The 25 Most Brutal Hits in College Football History

You’ve spent the dog days of August sweating through most of your wardrobe, and trying to take long weekend after long weekend in search of relief. You’re over the beach and you’re running out of ideas to keep yourself entertained, we get it. Calm down, and take a step back from the ledge, there is hope in sight. While for some the end of August brings on a case of summertime sadness, we all know it’s really a cause for celebration. It’s time to rejoice sports fans because September is right around the corner, and that means so is football.

The NFL is still a few weeks away from kickoff, but college football is ready for action this weekend. In celebration of the return of our favorite fall Saturday activity, we’ve decided to comb through the archives to find the most brutal, bone-crushing, and ground-shaking afflictions to take place on the collegiate gridiron. From Zack Dumas nearly ending Stacy Danley, to Quinton Moore decapitating Lev Dejohnette, check out, the 25 Most Brutal Hits in College Football History.

Written by Adam Silvers (@silversurfer103)

Date: 10/9/2010
Game: Tennessee @ Georgia
Hit by: Eric Berry
Victim: Knowshon Moreno

If this is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object, then Berry - 1, Moreno - 0. We're sure safety's and db's throughout the SEC had a little laugh at Moreno getting blindsided by Eric Berry on this one.

Date: 11/11/2006
Game: Kent St @ Virginia Tech
Hit by: Brandon Flowers
Victim: Najah Pruden

This game was never going to end well for Kent State. Despite still getting his shit rocked, Najah Pruden must've been counting his lucky stars that this hit wasn't worse. Flowers really could've decapitated Pruden if he went just a little higher with this shot. We imagine the footage would not have been pretty.

Date: 9/25/2004
Game: North Texas @ Baylor
Hit by: Daniel Sepulveda
Victim: Johnny Quinn

Punters aren't usually the ones making tackles on kick-offs, they're usually staying as far back as they can while the other 10 guys on special teams try to nail the returner. Enter Daniel Sepulveda. Dude races down the field after his own punt to nail Quinn and stop him right in his tracks. #punterrespect

Date: 11/2/2005
Game: UConn @ WVU
Hit by: Pat White

There are quarterbacks who are willing to put their bodies on the line for the sake of his teammates and football team, and then there's Pat White absolutely destroying TWO defenders on this play. West Virginia's head coach probably wasn't thrilled with White's decision, but we love this type of stuff. Pretty sure those two UConn dudes had a rough go of it when they got back home to Storrs.

Date: 11/10/2007
Game: FSU @ Virginia Tech
Hit by: Kam Chancellor
Victim: Russell Ball

In case you thought Kam Chancellor was only a beast once he arrived with the Seahawks, think again. Kam may not have been able to stop Russell Ball from rattling off 24 yards before he got to him, but we're sure this hit would play on Ball's, and the rest of the Virginia Tech team's, mind for the remainder of the game.

Date: 9/26/2009
Game: Florida @ Kentucky
Hit by: Taylor Wyndham
Victim: Tim Tebow

Upon closer examination, the reason this hit was so devastating to Tebow was due to the fact that his head got kneed by that lineman. That doesn't change the fact that he was leveled by Taylor Wyndham, and that he just got knocked the fuck out.

Date: 11/10/2012
Game: Georgia @ Auburn
Hit by: Christian Robinson
Victim: Tre Mason

While already getting shellacked, 31-0, en route to a 3-9 season (0-8 SEC), a play like this was probably the last thing Auburn needed at the time. Something tells us that Christian Robinson was more than happy to inflict even further damage on their SEC rivals; kick a man when he's down, right? Props to Tre Mason for hanging onto the football though, probably the highlight of the Tigers season.

Date: 11/24/2012
Game: South Carolina @ Clemson
Hit by: DJ Swearinger
Victim: Andre Ellington

We rarely side with players who hurt their team by getting 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct flags, but in the case of DJ Swearinger an exception might have to be made. We think after this lick he put on Andre Ellington, Swearinger should have had free reign to do whatever he wanted for the immediate 30 seconds following. A little taunting was surely the least he could've done.

Date: 11/2/2010
Game: Middle Tenn. @ Arkansas St
Hit by: Demario Davis
Victim: D.D. Kyles

Props to D.D. Kyles for popping right back up after this one. Demario Davis absolutely destroys the Middle Tennessee man here, he hits him so hard he completely flew over the thick white of the sideline. Conference USA goes hard!

Date: 1/8/2009
Game: 2008 BCS National Championship: Oklahoma @ Florida
Hit by: Major Wright
Victim: Manny Johnson

Major Wright is no stranger to jacking up receivers who are unlucky enough to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Clearly Wright was not fazed by the bright lights of the 2008 BCS National Title game. The same cannot be said for Manny Johnson.

Date: 9/17/2009
Game: Georgia Tech @ Miami
Hit by: Jordan Futch
Victim: Steven Sylvester

There's nothing like a solid blindside block to get you out of the chair in your living room, and a heated top 25 battle is certainly worthy of such a block. Part of it's definitely the dude never seeing it coming, the other part is it usually leads to said dude getting knocked clean off his feet. Is there anything better than football?

Date: 9/13/2008
Game: Cal @ Maryland
Hit by: Kevin Barnes
Victim: Jahvid Best

We bet Jahvid Best had a thing or two to say to his quarterback after he hung him out to dry on this play. With a throw like that, this play had disaster written all over it from the start.

