Top 5 Craziest College Football Tattoos

People always talk about college tattoos they end up regretting later in life. We're guessing these gridiron stars will be among those as we rank the Top 5 Craziest College Football Tattoos of 2012.

Let's start with Michigan's Taylor Lewan: What his tattoo lacks in size it makes up for in ridiculousness. The widely-read blog Stuff White People Like lists “funny or ironic tattoos” at No. 121 and includes an index "finger moustache” tattoo as a photo.

Give Lewan credit for being ahead of the curve. According to a September 2010 interview with Fox Sports Detroit, he got the tattoo when he was 17 but had the idea as far back as third grade. “My friends thought it would be a cool idea to a draw a moustache on (his finger),” Lewan said. “I was like, This is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I have to do this for real.”

A projected Top 15 pick in next year's NFL draft, we can only hope that one day Lewan and Rob Gronkowski are teammates in the NFL.

Props to either Pachall (pronounced "Pa-hall") or his tattoo artist — based on all the ink on his body, he might have several — for the clever use of the state of Texas as the head of a longhorn for the ultimate in state pride.

It’s quite the departure from the traditional picture of the clean-cut, All-American quarterback like Pachall's predecessor, Andy Dalton. Pachall has no reservations about looking like a regular at your local biker bar at the private and religious school in Forth Worth and we respect.

But with TCU and Texas no rivals in the Big 12, we hope Pachall can find a tattoo artist talented enough morph that longhorn into a horned frog.

The inspiration for Bray’s disco-fied last name running across his upper back could be a lot of things. The sign at a bowling alley. An old-school casino from the Las Vegas strip. A seizure-inducing anime cartoon.

Or maybe Bray simply wanted people to know who he was when he had to play skins during a shirts vs. skins pickup basketball game.

Granted, the nameplate tattoo was en vogue for a while, but it's not a good look for Bray - especially against his pasty white skin.

If Bray is going to keep the tattoo, he should at least work on his tan.

“Why the hell not?” must be the rationale for anyone that gets an ostentatious tattoo. Mathews must think that often.

Both the Fleur-de-lis (a French symbol for a lilly that doubles as the New Orleans Saints' logo and is a source of pride in the deep South) and the Roman numerals spelling out 1991 (the year Mathews was born) are jaw-dropping but make sense. But then Mathews’ topped it all off with what appears to be a Cadillac logo [Update: Or laurel wreath] in the background.

The magnitude of Mathews' masterpiece is just overwhelming to go along with his Troy Polamalu-like hair that completes a rather barbaric look for the hard-hitting safety.

Give the Crimson Tide quarterback credit for getting tatted where no one can see when he has his pads and uniform on. Because opponents would be taunting him all day long otherwise.

Name an aspect of McCarron’s life and career and it’s probably a part of his chest tattoo. A picture of Jesus. Shout outs to his parents (“Ma Pops”). A family crest. Bryant-Denny Stadium. And honoring his beloved home state ("'Bama Boy"). It now also includes a BCS crystal ball, rosaries and doves.

The tattoo has become so legendary in Tuscaloosa that it's also in t-shirt form. Winning a national title in his first year as a starter, there could be a lot more ink in the rising junior's future and we can only imagine with delight what a giant bronze statue would look like on his chest.