Ranking College Football’s Best Baseball Players In 2024
Image credit: Photo by David Rosenblum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
While last weekend was a slight taste of what’s to come this fall, tomorrow’s games mark the first full slate of the college football season. Outside of college baseball’s opening day in February, it is one of my—and millions of others’—favorite days on the sports calendar.
As a Boston College fan, there hasn’t been a whole lot to cheer about since the Matt Ryan days, but Bill O’Brien is building a monster and I—like I have done every single year—have convinced myself the Eagles will go 10-2.
An underrated aspect of college football, though, is that there are a number of athletes who either still play baseball or had illustrious playing careers in high school. To take it a step further, one player listed below even logged 50 games in the majors. The inimitable Teddy Cahill used to put this piece out annually, and I must admit that this was a ton of fun to put together. The players are in no particular order, and you can expect to see them all make an impact on the gridiron, and in some cases on the diamond, this fall and spring.
1. Monte Harrison, Arkansas
Harrison has had the most unique career path of any of the 10 players listed, and it is one that will be difficult to top. He was a second-round draft pick out of Lee’s Summit West High School in Missouri, but he was also a four-star wide receiver with a plethora of high-profile offers. Harrison signed with the Marlins and eventually made his MLB debut in 2020, appearing in 50 games between 2020 and 2022. He accumulated an underwhelming career slash line of .176/.253/.294, but he homered twice and drove in six runs. Harrison was released by the Brewers last fall, and last spring he announced his intention to walk onto the Arkansas football team.
At 29-years-old, Harrison is by far the oldest true freshman in the country. He showed flashes of his explosive athleticism last spring and will look to earn reps for the Razorbacks as the season progresses.
2. Nik Sanders, Texas
Sanders saw limited playing time on the diamond as a freshman and went just 1-for-18 on the season, but he was in the Longhorns’ opening day lineup and went 1-for-3 with an RBI single to drive in their first run of the season. He proceeded to have a brief, yet productive, stint in the California Collegiate League in which he went 8-for-23 (.348) with four doubles and three RBIs across nine games. Sanders is plenty physical with no shortage of arm strength, and this summer he announced that he would be joining the No. 4 ranked Texas football team. He’s listed as a running back on the roster and will see limited—if any—playing time.
3. Grant Gray, UCLA
In addition to being ranked the No. 70 overall draft prospect on the 2023 BA 500, Grant was also a four-star wide receiver who, in addition to UCLA, held offers from Arizona, Boise State Colorado and others. He is an exceptional athlete with no shortage of raw tools, though they have yet to translate to the baseball field collegiately. Gray appeared in just one game for the Bruins last fall and did not see the field in the spring. He will look to earn more reps for both teams in their respective seasons.
4. Tywone Malone, Ohio State
At 6-foot-4 and 301 pounds, Malone is a mountain of a man and as physical as they come. A product of football powerhouse Bergen Catholic (NJ), Malone was a four-star star football recruit who held every offer under the sun. He committed to Mississippi to play both baseball and football, and as a true freshman he both saw time on the football field and went 4-for-9 (.444) with two home runs on the Rebels’ national championship team. Malone appeared in 13 games on the gridiron as a sophomore and hit another home run in the spring, but proceeded to enter the transfer portal where he would eventually commit to Ohio State.
Although Malone has hung up his baseball cleats, he possessed double-plus raw power and the ability to generate tremendous impact. He will be a part of the second-ranked Buckeyes’ defensive line this spring as they look to win their first national title since 2014.
5. DJ Uiagalelei, Florida State
Uiagalelei was the top-ranked quarterback in the 2020 class and has thrown for over 8,500 yards and 57 touchdowns in his college career, but he was also a standout righthander for St. John Bosco (Calif.). His outstanding arm strength and physical 6-foot-4, 250-pound frame translated well to the mound, where he ran his fastball into the mid-90s and was eventually drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 20th round of the 2023 draft. Uiagalelei has long been focused on football, but he would be an intriguing late-inning option for the Seminoles.
6. Duce Robinson, Southern California
Robinson was ranked the No. 156 overall prospect on the 2023 BA 500, but was also a five-star football recruit and the top-ranked tight end in the country. He announced his intention to play professional baseball and college football, but went undrafted. Robinson was an immediate contributor for the Trojans last fall, catching 16 passes for 351 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He logged just six at-bats in the spring, but laced four extra base hits and drove in nine runs across 19 games this summer in the California Collegiate League.
Robinson is a 6-foot-6 Adonis with freakish athleticism and big-time raw power. His long term future looks to be on the football field, but he will look to be a productive member for the Trojans this spring on the diamond.
7. JonJon Vaughns, UCLA
Vaughns has been a four-year member of the UCLA football and baseball teams. A linebacker and outfielder, Vaughns has an impressive combination of athleticism and physicality. He has collected 109 career tackles with a pair of interceptions, and across 158 games on the diamond he has accumulated 38 extra-base hits with 72 RBIs. In what has been the case in each of the last four years, Vaughns in 2024 will again be a key dual-sport contributor for the Bruins.
8. Robby Ashford, South Carolina
Ashford was one of the best pure athletes in the 2020 class and was a four-star dual-threat quarterback on top of being ranked inside the top 250 on the BA 500. He was invited to participate in the Under Armour All-America game for both baseball and football, a feat that has only been accomplished by the likes of A.J. Brown and Kyler Murray. It has been a tumultuous college career for Ashford, though. After not seeing the field in the fall and logging just 35 at-bats as a freshman, Ashford eventually transferred to Auburn and decided to focus solely on football.
He played his way into a starting role in 2022, but in 2023 saw limited action. For the second time in three years, Ashford hit the portal and committed to South Carolina. He heads into week one as the Gamecocks’ backup quarterback.
9. Blake Shapen, Mississippi State
Shapen ranked No. 371 on the 2020 BA 500, but he shifted his focus entirely to football after high school. He redshirted as a true freshman, and in 2021 he led Baylor to a Big 12 championship after Gerry Bohanon went down with an injury. Between 2022 and 2023, Shapen threw for 4,978 yards with 31 touchdowns. He will spend his last season at Mississippi State and is slated to be the Bulldogs’ QB1.
10. Carson Beck, Georgia
Before Beck cemented himself as one of the premier quarterbacks in the 2020 class, he was committed to play baseball at Florida. On the diamond, his 6-foot-4 frame combined with arm strength and above-average raw power made for a pretty solid foundation for Beck to hypothetically play in a corner outfield spot. With that being said, I think it’s pretty safe to say he made the right choice to focus on football.
Beck took the reins of Georgia’s offense last season and completed over 72% of his passes for 3,941 yards and 24 touchdowns. He will again be the top-ranked Bulldogs’ starting quarterback and is one of the favorites to take home the Heisman Trophy.
