 prospect who originally signed with Auburn had 9 1/2 tackles for loss and 27 QB pressures, second among interior linemen in the Big 12 according to Pro Football Focus.
Williams, a former three-star prospect from Florida, intercepted four passes last season en route to earning second-team all-conference honors.
The 6-5, 235-pound redshirt junior and former three-star recruit from South Jordan, Utah, led the Big 12 with 14 1/2 tackles for loss last season. He started nine games and tallied 70 tackles, four pass breakups, three interceptions and one forced fumble.
The former three-star recruit from Franklin, Texas, was one of eight running backs in the league to top the 1,000-yard mark last season. Washington is the only one back in 2025. He averaged 5.9 yards per carry and scored 12 rushing touchdowns on 175 carries.
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The 6-4, 294-pound redshirt senior from Alexandria, Va., was the American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year last season at UTSA. He led the conference in sacks (10 1/2) and tackles for loss (17).
The former Florida Gator returned home to Texas last season and starred as the No. 2 receiver for the Red Raiders. He caught 60 passes for 877 yards and six touchdowns. Only Tyson at Arizona State had more receiving yards among returning Big 12 players.
The 6-3, 250-pound senior and former top-100 recruit from Irvine, Calif., joined the Red Raiders in mid-April after making 16 starts over 33 games in his three-year career at Stanford. His numbers from last season: 39 QB pressures, 31 tackles, eight TFLs, seven sacks and five forced fumbles.
The dangerous dual-threat and former four-star recruit threw for 2,712 yards, ran for 605 yards and totaled 32 touchdowns last season — leading the Wildcats to nine wins for the second year in a row. The last hurdle for Johnson is improving as a passer. He ranked ninth in the Big 12 in efficiency last season, completing 58.3 percent of 372 attempts and throwing 10 interceptions.
The 6-2, 180-pound junior from Colleyville, Texas, transferred from Oklahoma State last season and played more defensive snaps (840) than anyone for the Buffaloes. He tallied 62 tackles, nine pass breakups and three interceptions while starting opposite Heisman winner Travis Hunter.
The 6-4, 335-pound former three-star recruit from Kansas City, Mo., is a candidate to break out as a senior after recording 24 tackles, including 4 1/2 for loss, on 367 snaps last season.
This is a strong year for tight ends in the league. Carter, a 6-2, 245-pound junior, was a first-team All-Sun Belt selection last season at Louisiana. He caught 48 passes for 689 yards and four touchdowns.
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The 6-4, 220-pound redshirt senior from Lubbock, Texas, took over as the starter in the third game of the 2024 season and finished second in the league in passing efficiency. He completed 62.2 percent of his 368 attempts for 3,071 yards, 28 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
26. Keanu Tanuvasa, DL, Utah
27. Josh Hoover, QB, TCU
28. Devon Dampier, QB, Utah
29. Bryce Foster, C, Kansas
30. Caleb Lomu, OT, Utah
31. Dylan Edwards, RB, Kansas State
32. Jahiem White, RB, West Virginia
33. Tanner Koziol, TE, Houston
34. Michael Coats Jr., CB, West Virginia
35. Dean Miller, DL, Kansas
(Photo of Sam Leavitt: Michael Chow / The Rep via Imagn Images)
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