Best of the rest
Chris Spielman
As a Buckeye: Three-time All-Big Ten player (1984 to '87) and two-time All-American whose total of 283 career solo tackles stands as a school record. The 1987 Lombardi Award winner was elected to the college Hall of Fame this year.
As a pro: A tackling machine in a 10-year career with Detroit (eight seasons) and Buffalo (two), Spielman led his team in tackles each of his first nine seasons and finished his career with 1,181 solo stops. He made four Pro Bowls with the Lions - 1989-91 and '94.
The skinny: Spielman dropped to the second round of the 1988 draft and made a lot of NFL teams pay for passing him over. He signed with the Browns in 1999 but retired after suffering a neck injury in preseason. These days, he's a media darling in local radio and on ESPN and a breast-cancer warrior along with his wife, Stefanie. These days, he's well-known in media circles in local radio and on ESPN, and is a breast-cancer warrior along with his wife, Stefanie.