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College basketball might be a guard's game, but there's a new blueprint being drawn for today's most dangerous players: Take a player with some size. He doesn't need to be a 7-footer, but he needs to be big enough and strong enough to establish post position, bang inside and fight for tough rebounds. Then make sure he has--or is able to develop--a set of perimeter skills. He doesn't need to shoot like J.J. Redick or handle the ball like Jason Kidd, but he needs to be able to face the basket and hit midrange jumpers and 3-pointers as well as beat his man off the dribble.

Let us present this season's crop of power forwards. Though they aren't exactly point guards in big men's bodies, more and more of the elite players at this position are some of the game's most versatile forces.

"The four has evolved as much as any position in the college game," says Kansas assistant Tim Jankovich. "It has become one of the most difficult positions to defend. If a guy is an inside and outside player--you look around the country, and those guys are putting up pretty big numbers."

One of the reasons for the evolution is simple. With fewer quality big men in the college game, traditional wing men are being positioned as power forwards, even if they have the skills to fill several roles on the court. "They're all three men who are charading as fours," Memphis coach John Calipari says.

Having a power forward who knows how to play away from the basket can kick a team's offensive efficiency up a notch. Opponents usually must decide if they want to defend with a bigger, slower player who might easily be beaten on the perimeter or a smaller, quicker player who might easily be overpowered inside. Putting the power forward on the perimeter also creates space in the middle, allowing guards to penetrate or to isolate the other post player.

Versatility on the defensive end is just as important. Many of the best can guard multiple positions, whether it's jumping out at a guard to slow a fast break or holding ground against a big man trying to back into the lane.

So as the season develops, keep an eye on these big guys. They'll make plenty of game-turning plays whether they are blocked shots, power moves down low or 3-point shots.

THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT

Best players 7-0 or taller

1. Andrew Bogut, 7-0, Utah

2. Matt Nelson, 7-1, Colorado State

3. Luke Schenscher, 7-1, Georgia Tech

4. Marcus Campbell, 7-0, Mississippi State

5. Dawid Przybyszewski, 7-2, Vanderbilt

Best players under 6-0

1. Nate Robinson, 5-9, Washington

2. John Lucas, 5-11, Oklahama State

3. Tim Smith, 5-9, East Tennessee State

4. Keydren Clark, 5-9, St. Peter's

5. Jerel Blassingame, 5-10, UNLV

THE POWER 10

1. Lawrence Roberts, Mississippi State

2. Wayne Simien, Kansas

3. Hakim Warrick, Syracuse

4. Ryan Comes, Providence

5. Craig Smith, Boston College

6. Taylor Coppenrath, Vermont

7. Chuck Hayes, Kentucky

8. Sean Banks, Memphis

9. Curtis Withers, Charlotte

10. Brandon Bass, LSU

THE FAB 15

Freshmen who will make the biggest impacts for their teams this season:

1. Malik Hairston, SF, Oregon

2. Rudy Gay, SF, Connecticut

3. Darius Washington, PC, Memphis

4. Daniel Gibson, PC, Texas

5. Marvin Williams, SF, North Carolina

6. Juan Diego Palacios, PF, Louisville

7. Randolph Morris, C, Kentucky

8. Ronald Steele, PC, Alabama

9. Drew Neitzel, PC, Michigan State

10. Joe Crawford, SG, Kentucky

11. Josh Wright, PC, Syracuse

12. D.J. White, PF, Indiana

13. Jordan Farmar, PC, UCLA

14. DeMarcus Nelson, PC, Duke

15. Glen Davis, PF, LSU

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