Most players are not keen on the idea of taking a redshirt year to begin their college careers, especially the competitive types who are unfamiliar with not being the best player on their teams. However, there is a lot to be gained from a redshirt season, which allows players to practice and develop full-time without costing them a year of eligibility.

Some players redshirt due to injuries. Others do so to bulk up or slim down, preparing their bodies for a sustained career in the SEC, and others still do so simply to mature and get right academically.

Whatever the reason, if a player approaches his redshirt season the right way, his lack of experience shouldn’t keep him from making an immediate impact when he begins his first year of eligibility.

Here are five players who redshirted in 2014 but should step in and make an impact right away in 2015:

1. Marlon Humphrey — Alabama: A former five-star cornerback prospect, Humphrey is set to take what he learned during his redshirt season and apply it to an Alabama secondary that struggled mightily down the stretch in 2014. Humphrey was a high school All-American and was also a touted hurdler on the track team at Hoover High School, showing he has dynamic athleticism fit for the SEC. His father, Bobby, was once an All-American tailback at Alabama before advancing to the NFL, and Humphrey could use his remarkable tools and athletic pedigree to shine right away in 2015.

2. Clifton Garrett — LSU: Garrett is another five-star prospect who redshirted the 2014 season, but he should have plenty of opportunities to contribute to an LSU defense in a period of transition. He’ll play for former Alabama linebackers turned LSU defensive coordinator coach Kevin Steele, and will join a defense losing linebackers Kwon Alexander and Jemauria Rasco to free up playing time in the middle of the defense. Garrett recorded 139 tackles as a senior in high school, and should be able to step in right away as a run-stopper in a conference that boasts many of the nation’s best rushing attacks.

3. Travonte Valentine — LSU: Standing 6-foot-3 and weighing 325 pounds, Valentine is a physical force to be reckoned with at his defensive tackle position. The Tigers will lose some push up front on defense following the loss of Danielle Hunter to the NFL, and while Valentine may not be an every-down player right away he’ll certainly make an impact up the middle when he is on the field. The former four-star prospect recorded 16 sacks and 31 tackles for loss as a senior in high school, and as he continues to build a skill-set around his unmatched physical presence he’ll cause trouble for even the SEC’s best interior linemen.

4. Thomas Holley — Florida: With Dante Fowler heading to the NFL and Gerald Willis III’s return to Gainesville uncertain, Holley should have a chance to step in and contribute right away after redshirting in 2014. The 6-foot-4, 285-pound four-star defensive tackle is far from the fastest defensive lineman in the nation (he ran a 40-yard dash in high school in 5.19 seconds), but he does possess strength and football savvy that should cause opposing linemen trouble. As long as Holley worked himself into SEC football shape during his redshirt season, he should be quite the force in 2015.

5. Thaddeus Snodgrass — Kentucky: Snodgrass was one of five receivers ranked in the top 100 at the position in the 2014 class to sign with Kentucky, but he was the only one to redshirt in 2014. Although he may be behind the others as far as experience is concerned, the former four-star recruit has speed to burn and great hands. A preseason hamstring injury was a major factor in the decision to redshirt him, but as long as he’s recovered by the start of next season he should be able to step in right away and help replace the departing Demarco Robinson and Javess Blue.