Barkley is best athlete ever for PS Football

[psugisher]

Barkley's got obvious physical gifts but add the apparent work ethic and you have a monster in the making. 15 more games with him.. enjoy every one of them. Just hope he stays healthy.

 

[Howie'81]

Barkley's got obvious physical gifts but add the apparent work ethic and you have a monster in the making. 15 more games with him.. enjoy every one of them. Just hope he stays healthy.

How about the 15th game be a PSU / USC final for the national championship? After what we saw at the Rose Bowl, I guarantee that would set a new playoff ratings record.

 

[AWS1022]

Well he will have a real Good offensive line and offense for a full season. Let's see how he does before being compared to the best. We are not temple for Petes sake. I'm not ready to put him up there just yet. He is good but still needs to improve.

What part of his athleticism does he need to improve since that's what we're discussing?

 

[razpsu]

Best ever athlete for PSU? Umm. Ask the op.

If it is yards? Their Have been better.

All American status ? their have been more and they were 1st team.
Awards?
Heisman maxwell Obrien Butkus Lombardi etc.
this is penn state and their have been great athletes here for 60 years. Plus. I would say our best would lead the nation in stats etc. when you say best ever at PSU their better be some stats to back it up. So I'm saying let's wait another year and see what happens.

 

[novaclassof90]

When I was there in the early 90s, the guy who was always talked about as the best all around athlete was OJ McDuffie. Obvious what he could do on the football field, but he used to put on an NBA All Star Dunk Contest display at times in the IM building playing pickup hoops. The guy could jump out of the gym. Richie Anderson was another really good all around athlete back then. But OJ was on another level from either the other FB players.

 

[marisa45]

Cameron (Derek) Wake and Justin King too; both have top ten all time performances at the NFL combine (high jump; 40).

But, Barkely is a monster - no doubt.

This..........Cameron Wake is definitely in the conversation but Barkley is too.

This is my favorite Cameron Wake video. Freaky.

 

[bjf1991]

I'm not sure where he stands on pure athleticism. There are many ways to measure those qualities.

There is no doubt he is fantastic.

His numbers on the field would be even better if the running game was of a different design in my opinion. I hate the fact that he gets the handoff when standing still 90% of the time.

 

[Raffycorn]

Best ever athlete for PSU? Umm. Ask the op.

If it is yards? Their Have been better.

All American status ? their have been more and they were 1st team.
Awards?
Heisman maxwell Obrien Butkus Lombardi etc.
this is penn state and their have been great athletes here for 60 years. Plus. I would say our best would lead the nation in stats etc. when you say best ever at PSU their better be some stats to back it up. So I'm saying let's wait another year and see what happens.

I don't think you're understanding what OP was arguing. You seem to be arguing that Barkley doesn't yet have the most accomplished résumé in Penn State history, and nobody is really disputing that. But having the best resume doesn't necessarily mean you're the best athlete. I would absolutely argue that Barkley is the best athlete we have ever had at the running back position at Penn State, even though he is not yet the most accomplished running back in Penn State history.

 

[T J]

Exactly. I think we had a lot of great athletes that played football. Mark Rubin can put his name at the top of the list as well.

Good to see Rubin sandwiched in with our, if it's not too corny, beefiest and sauciest.

 

[Ranger Dan]

IMHO Jesse Arnelle was the beat athlete to play at Penn State. He at one time held the season and career reception records in football and the season and career scoring records in basketball . Records that stood for over 50 years until Taylor Battle
broke them. He led Penn State to a Final 4 appearance . Arnelle may have been an All American in both basketball & football and was also an outstanding track and field athlete. No other Penn State football player excelled at 3 sports. I admit one must give consideration that today's athletes are bigger, stronger and faster.

Before my time, but he was the first person to come to mind as well.

I would suggest David Taylor as well for a one sport phenom.

 

[razpsu]

He didn't say rb. He said athlete. Ok in his opinion and yours he is correct. I don't think so yet and I'm sure some others agree with me as well. I think he is very good and can have a great year next year.

