Who's SMU's Top NFL Player Of All Time? Mustangs Top 10 List

When it comes to figuring out who is the best-ever player to come out of SMU, the list is long.

With ample candidates to choose from, many have put together a top-10 list of the best NFL players to come out of SMU, and any such list, in whatever order, is superb.

But who should be No. 1?

Eric Dickerson, a Hall of Fame running back who made his name with the Los Angeles Rams, would be most people's first guess, and it's a good one at that.

Or could it be standout tackle/guard Forrest Gregg?

To old-timers? We should talk about Baltimore Colts receiver Raymond Berry as a No. 1 choice.

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Taken 232nd overall in the 1954 NFL Draft, Berry started out his career slowly, playing all 12 games in his rookie season and posted 205 yards from 13 receptions as he got his feet wet in the league.

And from there, it was onward and upward.

Before we get to his credentials, some of the other top Mustangs in NFL history ...

Eric Dickerson, RB

Forrest Gregg, OT/G

Doak Walker, RB/DB

Michael Carter, DT

Kyle Rote, RB/WR

Bill Forester, DT/LB

Don Meredith, QB

Jerry Ball, DT

Jerry Mays, DE/DT

Now, more on Berry ...

In his third year with the Colts, Berry would post 800 receiving yards and 6 TDs from 47 receptions, to announce himself as an up-and-coming player.

The following year, in 1958, a season that saw him post 794 yards and 9 TDs from 56 receptions, ended with an All-Pro nod and a Pro Bowl to his name, along with his first NFL championship. A game in which he posted 178 yards and a touchdown from 12 receptions.

He had arrived.

The next two years were the best of his career as he became one of the best receivers in football. 

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Berry totaled 959 yards and 14 TDs from 66 receptions in 1959 to earn another All-Pro and another NFL Championship, but it was what he did a year later that became his crowning achievement.

Raymond, for the fourth straight year, played all 12 regular season games, and his posted incredible numbers. 

From his 12 games, Berry produced 1,298 yards and 10 TDs from 74 receptions to make it his third straight All-Pro season.

His last season came in 1967, as he retired, and he is a member of the Hall of Fame, along with being a part of the 1950s Hall of Fame team. He also had a stint in coaching, was named the 1985 PFWA AFC Coach of the Year as he took the New England Patriots to their first-ever Super Bowl appearance.

Is he SMU's best-ever? He's got a great case.