USA250: Ranking the 10 greatest college athletes from Massachusetts

The state that played as important of a role as any in the formation of the United States the home of the Boston Tea Party, Paul Revere's midnight ride, the Boston Massacre and the Battles of Lexington and Concord, to name a few major events has also produced its share of exemplary college athletes.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a bastion of American higher education, with roughly 100 colleges dotted across 7,800 square miles of landmass.

And at a number of those schools, there are proud programs with a lengthy history of producing accomplished athletes.

Boston College has produced a Heisman Trophy winner, and future NFL and NHL stars.

UMass and Holy Cross have both enjoyed runs as national powerhouses in men's basketball.

There are few, if any, places in the country where you'll find better men's and women's college hockey, whether it's the Beanpot quartet of BC, Boston University, Northeastern and Harvard or elsewhere in the commonwealth at places like UMass, UMass Lowell or Merrimack.

Who are the best athletes those schools have produced? In honor of the 250th anniversary of the birth of the United States, USA TODAY Sports is ranking the top 10 college athletes from each state.

The athlete doesn't have to be from the state, but is required to have attended college there to be considered.

These rankings are based purely on what an athlete did at the college level, not once they left campus.

Tough cuts had to be made, especially somewhere like the Bay State, with so many colleges and universities to consider.

Here's who made the cut for Massachusetts: 10 greatest college athletes from Massachusetts Julius Erving, Massachusetts While he's known much more for his ABA and NBA exploits, the man more commonly known as Dr.

J had an extraordinary college career.

In just two seasons, Erving set program records in scoring (1,370 points) and rebounds (1,049), which came out to averages of 26.3 points and an absurd 20.2 rebounds per game a feat made all the more impressive considering the NCAA had outlawed dunking before his college career began, robbing fans of the high-flying artistry he displayed professionally.

He's one of only six players in Division I men's basketball history to average at least 20 points and 20 rebounds per game for his career.

Small in stature and big in talent, Flutie earned the starting quarterback role as a true freshman and didn't look back, never missing a game in his college career.

The Natick, Massachusetts native punctuated his time in Chestnut Hill by leading the Eagles to a 10-2 mark and a Cotton Bowl victory while becoming the only player in program history to win the Heisman Trophy.

He ended his college career as the all-time Division I-A (now FBS) leader in total yards, with 10,579.

Marcus Camby, Massachusetts There was a run of about five years in the 1990s when UMass was one of the best programs in college basketball.

While much of that improbable rise can be traced to the remarkable work done by John Calipari and the players he coached, the Minutemen didn't reach their true peak until Camby arrived.

As a junior in 1995-96, Camby led the Minutemen to a 35-2 record and the program's first and only Final Four appearance while sweeping the major national player of the year awards.

He left the school in 1996 as its all-time leader in career blocked shots (336) despite foregoing his senior year for the NBA draft, where at No.

2 overall he was the highest selection in program history.

Bob Cousy, Holy Cross Before he became one of the central pieces in the Celtics' dynasty about 45 miles east in Boston, Cousy made his mark for a Holy Cross program that was one of the country's top programs in the 1940s and 1950s.

As a freshman, he was a contributing member of a Crusaders squad that won the 1947 NCAA championship.

He earned All-America honors in each of his final three seasons at the school, including consensus first-team recognition as a senior.

Perhaps more notably, Cousy's up-tempo, free-flowing style helped advance what had been a relatively static game at the time.

Chris Drury, Boston University One of the best defensive forwards in modern college hockey history, Drury accomplished virtually everything he could have in his four years at Boston University.

As a freshman in 1995, he helped lead the Terriers to their first national championship in 17 years.

He was a first-team All-American in each of his final two college seasons and in 1998, he became BU's first-ever recipient of the Hobey Baker Award, given annually to the top player in men's college hockey.

Along with the NCAA title, the Terriers won four Beanpots and four Hockey East regular-season championships in Drury's time with the program.

PROGRAM RANKINGS : Top 25 | Big Ten | SEC | ACC | Big 12 Johnny Gaudreau, Boston College Gaudreau wasted little time showing the college hockey world what he could do, finishing third in goals and third in points on a BC team that won the 2012 NCAA championship.

He only added to his lore in the ensuing years.

As a sophomore, he led the country in points per game and after putting off his NHL dreams another year, he finished first nationally in points, goals and assists as a junior in 2014, helping him become BC's third-ever Hobey Baker Award winner.

Gaudreau, who tragically died in 2024 when he and his brother were struck while cycling by a driver who was allegedly drunk, was also a two-time Hockey East player of the year.

Tom Heinsohn, Holy Cross Like Cousy, his future NBA teammate, Heinsohn starred at Holy Cross before becoming a key figure in the Celtics dynasty of the 1950s and 1960s.

As a sophomore in 1953-54, he scored 444 points that season while leading the Crusaders to the NIT championship back when it was as prestigious, if not more prestigious, than the NCAA tournament.

He was a first-team All-American in each of his final two years in Worcester, including a senior season in which he averaged 27.4 points and 21.1 rebounds per game.

Despite playing only three varsity seasons (freshmen were ineligible at the time), he remains Holy Cross' career leader in rebounds.

Luke Kuechly, Boston College The traits and skills that turned Kuechly into one of the greatest linebackers of his generation in the NFL were on full display during his college days.

Kuechly was a two-time consensus All-American who, as a senior in 2011, racked up virtually every major defensive award he was up for, winning the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Lombardi Award, Lott Trophy, Butkus Award and Jack Lambert Trophy.

In each of his final two seasons, he was the NCAA leader in combined tackles and solo tackles.

Gordie Lockbaum, Holy Cross Just how good was Lockbaum? He finished in the top five of Heisman Trophy voting twice ..

despite not playing at what was then known as the Division I-A level.

Lockbaum was a throwback, serving as the only two-way player in major college football during the 1986 and 1987 seasons.

In a 1986 game against Army, he was on the field for 143 plays.

He finished his career as the school leader in points in a season (132) and a career (264); touchdowns in a season (22) and a career (44); all-purpose yards in a season (2,173); receptions in a game (15), season (78) and career (135); and receiving yards gained in a season (1,152) and career (2,012).

He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001.

Angela Ruggiero, Harvard Ruggiero reached virtually any mark a women's college hockey player could in her decorated career at Harvard.

She was a four-time first-team All-American and as a senior in 2004, she won the Patty Kazmaier Award, given annually to the top player in women's college hockey.

Alongside teammate Jennifer Botterill, who narrowly missed the cut for this list, she helped lead Harvard to an American Women's College Hockey Alliance championship in 1999 (the NCAA didn't hold a women's hockey tournament until 2001).

In 2015, she became just the fourth woman ever inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

A gold medalist in 1998, she's widely considered one of the greatest women's college hockey players of all time.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY Sports: USA250: Ranking the 10 greatest college athletes from Massachusetts.