The college football season begins on Sept. 2 for 12 of the 13 FBS teams in the state of Texas. The lone exception in the Lone Star State is UTEP, which faced Jacksonville State in Week 0 to begin Conference USA play. 

As we approach the start of another season, we’ll countdown the 50-most important players in college football. We’ll go one-by-one until Sept. 1 as we enter the top 20. 

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No. 4 Baylor RB Richard Reese

The History

Reese was a revelation for Baylor in an otherwise disappointing 2022 campaign. Despite rushing for 6,678 yards and 85 touchdowns in his career at Bellville High School, Reese flew slightly under the radar as a three-star recruit. After getting a handful of totes in the beginning of the year, Reese averaged nearly 23 carries a contest for a six-game stretch in the middle of the season and set a Baylor freshman record with 972 rushing yards. He earned Freshman All-American honors and was also the Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year.

The Importance

After having to work his way into the lead role as a freshman, Reese is the undisputed bell cow of Baylor's offense. He won't be alone in shouldering the load, however, as Dave Aranda dipped into the portal to add Oklahoma State running back Dominic Richardson. The Bears will need Reese and Richardson to kick start the offense. The passing game should be improved after a pedestrian 2022, but there are question marks in that phase of the game with quarterback Blake Shapen in his second year as the starter and the addition of Arkansas transfer Ketron Jackson Jr. Reese, on the other hand, is already a proven commodity. 

The Outlook

Richardson's appearance on the backfield depth chart means Reese might not have the most gaudy stats in 2023, especially in the passing game. Reese caught just 13 balls last year and Richardson appears to be the pass-catcher between the two of them. When it comes to running between the tackles, however, Reese will get the majority of the carries. A preseason all-conference selection, the 5-foot-9-inch back packs quite the punch when he lowers his shoulder and will be integral in setting up the play action pass game for Shapen.

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