Everyone knows about the four and five star prospects, but what about the guys no one cared about yet turned into superstars? Richard Cirminiello looks at the offensive afterthoughts from the 2011 class that turned into stars.

15. DB Darian Thompson, Boise State 
California kid. Overlooked by Pac-12 schools. Flourishing in Idaho. It’s just your average Boise State success story. The Broncos have thrived through the years off hard-working kids like Thompson, who play their entire careers with a chip on their shoulders. A starter since midway through his redshirt freshman season, he hit the tarmac this past season by turning seven interceptions and 71 tackles into a spot on the All-Mountain West First Team. Thompson has one more year to continue bucking the odds by improving his standings among NFL scouts. 

14. WR Breshad Perriman, UCF 
Size. Speed. Pedigree. It’s hard to imagine that the son of 10-year NFL receiver Brett Perriman began his college career with such modest expectations. During his three seasons in Orlando, he was one of the game’s most explosive homerun hitters, averaging more than 20 yards a reception in each of the last two years. Perriman, who has decided to take his skills to the next level with a year left, amassed 115 career receptions for 2,243 yards and 16 touchdowns. In 2014, he was named to the All-AAC First Team. 

13. WR Tommy Shuler, Marshall 
Shuler and QB Rakeem Cato arrived in Huntington as a package deal, longtime friends from their days growing up together in Miami. They immediately enjoyed unique chemistry, providing an edge against bewildered defenders. The starting slot receiver the past three seasons finished his career with 322 catches, fourth all-time in the FBS, for 3,563 yards and 25 touchdowns. Neither Shuler nor Cato possessed ideal size coming out of Miami Central (Fla.) High School, and the Herd have been thankful for the little things in life ever since. 

12. RB Jahwan Edwards, Ball State 
Ideally, Edwards would have fielded an offer from an ACC school. Any ACC school. But it never came, forcing the Matthews, N.C. native to venture almost 600 miles away to continue his playing career in the MAC. The move worked out rather well, for the Cardinals and their Tar Heel State import. Edwards was an instant hit, going on to rush for 4,558 yards and 51 touchdowns on 884 carries. More important, he helped spark a football revival at Ball State, highlighted by 30 wins over the last four years. 

11. DT Adam Gotsis, Georgia Tech 
No one had any idea four years ago what to expect from Gotsis, who’d spent most of his athletic career playing Australian Rules Football Down Under. But it wasn’t long before his strength, instincts and athleticism were helping flatten his gridiron learning curve on the Flats. The junior has been a starter in each of the last two seasons, blossoming into an All-ACC performer in 2014. Gotsis, who’s beginning to attract the attention of NFL scouts, will continue to hone his skills as he earns more reps with the Yellow Jackets. 

10. LB Denzel Nkemdiche, Ole Miss 
At Grayson (Ga.) High School, Nkemdiche was neither the biggest nor the fastest player at his position, whatever position that was going to be. His passion, intensity and nose for the ball, though, trumped every physical shortcoming in Oxford. Nkemdiche was a terror as a freshman and a sophomore, earning All-SEC honors both years. Now, he has to bounce back from a deflating 2014 marked by a suspension, a lawsuit and a season-ending ankle injury on Oct. 25. 

9. OL Cody Whitehair, Kansas State 
Whitehair is the latest in a long line of Wildcats who’ve used Manhattan as the backdrop to prove critics wrong. He’s started 37 games over the past three seasons, with a year of eligibility remaining. And not only did Whitehair earn a spot on the All-Big 12 Second Team in 2014, but he did so at his third position with the program. The versatile and selfless son of Kansas State graduates manned left tackle last fall after playing left guard and right tackle in the early stages of his career. 

