Michigan State Football: Top 50 players of all time

Jan 1, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Michigan State Spartans running back Jeremy Langford (33) runs with the ball against the Baylor Bears during the first quarter in the 2015 Cotton Bowl Classic at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

30. Jeremy Langford

Not many players on this list had the type of impact that Jeremy Langford had in such a short period of time. Converting from defensive back to running back from his freshman to sophomore-senior seasons, Langford looked to be just another project for head coach Mark Dantonio.

Replacing Le’Veon Bell as the starter in 2013 as his predecessor left early for the NFL, Langford was hoping to have a couple of decent seasons before graduating. No one knew the kind of impact he was about to have, and it was tremendous.

In just two years, and a couple of carries from a third season, Langford finished his MSU career with 2,967 yards and 40 touchdowns, an incredible mark for Bell’s replacement. He really came out of nowhere to be one of the top-two or three running backs in the Big Ten and even showed off his athleticism at the NFL Combine, posting the best 40-yard dash time of any running back.

Langford was known for putting up 100-yard games in consecutive Big Ten contests as he put together 16 straight such contests in his 17 career conference games. After starting his career with five games under the 100-yard mark, he finished with 18 over the century mark.

The 2013 Rose Bowl champion running back finished eighth all-time in rushing yards (2,967), ninth in rushing attempts (577), 18th in yards per carry (5.14) and second in touchdowns (40). He was drafted in the fourth round by the Chicago Bears in 2015 and is likely to be the starting running back in the 2016 season.

Imagine how high he’d be on all-time lists had he started three or four years for MSU.

Next: 29. Shilique Calhoun