 

[Zone-Blitz]

Barkley is the best rb ive ever seen at penn state but my earliest memories are from 1986 to present, so ive got no memory of curt warner so I can't speak to that.

And btw, saying a current player is the best ever doesn't diminish one bit anything the players from the past did. there will always be that group that in their minds, will never allow a current player to be better than the guy they grew up watching that played 30+ years ago. That's understandable, but it's very possible that current and future players could simply be better, especially with all the resources these players have now to develop their bodies that wasn't around 30 years ago

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Im not even willing to give Lavar that honor. Brian Miller and Joe Jurevicius were also exceptional athletes

Yeah, and Gino Capone ran a 4.25 40.

I don't know if Barkley is the best all-around athlete ever to play at PSU (looking at you, Lavar), but he's far and away the best running back--I don't think it's close. I haven't seen a Penn State running back make a run as good as Barkley did in the Rose Bowl--it was simply awe inspiring. Saquon has done what he's done behind one of the worst offensive lines in Penn State history (at least last year).

I get that Derek Wake was a good athlete, but he simply wasn't good at Penn State. Opposing teams used to run at him all the time--the knee injury derailed his lateral movement. He would've made a good DE here, but alas it didn't happen until he turned pro. Derek's vertical and such were outstanding, but he wasn't nearly the type of athlete here that he eventually became. Credit to him for keeping on keeping on and making a wonderful living.

 

[LoyalandTrueLion]

I think you need to re watch the play. The separation comes from a nice little rub from CG doing a drag. Bill Belton would have been open.

Not disagreeing with your premise, but I would hope most RBs could have made that catch in the B1G CCG. Trace threw it right on the money. Now the acceleration SB showed to pull away and be that open was unreal.

 

[dclionsfan]

Larry Johnson was pretty special weather you like him or not.

 

[PSU Soupy]

Mark Rubin is a fine athlete, but it'll take more than hammering Hedge Funders and other worthies from the "Heads I Win, Tales You Lose" financial class to impress me.

I agree....I made the comment with a little bit of sarcasm.

 

[razpsu]

I think carter ran 75-80 yards in the rose bowl. Warner was a cutting and fast maniac. Those two so far are the best in PSU history. Lydell Mitchell was awesome so was dozier who played two sports in pros nfl
And mlb and Enis was a tank. Thomas was awesome especially against Alabama running 10 straight times for 80-90 yards? Then we can talk about awesome athletic receivers engram Jackson Robinson etc. all 3 made insane catches throughout their careers against mich osu Pitt etc. Michael
Robinson played every position on offense practically. Then there is kwlalick and all of the incredible linebackers. Barkely is not there yet. Sorry but he is not there yet. This year if he continues to improve he may get there.

 

[razpsu]

I beleive many of these guys also
Ran kickoff and punts back for tds. Some of these teams had better olines and qbs and some had worse.

 

[Judge Smails]

Maybe I'm easily amused, but here are the comments from the 18k comment in -ame thread of the Rose Bowl right after Barkley's 79 yard TD run. From fans of all teams.

PastaTapestry 12 points 1 month ago Texas Fan
Barkley is a f ucking freak holy shit

Extortionate 6 points 1 month ago Georgia Fan
OH MY GOD

captain_sasquatch 6 points 1 month ago Nebraska Fan
Holy shit that was amazing

Senaleb 3 points 1 month ago Cal Fan
He GAWWWNNNN

TheAndrewSpence 2 points 1 month ago Tennesse Fan
Oh. My. Gawd.

mtmodi 5 points 1 month ago Stanford Fan
OH MY GOD SAQUON

ddottay 8 points 1 month ago Notre Dame Fan
Barkley: next year's Heisman favorite.

THEBIGC01 4 points 1 month ago Oklahoma Fan
HOLY SHIT

fooke33 11 points 1 month ago Wisconsin Fan
That run was just absurd

welmoe 5 points 1 month ago VT Fan
Mama there goes that man!

nittanylionstorm07 4 points 1 month ago PSU Fan
Saquon I will have your babbies

jcabler24 7 points 1 month ago Texas Fan
Holy f uck that was amazing

ubbergoat 2 points 1 month ago USC Fan
I thought Jackson would run him down. That kid is fast

Jesses19 3 points 1 month ago PSU Fan
He's got get away from the cops speed

bb0110 12 points 1 month ago Michigan Fan
That f ucking run. Holy shit. I thought it was an amazing run after his third great cut but I thought he was going down for sure, yet he somehow cut back across the whole damn field.