8. QB Brett Smith, Wyoming 
Smith never should have left Laramie following his junior year. Still, he made an indelible impression in three years as a Cowboy. After being passed over by the Ducks and the Beavers, Oregon’s top quarterback of 2011 set the Mountain West on fire with his diverse artistic ability. He accounted for 98 touchdowns and more than 10,000 yards of offense to become one of the most prolific players in Wyoming history. However, he left a year of eligibility on the table, went undrafted and is now on the AFL San Jose SaberCat roster. 

7. LB David Helton, Duke 
In many ways, Helton was the archetypal Blue Devil student-athlete. Productive. Hard-working. Smart. Real smart. The perennial Academic All-ACC selection capped his standout career in Durham by being awarded the distinguished William V. Campbell Trophy, given to college football’s top scholar athlete. Helton was pretty effective away from the field, too, leading the conference in tackles in each of the last two seasons. This past year, his haul of stops earned him First Team All-ACC recognition for the first time in his career. 

6. DE Preston Smith, Mississippi State 
Smith didn’t have a lot of premium options coming out of high school, unless he wanted to play at a Conference USA level. Dan Mullen afforded a chance to play in the SEC, a lifeline for a career in doubt. After a slow start in Starkville, the light went on in 2014, and has been shining brightly ever since in NFL war rooms from coast-to-coast. Smith played his way into a hefty signing bonus, parlaying 15 stops for loss, nine sacks and 15 pressures into All-SEC recognition and considerable buzz. 

5. LB Ben Heeney, Kansas 
When all else failed in Lawrence in recent years, the Jayhawks could always count on No. 31. Heeney had one other offer in high school, choosing Kansas over Colorado State. Following an apprenticeship as a rookie, he began the improbable evolution into one of the Big 12’s premier run-stopping linebackers. Heeney racked up the stops, 334 in total, en route to an all-league nod for three consecutive years. The six-footer never had prototypical size, yet played with an almost maniacal thirst for contact that could help make him Chris Borland 2.0 on Sundays. 

4. QB Connor Cook, Michigan State 
Based on recruiting interest, Cook had the look of a MAC quarterback. Based on the past two years, though, he’s clearly Big Ten-caliber. Like so many overlooked recruits, Cook has flourished in East Lansing under the tutelage of Mark Dantonio and his coaching staff. The backup when 2013 began has never looked back since replacing Andrew Maxwell two years ago. Cook is 23-3 as a starter, earning Second Team All-Big Ten in consecutive years. And although he has an NFL future, it’ll be on hold until 2016. 

3. WR Davante Adams, Fresno State 
Being underestimated never derailed Adams. It inspired him. He only spent two years in the Valley, tearing up Mountain West defenses as if he was a misplaced Pac-12 superstar. As Derek Carr’s preferred target at Fresno State, Adams racked up 233 receptions for 3,031 yards and 38 touchdowns in 2012 and 2013 alone. It was enough to entice Green Bay to use its second pick in the 2014 NFL Draft on him. Adams is out of the gate quickly again, starting 11 games as a rookie, and having a career day in the playoff win over Dallas. 

2. QB Rakeem Cato, Marshall 
It didn’t matter how many passing records Cato set at Miami Central (Fla.) High School. At 6-0 and well south of 200 pounds, he had no shot of attracting interest from name brand programs. Florida International offered, as well as Marshall, which would eventually be led back to prominence by its young conductor behind center. As Cato ascended in the NCAA record books, finishing with 14,079 career passing yards and 146 total touchdowns, he concurrently led the Herd to 35 wins and the 2014 Conference USA crown. 

1. LB Benardrick McKinney, Mississippi State 
Memphis. Southern Miss. And Mississippi State. McKinney didn’t have a ton of options from which to choose four years ago. And he’s been using his recruitment—or lack thereof—as a motivational tool ever since. The Bulldogs saw potential that they were eager to develop in Starkville. Over the past three seasons, McKinney evolved into one of the nation’s top linebackers, a 6-5, 250-pounder, with the range to go from sideline-to-sideline. Having excelled as an All-SEC stalwart, he’s foregoing his senior year to begin a journey that could end in the first round of the draft.