After Boise State’s Thomas Sperbeck took home the catch of the year in 2015, our catch of the week post is back!
Each week (on Mondays moving forward), we’ll gather the best catches from the weekend (or the midweek games) and bring them here for you to vote on in a poll. There could be only a few nominees, or there could be five or six. It all depends on the weekend. If you have a catch you’d like to nominate, don’t hesitate to hit us up on Twitter (@YahooDrSaturday).
The voting remains open until Friday and the winner advances to another round of voting that will help crown the best catch of the regular season.
Bryce Bobo – Colorado
Our first nominee comes from the Pac-12 where Colorado put a whooping on in-state rival Colorado State in Denver. The Buffs already led CSU 24-0 late in the first half when Sefo Liufau looked deep down the left sideline for Bryce Bobo. The junior was in tight coverage, but he managed to create a bit of space from the defender and make a crazy one-handed catch inside the five-yard line.
Bobo corralled the ball with just his left hand and managed to get two feet down in bounds. That 46-yard gain set up a first-and-goal for CU and tailback Phillip Lindsay punched it in for a touchdown on the next play.
The Buffs went on to win 44-7.
Linell Bonner – Houston
Houston was looking to take a lead over Oklahoma late in the first half when junior Linell Bonner made a clutch — and extremely difficult — first down catch for the Cougars. UH QB Greg Ward escaped heavy pressure from the Sooners and after a long scramble lobbed one up to Bonner along the right sideline.
Bonner somehow managed to stretch out for the ball, which was a few yards out of bounds. He kept his left foot planted in the field of play while extending for the ball, giving the Cougars a 16-yard gain and a big first down.
Bonner caught another pass from Ward, this time for 18 yards, two plays later, allowing Ty Cummings to give the Cougars a 19-17 halftime lead with a 47-yard field goal. UH went on to finish off the upset over the No. 3 Sooners, 33-23.
Hakeem Butler – Iowa State
The Matt Campbell era at Iowa State did not get off to an ideal start when the Cyclones lost 25-20 to FCS Northern Iowa. However, ISU’s Hakeem Butler did reel in one of the best catches of the week on an 18-yard scoring strike from Joel Lanning.
Lanning delivered a back shoulder throw for Butler in the end zone, and he reached back behind the defender with one hand and pulled it in for an Iowa State touchdown.
It was Butler’s only catch of the game, but he sure did make it count.
Emmanuel Butler – Northern Arizona
The first play of the second half of Northern Arizona’s game vs. Arizona State was a big one for Emmanuel Butler. Butler was in pretty tight coverage, but used his 6-foot-4, 220-pound frame to go up with one hand and make an impressive grab for a 39-yard gain.
NAU kept things close for a while in this one, and Butler’s catch set up a field goal that cut ASU’s lead to 10-6. He was one of the bright spots for the Lumberjacks, finishing with seven catches for 118 yards.
However, the Sun Devils pulled away in the fourth quarter and won 44-13.
Joe Mixon – Oklahoma
Joe Mixon creates a great duo at running back for Oklahoma alongside Semaje Perine, but Mixon is also a big-play threat as a pass-catcher. He proved that in the first half against Houston with this 60-yard gain on a nice ball from Baker Mayfield.
Mixon lined up in the backfield and ran a go route straight through the heart of the Houston defense. He got behind the secondary with no issue and brought in a touch pass from Mayfield, which was slightly overthrown, with one hand.
That’s impressive. Mixon finished the day with five catches for 77 yards.
D.K. Metcalf – Ole Miss
Ole Miss was riding high early on against Florida State until the wheels came off in the second half. When D.K. Metcalf caught this touchdown from Chad Kelly early in the second quarter, it looked like it might be the Rebels’ night.
Kelly underthrew Metcalf a bit, but the 6-foot-4 freshman made a great individual effort to fight through the defender and use one hand to tip the ball to himself and bring it in for a touchdown. The catch was the first of Metcalf’s career and his only one of the night.
That’s a great play for somebody making their collegiate debut, even though it came in a disappointing loss.
So there are your six nominees for this week. Vote for your favorite in the poll below.
Related NCAAF video from Yahoo Sports:
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Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