Jruff1984 9 points 1 month ago Notre Dame Fan
Just popping in to say how ridiculous that run was. Wow.

ZedsShadow 3 points 1 month ago Georgia Fan
He shook that safety to oblivion.

-holocene 15 points 1 month ago Oregon Fan
That run was f ucking filthy

tacobeams 5 points 1 month ago Texas Fan
WHO NEEDS WHEEL ROUTES WHEN YOU HAVE A PANZER TANK WITH NOS TANKS AS A RUNNING BACK

Cazelo 6 points 1 month ago Michigan Fan
He is the CHOSEN ONE

bunnyfromdasea 7 points 1 month ago Tennesse Fan
You can't even really blame that on bad tackling, just damn good jukes.

drn8 5 points 1 month ago Iowa Fan
Absolutely shook four different defensive backs.

atsKushDingies 13 points 1 month ago Northwestern Fan
HOLY SHIT WHAT A RUN

Pushncokainanlbsodro 68 points 1 month ago Kansas State Fan
How are you supposed to tackle someone with hydraulic presses for legs? Seriously this dude deadlifted 590 lbs, get out of his way

DoctorHolliday 11 points 1 month ago Auburn Fan
Those guys didn't even touch him on that cutback. That's silly

hrisIsUninteresting 20 points 1 month ago* Mississippi State Fan
Dude just broke my ankles, and all I'm doing is sitting here on the couch. That run was crazy.

goodnames679 22 points 1 month ago Ohio State Fan
Swiggity swooty, Penn State coming for that second half booty

 

[razpsu]

Ki-Jana Carter takes opening play to the house for Penn State (1995)
Penn State running back Ki-Jana Carter came ready to play against Oregon in the 1995 Rose Bowl. On Penn State's first offensive play of the game, Carter ran 83 yards for a touchdown to give the Nittany Lions the early lead. As legendary announced Keith Jackson said at the time of the Ducks, "they had him, they thought and then he was gone." Penn State would go on to win the Rose Bowl 38-20 and Carter was named co-MVP of the game. WireImage Sandra Dukes

 

[Raffycorn]

I beleive many of these guys also
Ran kickoff and punts back for tds. Some of these teams had better olines and qbs and some had worse.

There would be very, very few running backs in Penn State history who ran behind worse lines than the one Barkley ran behind in 2015. Comparing the quality of Ki-Jana's 1994 line to Barkley's 2015 or 2016 line is just absurd.

 

[razpsu]

Blair Thomas ran behind a worse line. So did Johnson in 2002. Worse team for that matter. I can go on and on. Some better some worse I said. Don't be absurd.

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Blair Thomas ran behind a worse line. So did Johnson in 2002. Worse team for that matter. I can go on and on. Some better some worse I said. Don't be absurd.

No, they didn't.......and it's not even close. I get that the past is all warm & fuzzy while the present to you is just a shiny new toy.......but open your eyes. Barkley is a generational talent doing amazing things behind some of the worst offensive lines Penn State has ever fielded (and 2015 was the worst). He's an amazing talent who has some of the qualities of Penn State greats at the position....rolled into one.

Hell, in 2015, teams were keying on the kid, a true freshman playing with a mindf*cked quarterback, and still couldn't stop him.

 

[anon_xdc8rmuek44eq]

Maybe I'm easily amused, but here are the comments from the 18k comment in -ame thread of the Rose Bowl right after Barkley's 79 yard TD run. From fans of all teams.

