Filling the biggest shoes - CBS SportsLine

Forty players gave up college eligibility after last season to enter the NFL Draft, leaving big voids on big teams and putting loads of responsibility on mostly little-known understudies.

The departure of the early entries -- 13 went in the first round, another five in the second -- was met with the typical hand-wringing ... oh no! how are we going to replace those guys?

It's the same story every year. Yet, college football continues to survive, replacing its sophomores, juniors and seniors just fine.

In many cases, the only thing lacking for these shoe-fillers is the name recognition. Consider some of last year's substitutes:

Focusing on guys who left early, here's a look at 20 of the most intriguing "filling the biggest shoes" scenarios for the 2001 season.

Player	School	Pos.	Round	NFL team
Keith Adams	Clemson	LB	7th/232	Tennessee
Senior Altroy Bodrick was to slide into the starting lineup to replace the All-American Adams, one of college football's top playmakers. But Bodrick, the team's fastest defender, suffered a season-ending knee injury in fall camp, forcing the coaching staff to move starting safety Braxton K. Williams to linebacker.
Hakim Akbar	Washington	S	5th/163	New England
Washington might have to turn to former walk-on Owen Biddle, a junior who earned a scholarship this fall, to replace the hard-hitting Akbar. Sophomore Jimmy Newell, who appeared in every game last season as a true freshman, will continue to push for playing time.
Michael Bennett	Wisconsin	RB	1st/27	Minnesota
The "Purdue-ification" of the Big Ten has reached Madison, where even the grind-it-out Badgers are going to more of a passing game. They might not be if the speedy Bennett had stayed, leaving behind a trio of redshirt freshmen -- Tyrone Griffin, Jerone Pettus and Anthony Davis -- after Broderick Williams blew out his knee in the spring.
Josh Booty	LSU	QB	6th/172	Seattle
The one-time prep phenom had a few flashes of brilliance at LSU, earning all-SEC honors last season (a bad year for league quarterbacks?). Senior Rohan Davey has been spectacular at times in his handful of starts, and can be better than Booty; he just needs to stay healthy.
Quincy Carter	Georgia	QB	2nd/53	Dallas
In winning the Cowboys' starting job, Quincy Carter has been more impressive in training camp than he was as a Bulldog junior. Last year's injury replacement, Cory Phillips, failed to take control of the position in the spring, and still has redshirt freshman southpaw David Greene nipping at his heels. Could star recruit D.J. Shockley zoom past both of them?
Nate Clements	Ohio State	CB	1st/21	Buffalo
The Buckeyes have been loaded at cornerback recently, from Shawn Springs to Antoine Winfield to Clements, all first-round picks. Sophomores Maurice Lee and Bobby Britton begin fall camp as first-stringers, but the job is wide open and includes junior Derek Ross, who was suspended during the spring.
Jamar Fletcher	Wisconsin	CB	1st/26	Miami
Big Ten stadiums will be a little quieter this season without Fletcher yakking up a storm ... and quarterbacks will be a lot more at ease. Senior Mike Echols has to try to duplicate Fletcher's production; the coaches will figure out who actually replaces Fletcher during camp, possibly senior Joey Boese, last season's starting strong safety.
Todd Heap	Arizona St.	TE	1st/31	Baltimore
No tight end in the country caught the ball with as much style as Heap, so forget about the Devils finding another one like him. New coach Dirk Koetter will turn to junior Mike Pinkard, a solid blocker who is working on his hands.
Rudi Johnson	Auburn	RB	4th/100	Cincinnati
Junior college transfer Johnson turned out to be a one-year wonder at Auburn, which has promising potential long-term solutions: Redshirt freshman Ronnie Brown, sophomores Casinious Moore and Nebraska transfer Chris Butler ... or super recruit Carnell "Cadillac" Williams.
Willie Middlebrooks	Minnesota	DB	1st/24	Denver
Safety Delvin Jones also left school early, leaving the Gophers rebuilding in the secondary. Mike Lehan returns at one cornerback spot, with Middlebrooks' old job likely going to a redshirt freshman, Justin Fraley.
Freddie Mitchell	UCLA	WR	1st/25	Philadelphia
Fast-talking Freddie will be missed in Westwood, but the Bruins aren't hurting for pass-catchers. Here's two guys who will stand out from the crowd: 6-5 senior Brian Poli-Dixon (a returning starter) and 6-4 sophomore Tab Perry.
Dominic Raiola	Nebraska	C	2nd/50	Detroit
Raiola will be as tough to replace as any player in the country, but don't weep for the 'Huskers, who have had eight All-American centers since 1977. Nobody is saying senior Jon Rutherford or junior John Garrison is in that class, but they will be what Nebraska needs.
Koren Robinson	N.C. State	WR	1st/9	Seattle
Unable to replace Robinson's athleticism, N.C. State will try to get it done with depth. Three sophomores -- Jerricho Cotchery, Troy Graham and Andy Bertrand -- will figure in the rotation, with coaches banking on big things from recruit Sterling Hicks. Tramain Hall, another heralded receiver recruit, failed to make grades.
Justin Smith	Missouri	DE	1st/4	Cincinnati
Missouri is throwing numbers at the problem, moving four players in the spring to defensive end, including tailback Dan Davis. It's trouble if Antwaun Bynum isn't a contributor -- he was a 1999 JC transfer who missed most of last season because of a knee injury.
David Terrell	Michigan	WR	1st/8	Chicago
Senior Marquise Walker and junior Ronald Bellamy will become a bigger part of the offense, and the Wolverines will go right on completing passes. But who will replace Terrell's 14 TD catches? The rest of the team had 12 last season.
Ja'Mar Toombs	Texas A&M	RB	Undrafted
The big guy become even too big for NFL standards (ergo, the undrafted status), although the hole he leaves behind is still jumbo. Converted tailback Joe Weber will try to replace Toombs' wallop ... and his 14 touchdowns.
Michael Vick	Virginia Tech	QB	1st/1	Atlanta
The Hokies don't have time to be mourning Vick's early departure, because their defense, talented receivers and ridiculously fast running back Lee Suggs puts them right back in the national title chase. It'll be up to junior Grant Noel not to mess it up -- which is what Frank Beamer traditionally wants in his QBs, anyway. True freshman Bryan Randall could be heard from, too.
Kenyatta Walker	Florida	OT	1st/14	Tampa Bay
Who better to fill Walker's big shoes than the biggest Gator -- 362-pound Max Starks? Starks, who saw action in seven games last season as a true freshman, will be overshadowed by All-American left tackle Mike Pearson.
Gerard Warren	Florida	DT	1st/3	Cleveland
A group of seven mostly anonymous players (none of them seniors) will try to replace Florida's Big Three tackles of Warren, Derrick Chambers and Buck Gurley. Considering this is the Gators' only noticeable weakness, a couple will have to become big names by the end of the season.
Jamie Winborn	Vanderbilt	LB	2nd/47	San Francisco
Vandy couldn't quite get over the hump with Winborn, one of the best linebackers in the SEC for the past three seasons. The 'Dores head back to the salt mines with junior Mike Adam, who started twice last season when Winborn was suspended, but wasn't overly impressive.