50 Best of the Non-BCS: Number 10

We're almost done our countdown. Anyone want to guess who will take the top spot?

#10: Case Keenum, Houston

The Verdict: Aside from making an excellent wildcard pick in HeismanPundit.com's Fantasy Challenge, Keenum represents the very best in a spread football quarterback. At 6-foot-2, 210-pounds he certainly has the size to be effective in any offense, yet it's his underrated athleticism and tremendous field vision which set him apart from most of Conference USA's other "system" quarterbacks. Ridiculously accurate a season ago (hit 67.4% of his passes), Keenum registered almost unprecedented passing statistics across the board en route to being named the 2008 Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year. Already a member of the Davey O'Brian Watch List heading into this fall's action, Keenum has the distinction of returning to the field for his junior season this year as the nation's leading returning player in terms total offense. Not just a "system" player, Keenum shows tremendous leadership and learning ability, having taken to coach Kevin Sumlin's offense in the course of one offseason while having engineered a 56-37 upset of Oklahoma State in week only his second game in that offense. While he's athletic enough to make plays outside of the pocket (s7 rushing touchdowns in 2008), it's Keenum's pocket mobility which makes him so dangerous, as the Abilene native is able to buy extra time for his receivers downfield before unleashing pinpoint tosses which leave you constantly saying to yourself, "how did that guy do that?" While teams like TCU and Boise State have been receiving most of the preseason talk as "BCS busters," Keenum should be considered a legitimate darkhorse candidate going into the season, and helps make the Cougars a favorite to win the conference in 2009.