View embedded media

PastaTapestry 12 points 1 month ago Texas Fan
Barkley is a f ucking freak holy shit

Extortionate 6 points 1 month ago Georgia Fan
OH MY GOD

captain_sasquatch 6 points 1 month ago Nebraska Fan
Holy shit that was amazing

Senaleb 3 points 1 month ago Cal Fan
He GAWWWNNNN

TheAndrewSpence 2 points 1 month ago Tennesse Fan
Oh. My. Gawd.

mtmodi 5 points 1 month ago Stanford Fan
OH MY GOD SAQUON

ddottay 8 points 1 month ago Notre Dame Fan
Barkley: next year's Heisman favorite.

THEBIGC01 4 points 1 month ago Oklahoma Fan
HOLY SHIT

fooke33 11 points 1 month ago Wisconsin Fan
That run was just absurd

welmoe 5 points 1 month ago VT Fan
Mama there goes that man!

nittanylionstorm07 4 points 1 month ago PSU Fan
Saquon I will have your babbies

jcabler24 7 points 1 month ago Texas Fan
Holy f uck that was amazing

ubbergoat 2 points 1 month ago USC Fan
I thought Jackson would run him down. That kid is fast

Jesses19 3 points 1 month ago PSU Fan
He's got get away from the cops speed

bb0110 12 points 1 month ago Michigan Fan
That f ucking run. Holy shit. I thought it was an amazing run after his third great cut but I thought he was going down for sure, yet he somehow cut back across the whole damn field.

Jruff1984 9 points 1 month ago Notre Dame Fan
Just popping in to say how ridiculous that run was. Wow.

ZedsShadow 3 points 1 month ago Georgia Fan
He shook that safety to oblivion.

-holocene 15 points 1 month ago Oregon Fan
That run was f ucking filthy

tacobeams 5 points 1 month ago Texas Fan
WHO NEEDS WHEEL ROUTES WHEN YOU HAVE A PANZER TANK WITH NOS TANKS AS A RUNNING BACK

Cazelo 6 points 1 month ago Michigan Fan
He is the CHOSEN ONE

bunnyfromdasea 7 points 1 month ago Tennesse Fan
You can't even really blame that on bad tackling, just damn good jukes.

drn8 5 points 1 month ago Iowa Fan
Absolutely shook four different defensive backs.

atsKushDingies 13 points 1 month ago Northwestern Fan
HOLY SHIT WHAT A RUN

Pushncokainanlbsodro 68 points 1 month ago Kansas State Fan
How are you supposed to tackle someone with hydraulic presses for legs? Seriously this dude deadlifted 590 lbs, get out of his way

DoctorHolliday 11 points 1 month ago Auburn Fan
Those guys didn't even touch him on that cutback. That's silly

hrisIsUninteresting 20 points 1 month ago* Mississippi State Fan
Dude just broke my ankles, and all I'm doing is sitting here on the couch. That run was crazy.

goodnames679 22 points 1 month ago Ohio State Fan
Swiggity swooty, Penn State coming for that second half booty

'Filthy' is exactly right. 'Got get away from the cops speed,' also acceptable. Hilarious!

 

[nittanydave1]

Barkley belongs in the conversation. If you ever had a chance to watch Arrington play RB in HS, he was special. It would have been fun to seen him play on both sides of the ball at Penn State. I think he could have won the Heisman.

 

[psugisher]

No, they didn't.......and it's not even close. I get that the past is all warm & fuzzy while the present to you is just a shiny new toy.......but open your eyes. Barkley is a generational talent doing amazing things behind some of the worst offensive lines Penn State has ever fielded (and 2015 was the worst). He's an amazing talent who has some of the qualities of Penn State greats at the position....rolled into one.

Hell, in 2015, teams were keying on the kid, a true freshman playing with a mindf*cked quarterback, and still couldn't stop him.

Yeah.. 190 yards rushing at OSU in 2015 as a true freshman where we only threw 13 passes and did virtually nothing on offense. Barkley was a reason for optimism on offense even if Trace wasn't as good as he turned out to be and even if our new offense was a bust. What's probably not mentioned enough is Barkley's receiving skills. He's a major threat out of the backfield and appears to have great hands. He's made some very good catches and obviously if the ball's in his hands, he could score. Great straight line speed, great acceleration, great cutting ability and the ability to jump or run over someone. Add the vision and he's the best I've ever seen at Penn State. I don't pay enough attention to his blocking.. can he improve on that? Add work ethic, team first guy, never threw his o-line under the bus.. the intangibles are all there too. I'm not sure if you can overrate him as everyone has underrated him so far. If he's healthy all year, he will be in NY as a Heisman finalist.

