Freshman's Influence In College Sports

All throughout the Big Ten, freshman are making impacts in 2016-17. We will highlight which players have had the most profound influence on their respective teams.

In the current college basketball world we live in, a top tier freshman can instantly elevate a team into national title consideration.

Most notably, last season when Ben Simmons arrived at LSU, the Tigers were immediately considered contenders. Preseason polls had LSU ranked No. 21, even though they hadn 't finished a season in the AP Poll since 2008-09.

As truth would have it, Ben Simmons wasn 't quite the program savior everyone in Baton Rouge had hoped for. The Tigers missed the NCAA Tournament completely, limping to the finish line with a 19-14 record.

With that said, a

After being upset in non-conference play by Albany and George Mason, the Nittany Lions have proved themselves worthy in Big Ten play. With two wins already, Penn State is right in the thick of things moving forward.

Ironically, the Nittany Lion 's biggest win came right in the backyard of their phenom freshman.

Penn State beat college basketball blue blood Michigan State at the Palestra in Philadelphia. In the 72-63 win, the Nittany Lions were led by their hometown trio. Lamar Stevens paced Penn State with 18 points, while Tony Carr added 14 and Mike Watkins contributed 11 of his own.

For the season; Carr, Stevens, and Watkins are contributing in every facet of the game. All three are averaging double figures in scoring and more than five rebounds per game. Carr, who runs the offense for Penn State, also leads the team in assists with 3.8 per game.

In addition, Watkins is anchoring the Nittany Lion 's defense and is second in the Big Ten with 2.9 blocks per game. He earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors in mid-December.

3. Anthony Cowan, Maryland

Coming into this year, Maryland was in desperate need of help after four of last year 's starters turned pro.

Enter Anthony Cowan, the No. 1 recruit from the state of

Although, the Gophers have plenty of great players, it is a freshman who is leading the way.

That freshman, is Amir Coffey.

Despite receiving offers from big-time programs like Michigan State, Arizona, and Wisconsin, Coffey chose to stay right at home in Minnesota to play college basketball. No surprise, as Coffey 's father Richard, was a local basketball legend in the late 80 's and early 90 's. The elder Coffey played four years for Minnesota 's college basketball team, followed by one year in the NBA with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

It must be noted that Amir and Richard aren 't the only two ballers in the Coffey family. Amir 's sisters, Nia (Northwestern) and Sydney (Marist), both scored over 1,000 points in their Division 1 college basketball careers.

So far, Amir Coffey has followed in his father 's footsteps nicely. In fact, his freshman season looks to be better statistically than any of his dad 's college years.

With his long reach and amazing athletic ability, the four-star recruit seems to be involved in every single play. He is currently averaging 12.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.3 steals for the 15-3 Golden Gophers.

When it comes to the eye test, you can definitely see Amir Coffey