Date: 12/1/2012
Game: 2012 Big 10 Championship: Nebraska @ Wisconsin
Hit by: Kenny Bell
Victim: Devin Smith

One of the biggest hits of last season, this blindside block from Kenny Bell is a textbook example of how to execute a CLEAN block while still managing to inflict ultimate damage to a defender. Kudos to Bell for still playing his heart out despite the fact Nebraska was getting their noses rubbed in it by the Badgers. Thank the Lord Gus Johnson was doing the color commentary for this game, also.

Date: 10/8/2011
Game: Vanderbilt @ Alabama
Hit by: Mark Barron
Victim: Jordan Rodgers

We want to give props for a quarterback standing his ground, but as we've learned over many a season, it just makes sense to hit the deck. Where the heck does Jordan Rodgers think he's going? Newsflash: You're playing 'Bama bro, we know this hit from Barron knocked a lot out of Rodgers, we just hope it also knocked some common sense in.

Date: 11/13/2004
Game: Georgia @ Auburn
Hit by: Junior Rosegreen
Victim: Reggie Brown

Caution: The following video may disturb you and haunt your dreams. We just have one question, is Reggie Brown alive? This is just another example that SEC football really is king.

Date: 8/30/2008
Game: Idaho St @ Boise St
Hit by: Jeron Johnson
Victim: Russell Hill

R.I.P., Russell Hill. The cherry on top has to be the flag for holding on Idaho State, which of course was declined. Seriously, were charges pressed against Jeron Johnson postgame for attempted murder?

Date: 10/11/2003
Game: Miami (FL) @ FSU
Hit by: Stanford Samuels
Victim: Roscoe Parrish

The Florida State-Miami football rivalry dates back to 1951, and it's no secret that players and fans alike are somewhat less than cordial towards one another, both on and off the football field. In this case we're just going to assume that Stanford Samuels put a little extra mustard on this hit because it was Miami. We're not sure that's going to make Roscoe Parrish feel any better though. What a hit.

Date: 9/10/2011
Game: UVA-Wise @ University of the Cumberlands
Hit by: Drew Yeargin
Victim: Ryan Bouldin

Division 1 guys can take a lesson from the way this dude hits. We know the sound is probably louder because of the close proximity of the camera to the field, not to mention the smaller size of the crowd, but there's no denying that this is one bone-shattering hit. Goddamn, that just makes us warm and tingly all over. The crowd was still in awe as the next play was getting set to start, and quite frankly we were too.

Date: 11/7/1991
Game: Texas A&M @ TCU
Hit by: Quentin Coryatt
Victim: Kyle McPherson

This has to be one of the greatest forearm shivers ever delivered at any level of the game, anywhere, period. Coryatt looks like he didn't even expend any energy on the play, just a goodnight kiss for Kyle McPherson. We definitely don't want to run into Quentin Coryatt in a dark alley anytime soon.

Date: 2/2/2008
Game: Western Refining Texas vs. the Nation All-Star Challenge
Hit by: Rodrick Johnson
Victim: Allen Ervin

Talk about stopping a dude in his tracks, Rodrick Johnson absolutely levels Allen Ervin at the 2008 Texas All-Star Showcase. The fact that we can hear the sounds of impact so clearly cannot bode well for any future life plans Ervin may or may not still have. We get jacked up just watching this one.

Date: 9/17/2005
Game: Arkansas St @ Oklahoma St
Hit by: Quinton Moore
Victim: Lev Dejohnette

This hit is a clear example why there were rule changes implemented to protect receivers. We're 99 percent sure that if Lev Dejohnette wasn't wearing a helmet, it would've been his head that went flying off instead. Good Lord, this hit just makes us uncomfortable. We'll probably have to watch a few more times until we become desensitized to this act of violence.

Date: 11/8/1997
Game: Michigan @ Penn St
Hit by: Daydrion Taylor
Victim: Bob Stephenson

The now-legendary hit that stopped two careers in their tracks, Daydrion Taylor's hit on Bob Stephenson will forever live in college football infamy. Big rivalry, a pair of teams fighting for the No. 1 spot in the country, you can understand that the juices were flowing. Taylor's utter disregard for his and Stephenson's well being is absolutely terrifying though.

Date: 1/1/1990
Game: 1990 Hall of Fame Bowl: Auburn @ Ohio St
Hit by: Zack Dumas
Victim: Stacy Danley

Forget the biggest hit of the 1989-90 bowl season, that's one of the biggest hits on a football field we've ever seen. The fact that Dumas is able to generate that much power is absolutely frightening. We're pretty sure Stacey Danley didn't know who he was, or where he was for that matter, after receiving this crushing blow. Definitely chalk this one up as a, "I shouldn't have suited up today" type of moment.

Date: 1/1/2013
Game: 2013 Outback Bowl: South Carolina @ Michigan
Hit by: Jadeveon Clowney
Victim: Vincent Smith

Without a doubt the play of the 2012 season, this hit and subsequent fumble recovery by Jadeveon Clowney is going to be on highlight reels for quite a while. We, like you, have watched this play over and over again, and we're still not sure how Clowney got into the Michigan backfield so quickly. Clowney has to potential to be an all-time great.

Date: 12/2/2006
Game: USC @ UCLA
Hit by: Rey Maualuga
Victim: Patrick Cowan

Before Rey Maualuga was jacking people up professionally with the Bengals, he was honing his craft with life-enders like this against UCLA's Patrick Cowan. No wonder Maualuga made first-team All-Pac-10 three times, and was the conference's Defensive Player of the Year in 2008. For the love of Pete, why didn't Cowan just slide?