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Yeah.. 190 yards rushing at OSU in 2015 as a true freshman where we only threw 13 passes and did virtually nothing on offense. Barkley was a reason for optimism on offense even if Trace wasn't as good as he turned out to be and even if our new offense was a bust. What's probably not mentioned enough is Barkley's receiving skills. He's a major threat out of the backfield and appears to have great hands. He's made some very good catches and obviously if the ball's in his hands, he could score. Great straight line speed, great acceleration, great cutting ability and the ability to jump or run over someone. Add the vision and he's the best I've ever seen at Penn State. I don't pay enough attention to his blocking.. can he improve on that? Add work ethic, team first guy, never threw his o-line under the bus.. the intangibles are all there too. I'm not sure if you can overrate him as everyone has underrated him so far. If he's healthy all year, he will be in NY as a Heisman finalist.

Yep.

Elliot was not the best back on the field in that game.

 

[anon_xdc8rmuek44eq]

Another guy who could be in the conversation (though I would put Barkley ahead of him) is Anthony Zettel. For a guy his size, he was amazingly strong and athletic.

 

[razpsu]

No, they didn't.......and it's not even close. I get that the past is all warm & fuzzy while the present to you is just a shiny new toy.......but open your eyes. Barkley is a generational talent doing amazing things behind some of the worst offensive lines Penn State has ever fielded (and 2015 was the worst). He's an amazing talent who has some of the qualities of Penn State greats at the position....rolled into one.

Hell, in 2015, teams were keying on the kid, a true freshman playing with a mindf*cked quarterback, and still couldn't stop him.

Barkley is awesome no doubt about it. Not the best athlete in PSU history though. Thomas line and Johnson lines were not good. Those teams were not good. If Barkley keeps improving and the offense is geared more for him then great. Remember Warner was taking a backseat to the air paterno and blackledge that cost him major stats in 1982. For half of that season. But he won the most important stat. National champion. He still made all American and was in Heisman list at the end.

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Barkley is awesome no doubt about it. Not the best athlete in PSU history though. Thomas line and Johnson lines were not good. Those teams were not good. If Barkley keeps improving and the offense is geared more for him then great. Remember Warner was taking a backseat to the air paterno and blackledge that cost him major stats in 1982. For half of that season. But he won the most important stat. National champion. He still made all American and was in Heisman list at the end.

Warner took a back seat because of an NFL first round draft pick. Barkley took a front seat with a mentally shot quarterback and guys blocking one another instead of defenders.

You're comparing apples to oranges and severely underestimating how horrid the 2015 offense was with Hackenberg at the helm.

 

[razpsu]

Too funny I agree but there are many in here that thought hack was awesome!!'

Now hack was great in the fact that he had great character and stayed with his commitment. He and many others saved this program from doooom. To that I thank him to the end of my days.

 

[anon_xdc8rmuek44eq]

Too funny I agree but there are many in here that thought hack was awesome!!'

Now hack was great in the fact that he had great character and stayed with his commitment. He and many others saved this program from doooom. To that I thank him to the end of my days.

In addition to his performances in a few really, really memorable games (Michigan 2013, Wisconsin 2013, Rutgers 2014, Boston College 2014) Hack's greatest contribution to Penn State football was showing the world it was worth going to despite what were the worst sanctions in NCAA history since SMU got the Death Penalty. That's worth something.

 

[razpsu]

Agreed

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

In addition to his performances in a few really, really memorable games (Michigan 2013, Wisconsin 2013, Rutgers 2014, Boston College 2014) Hack's greatest contribution to Penn State football was showing the world it was worth going to despite what were the worst sanctions in NCAA history since SMU got the Death Penalty. That's worth something.

