The 50 most important college players in Texas in 2016 — No. 26: UNT's Jeffrey Wilson

[caption id="attachment_23555" align="alignright" width="200"]DENTON, TX - OCTOBER 15: North Texas Mean Green football v Western Kentucky at Apogee Stadium on October 15, 2015 in Coppell, Texas. (Photo by Manny Flores for Rick Yeatts Photography) Photo by Rick Yeatts[/caption] The importance of a player is not always defined by their skill. The most important player on a team is not always the best player on a team. This list is designed to breakdown the 50 most important players in Texas college football for the 2016 season. It is not a ranking of the 50 best college football players in the state. Importance can be defined by position, need, skill or leadership. We’ll count down the list through the summer, all the way to No. 1.Previously — 27: SFA DE John Franklin // 28: Texas QB Shane Buechele // 29: Texas Tech RB Justin Stockton // 30: Baylor LB Taylor Young //  31: TCU RB Shaun Nixon // 32: Texas A&M WR Christian Kirk // 33: Houston WR Chance Allen // 34: UTSA QB Jared Johnson // 35: ACU LB Sam Denmark // 36: Houston Baptist RB Terrance Peters // 37: Rice DE Graysen Schantz // 38: UTEP DE Alvin Jones // 39: SMU RB Xavier Jones // 40: Sam Houston RB Corey Avery // 41: Prairie View A&M DE DeVohn Reed // 42: Texas State WR Demun Mercer // 43: UTEP S Devin Cockrell // 44: UNT DT Bryce English // 45: Texas OL Connor Williams // 46: Texas Tech DT Breiden Fehoko // 47: Houston DT B.J. Singleton // 48: Texas A&M DT Daylon Mack // 49: TCU S Denzel Johnson  // 50: Baylor S Chance WazNo. 27 – North Texas running back Jeffrey WilsonThe History Wilson arrived at North Texas from tiny Elkhart High School. He was named an AP Class 2A first-team all-state selection after a senior season which included 2,749 yards and 36 touchdowns. Wilson averaged 8.9 yards in that 2013 season, earning District 11-2A MVP honors and East Texas Super Team by ETSN.fm. As a junior, Wilson rushed for 2,329 yards and 26 touchdowns. He was named to the Class 2A all-state team in that season, as well. In his final two seasons in high school, Wilson topped 5,000 yards rushing and recorded 59 touchdowns. He was the third leading rusher for North Texas as a freshman in 2014. Wilson finished the year with 224 yards on 50 attempts, scoring one touchdown as a rusher. He added five catches and a touchdown. After missing the first two games in 2015, Wilson played in the final 10. He started seven games at running back and led his team with 830 yards on 155 carries. He had three 100-yard games in 2015 and topped 1,000 yards for his career. The Skillset Wilson wasn’t a hot shot prospect like fellow junior running back Willy Ivery. He was from a small school and many coaches weren’t sure if his prep success would translate to success at the highest levels in college. The 6-foot, 195-pound running back found a home at UNT. It is undecided exactly how the running back rotation will shake out with a brand new coach in charge in Denton, but Wilson figures to be a large part of the plans. He’s a tough runner capable of breaking off longer runs, but he isn’t the type of running back to score from 80 yards out. Wilson is a workhorse who gets better with more touches. He received at least 18 carries in each of his three 100-yard games. Wilson’s valuable outside of his running ability. He led the Mean Green in all-purpose yards thanks to a few receptions and return yardage. Wilson accounted for 1,180 yards of all-purpose offense for North Texas in 2015. The Impact North Texas faces a lot of questions in 2016. First-year coach Seth Littrell must find a quarterback, fill out the offensive line and fix the defense. Running back should be a strong position with the likes of Wilson and Ivery balancing each other’s skills out. Ivery is the homerun threat, while Wilson is steady and reliable when he’s healthy. Don’t expect Wilson to churn out a ton of highlight-reel runs, but do expect him to approach a 1,000-yard season and compete for all-conference honors.

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