Throwbackz: 'College Dropout' NCAA Football Legends/ NFL Busts: Peter Warrick, WR, Florida State Seminoles, 1996-99

Matt Leinart, Heath Shuler, and Brian Bosworth aren't the only guys that could've been cast in that DISH Network 'going back to college' commercial, where these former college greats with lackluster NFL careers link in a coffee shop and pine the days of their college glory. 

Many college stars and can't miss talents over the years have proven the concept that professional football is an entirely different entity in itself. 

For every late-round gem like Tom Brady and Terrell Davis, you have a Ryan Leaf or Ki-Jana Carter. 

It's just how the game works.  Potential in football is so unpredictable. 

As the 2014 college football season approaches (the first that will feature a four-team playoff rather than the Bowl Championship Series polling format), I recall some of the most electrifying and hard-hitting players to ever play in college, but didn't quite make a name for themselves in the pros....

'Trent Richardson>Adrian Peterson?'

Trent has a long way to go to catch up to A.D.'s exploits.

Before the 2012 NFL Draft, I updated a status on my Facebook page saying that I wasn't buying into the Trent Richardson being a better prospect than Adrian Peterson hype. 
To be clear, I was not trashing Richardson or saying that he would be a bust.  Rather, i was simply stating that expecting him to be as good as/better than Peterson is/was an egregious sentiment, as A.D., in my opinion, is one of the most special athletes to come about in any sport in the last 30 years.  People bugged out (mostly Tide fans) and started un-'liking' the page!
This is a small sample size, but take a look at the numbers between Peterson and Richardson through their first nine career NFL games.  If Richardson is gonna live up to his pre-draft hype, and comparison's to Peterson (who btw is punking kids left and right in 2012), he's got a lot of catching up to do.

Adrian Peterson's rushing statistics, first 9 NFL games (2007)
Quarterbacks: Tarvaris Jackson, Kelly Holcomb, Brooks Bollinger
Other RBs: Chester Taylor, Mewelde Moore
19-103-1
20-66-0
25-102-1
12-112-0
20-224-3
12-63-1
20-70-0
30-296-3
11-45-0
Totals: 169-1081-9

Trent Richardson's rushing statistics first 9 NFL games (2012)
Quarterback: Brandon Weeden
Other RBs: Montario Hardesty, Chris Ogbonnaya
19-39-0
19-109-1
12-27-1
14-47-1
17-81-1
14-37-0
8-8-0
24-122-1
25-105-1
Totals: 152-575-6