The 67th player on our list was perhaps the most heavily recruited receiver ever from the NIC-10 only to have a frustrating college career end with a unique accomplishment - a national championship.
Brooks burst onto the NIC-10 scene as a junior, finishing second in receptions (24), receptions yards (460), touchdown catches (4) and tying for in yards per catch for players with more than 10 catches (19.2). Brooks helped keep the defenses honest for running back Dennis Dunn, who won the conference rushing title with 1,333 yards as the Pretzels qualified for the playoffs and went 7-4 overall.
In 1993, without Dunn, the Pretzels moved Brooks all over the field. He led the conference in receiving with 37 catches and 690 yards. The next best in either category was 28 and 393. He also led Freeport in rushing with 624 yards on 88 carries. He scored 19 touchdowns - 16 rushing and three receiving. He was the runaway NIC-10 MVP for a Freeport team that went 6-4 overall.
Brooks was recruited by schools all over the country and his three finalists were Notre Dame, Stanford and Michigan. He went with the Wolverines.
Michigan redshirted Brooks in 1994 and then the coach who recruited Brooks, Gary Moeller, resigned and was replaced by Lloyd Carr. That certainly didn't help Brooks. He spent most of his sophomore and junior years on special teams. He got his only college reception - for 14 yards - as a sophomore. Michigan went 9-4 and 8-4, losing the Alamo Bowl and Outback Bowl.
In 1997, Brooks had worked himself up to second string receiver when he first strained an abdominal muscle and then tore a rotator cuff. The Wolverines would go 12-0, beating Washington State, 21-16, in the Rose Bowl to win the national championship, but Brooks wouldn't receive a letter.
Brooks went on to earn his bachelor's degree in communications from Michigan in 1999 and he remained in the area. Today, he is the diversity supplier relationship manager for 3Li in the greater Detroit area.
| No. 67 - Todd Brooks, Freeport | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Level | School | Accomplishments | Points |
| 1992 | High School | Freeport | First Team All-Conference | 2 |
| League Leader (yards per catch) | 1 | |||
| Playoff Team | 1 | |||
| 1993 | High School | Freeport | First Team All-Conference | 2 |
| League Leader (receptions, yards) | 1 | |||
| Conference MVP | 1 | |||
| All-State | 1 | |||
| Playoff Team | 1 | |||
| 1995 | College | Michigan | Letter Winner on Power 5 Team | 4 |
| Winning Team | 1 | |||
| Bowl Game | 1 | |||
| 1996 | College | Michigan | Letter Winner on Power 5 Team | 4 |
| Winning Team | 1 | |||
| Bowl Game | 1 | |||
| 1997 | College | Michigan | Player on Power 5 Team | 2 |
| Total | 24 | |||
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