{"id":77478,"date":"2015-10-20T15:51:09","date_gmt":"2015-10-20T15:51:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sandbox.web.rcn.net\/rcntv\/?p=77478"},"modified":"2015-10-20T16:14:58","modified_gmt":"2015-10-20T16:14:58","slug":"behind-mic-saquon-barkley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/behind-mic-saquon-barkley\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the Mic: Saquon Barkley"},"content":{"rendered":"

October 17th was a rare Saturday for me.\u00a0 Campus Insiders<\/a>, an internet sports streaming group affiliated with the Patriot League<\/a>, was granted the rights to the Lafayette-Harvard game.\u00a0 There were slim pickings among the high school match-ups, so we all took the day off, a circumstance usually unheard of at this time of the year.\u00a0 So what did I decide to do \u2013 WATCH football, of course. Specifically, I wanted to watch Penn State<\/a> freshman \u201cphenom\u201d, Saquon Barkley<\/a> of Whitehall High School, go up against the #1 team in the nation \u2013 Ohio State<\/a>.\u00a0 This, as many know, is the same Saquon Barkley who thrilled us on RCN-TV last year.\u00a0 The 18-year-old is a true freshman and playing Big Ten football.\u00a0 Watching him on Saturday night and putting it mildly, he did not disappoint.<\/p>\n

Saquon had sat out the previous two games due to an ankle injury and his availability for Saturday\u2019s game was not known prior to game time.\u00a0 Trust me, he was available. Saquon rushed for 194 yards on 26 carries, an average of 7.5 yards per carry.\u00a0 And he had a 44-yard touchdown run called back in the first quarter.\u00a0 He did have a season-long 56-yard run in the fourth quarter.\u00a0 He had four runs of over 14 yards.\u00a0 He has now rushed for over 100 yards in three games and combined with the 195 yards rushing against Rutgers<\/a>, he now ranks third and fourth in all-time rushing games at Penn State by a freshman.<\/p>\n

His runs were dazzling and included another leap over a potential tackler, his second of the season.\u00a0 He is spectacular at \u201cputting his foot into the ground\u201d and making cuts that leave defenders grasping at air or just watching him run by them.\u00a0 To me, he has instincts that match some of the greatest to ever play the game.<\/p>\n

Barkley is shredding college defenses much like he did at Whitehall.\u00a0 In his senior year, he rushed for 1851 yards, 8.6 yards per carry and scored 24 rushing touchdowns.\u00a0 He added another three receiving and a punt and kickoff return for touchdowns.\u00a0 Take a look at his high school highlight tape:<\/p>\n