49ers have two of the best players of the decade!

by David Fucillo on Dec 25, 2009 1:00 PM PST in Decade Retrospective

And it's not even hyperbole...well not really. Considering we're reaching the end of 2009, it's not shocking that folks are putting together all-decade lists. I'm working on some of those lists for Niners Nation, although I'll be posting them once the season is over. In the meantime, the Internet is loaded with a variety of all-decade teams.

Over at Yahoo! Sports, Dr. Saturday provides in-depth college football analysis. He actually used to write for SB Nation at Sunday Morning QB, but has since moved on to Yahoo. This week he posted his college all-decade teams and the 49ers have two names on the list, one on offense and one on defense: Michael Crabtree and Patrick Willis.

Willis

'06 Butkus winner led the SEC in total tackles two years in a row and was the league's defensive player of the year as a senior opposite the conference's worst offense.

Crabtree

Redshirted, incredibly, then broke out with an absurd 134-catch, 1,962-yard, 22-touchdown effort that smashed every freshman record in 2007, then followed that up with a mere 97-catch, 19-touchdown season in 2008 that included the biggest play in Texas Tech history to knock off No. 1 Texas at the last second.

I think it's safe to say Bamm Bamm will be making his way onto some of our all-time lists in the coming weeks. Crabtree doesn't have enough time under his belt for many of the lists, but we might be able to sneak him on to a lists.

Tweet Comment 12 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Hopefully next season we can say we have more than two.

With two 1st round picks the draft world is ours.

True knowledge is knowing you know, nothing!!
"I seen the ball was behind me and I can't go out like that"
Niners trade up in 2010 draft!!

by rlott#42 on Dec 25, 2009 2:02 PM PST reply actions

Yeah

'I wanna see him be able to catch the short pass and be elusive and go for six.'
-Jerry Rice on Michael Crabtree
'By the way, in my humble opinion that end-zone attempt was not a true drop. It would have required one hell of an effort to make that catch.'
-Matt Barrows

by 10forTech on Dec 25, 2009 3:20 PM PST up reply actions

yeah x's 2

True knowledge is knowing you know, nothing!!
"I seen the ball was behind me and I can't go out like that"- MCraptree #15
Niners trade up in 2010 draft!! (pleeeeease)

by rlott#42 on Dec 25, 2009 4:22 PM PST up reply actions

Redshirted incredibly.

       I am guessing he may have been redshirted because he was a quarterback before Texas Tech. I don’t think he had played receive ever before, So not realizing that he was a “god”, more or less, one would assume he would need a year.
       His two years of dominance in college is even more impressive when you realize how limited his experience as receiver was and is. From the moment he stepped on the field he was great.
        Both Willis and Crabtree were great draft picks in my opinion (obviously).

by zacksf on Dec 25, 2009 8:34 PM PST reply actions