I'm not saying it isn't--Penn State is forever indebted to guys like Christian Hackenberg, Adam Breneman, and Garrett Sickels.

It doesn't change the fact that on the field, Christian Hackenberg was, at worst, horrid in 2015.

 

[razpsu]

Well wait you can't say barkely had bad oline and hack didn't have same. That hindered his ability to produce.

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Well wait you can't say barkely had bad oline and hack didn't have same. That hindered his ability to produce.

Your point is...??? I have no clue what you're trying to say.

Hack struggled in 2015. Whether it's because of the line or something else is up for debate. What isn't up for debate is that Barkley was the offense in 2015 despite defenses literally keying on him, and him only.....and that OL was putrid.

 

[joeparules]

I think you need to re watch the play. The separation comes from a nice little rub from CG doing a drag. Bill Belton would have been open.

OK, just re-watched the play and CG had zero impact on T.J. Watt who took one step forward towards SB who then blew right around him. The lone deep safety (Musso) was paying too much attention to CG and was late arriving in the corner of the endzone where the ball was delivered perfectly. Sorry, but that was a combination of acceleration (separation) and a beautiful pass. Belton is also faster than TJW so I'm sure he would have been open too.

 

[PSU-PITT/NY]

I guess people are misunderstanding my post.
Barkley obviously has excellent talent.
However, I wouldn't use his exceptional run vs. USC as an example of "top end speed" because that run was all about his ability to elude tackles and accelerate.
His top end speed shows more on his receptions.

LdN

Seems to me that 80% of the time, when Barkely breaks open alone, with 40-50 plus yards to run, some DB or Safety always runs him down, before he gets to the End Zone...

In the past, great RB'S like Kijana Carter, Curt Warner, Lydel Mitchell , etc. would take it to the house every time. ...

Does anyone else see the same thing that I'm seeing.?
Are the DB's and athletes today just, overall , more talented.?
What am I missing in the conversation or my observation .?

Thanks All Knowing Board...!

[Joe Paterno: "Don't worry about the recruits that we lose. Just make sure that the ones we get can play."]

 

[joeparules]

Seems to me that 80% of the time, when Barkely breaks open alone, with 40-50 plus yards to run, some DB or Safety always runs him down, before he gets to the End Zone...

In the past, great RB'S like Kijana Carter, Curt Warner, Lydel Mitchell , etc. would take it to the house every time. ...

Does anyone else see the same thing that I'm seeing.?
Are the DB's and athletes today just, overall , more talented.?
What am I missing in the conversation or my observation .?

Thanks All Knowing Board...!

[Joe Paterno: "Don't worry about the recruits that we lose. Just make sure that the ones we get can play."]

It seems the teams with the "better" players (O$U, UM, etc) have DBs that can catch SB while the other teams (Minny, Purdue, Temple, etc) don't catch him. So IMO it comes down to your opponent's team speed whether or not a long run can be broken. The long run in the RB was a combination of the DBs coming up and whiffing and a nice down field block by CG. I am really going to miss watching CG's blocking.

I was surprised when Miles was caught from behind on his long run against Rutgers.

And on a semi-related note, was it just me or did DaeSean look like Usain Bolt on Blacknall's long catch and run in the B1G CCG?

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Seems to me that 80% of the time, when Barkely breaks open alone, with 40-50 plus yards to run, some DB or Safety always runs him down, before he gets to the End Zone...

In the past, great RB'S like Kijana Carter, Curt Warner, Lydel Mitchell , etc. would take it to the house every time. ...

Does anyone else see the same thing that I'm seeing.?
Are the DB's and athletes today just, overall , more talented.?
What am I missing in the conversation or my observation .?

Thanks All Knowing Board...!

[Joe Paterno: "Don't worry about the recruits that we lose. Just make sure that the ones we get can play."]

Yeah, they run him down all the time.



The kid put 190 on an Ohio State defense filled with NFL players, on a bum ankle after taking weeks off, as a true freshman, behind the worst offensive line PSU has ever fielded, with 7-8 in the box all night, with a QB who couldn't hit the blind side of a barn.

No, no one sees what you're seeing. Go get some glasses.