Every year you have a player step up and surprise everyone by the way he plays. Last year it was Trent Hunter, who made an immediate impact and is now one of the top safeties in the country. Who do you think will be the surprise player for the Ags this season? My vote goes to DE Matt Moss. I think Kyle Mangan may surprise many with how effective he is at MLB, but Moss just jumps out at me as the guy who will make the most impact. Every time I saw him on the field last year, he was giving it his all and showing an incredible motor. He played so well in his limited snaps on the field, I wondered why he did not receive more playing time.

Moss enters the season as a starter and I think he is going to surprise many with how effective he is at getting into the backfield and pressuring the QB. If Von Miller has the type of solid season I expect (around 6 sacks with 12-13 TFLs) then I expect Moss will to benefit from teams concentrating on containing Miller.

If Moss can give us solid pressure from his DE spot (i.e. 4 sacks 8-10 TFLs), then we will turn the defense around sooner rather than later. Other candidates for players who could surprise include the aforementioned Mangan, OG Matt Allen, OT Lucas Patterson, S Jordan Pugh, and DT Rod Davis.

Who do you think will be the surprise player of  '09?