Penn State running back Saquon Barkley is leading the nation in all-purpose yards, averaging a combined 211.1 yards rushing, receiving, and kickoff returning.
Those numbers have made him a Heisman favorite. They have also made him a very large target for the Ohio State defense on Saturday.
“The dude’s a monster,” said linebacker Jerome Baker. “He’s a good back. I just like watching him, honestly. I’m very excited to go against him because he can do it all. He can block, he can run, he can jump over you, he can jump through you.”
Against Michigan last week, Barkley put up 176 all-purpose yards, rushing for 108 yards and catching three passes for 53 yards. Barkley’s first carry went 69 yards for a touchdown. Later in the game he was matched up against linebacker Mike McCray, so Penn State threw to him deep down the seam and he turned that into a 42-yard touchdown.
Indiana has been the only team this season that hasn’t given up at least one play from scrimmage of at least 40 yards to Barkley. They did, however, allow him to return a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, so even when he is contained, he still finds a way to get loose.
“He’s the best all-purpose guy we’ve probably faced in maybe my career,” Urban Meyer said on Monday. “He’s obviously a great running back. But they do a good job using him and creating matchup issues. I think back when I had Percy Harvin, we did some of that. He wasn’t quite — his body couldn’t take the pounding that a running back takes.
“But his threat — no disrespect for the great running backs. You have different ways of bottling up great running backs. It’s hard, especially this guy, really hard. But the fact that they motion him out and create matchup nightmares, that’s what makes this guy — he’s — I’d be careful to say this, but he’s as good an all-purpose running back as we’ve seen. And that’s 30 years.”
Those matchups took their toll against Michigan last week. Barkley motioned a few times, and even took some direct snaps while running a read option look with quarterback Trace McSorley as the running back. Barkley will also line up out wide and then motion into the backfield.
So how do you combat the constant motion?
“Always be aware where he’s at,” Baker said. “I’m just going to keep it as real as possible. You know where he’s at every play, every down. That’s just pure respect. You respect guys like that. We know who we’re going against. It’s better for him not to have the ball in his hands, we’re definitely aware of that. You can’t stop guys like that, you can only contain them. We’re going to do our best to contain him.”
The difficulty in containing Barkley is that he’s not just a ball carrier. He leads the team with 32 receptions in seven games.
Baker knows that he will find himself matched up with Barkley on some pass plays and he’s looking forward to the challenge.
“I take it as one-on-one competition and see who’s better,” he said. “He’s a great player for sure. I’m excited to go against him and guard him one-on-one. You’ve just got to see who’s better. I love to compete, so when you see guys like that you really just go out there and compete. I’m excited to play against him. He’s a great back and it’s going to be fun.”
It won’t just be Baker out there, of course. Penn State moves him around enough that defenders will pass him off like a baton in a relay race several times before the ball is even snapped. The Nittany Lions are counting on the pre-snap misdirections to lead to big plays.
According to Baker, if they remain disciplined and don’t get lazy, they will have a fighting chance.
And there will be plenty of eyes aimed Barkley’s way.
“In any defense there’s always a guy accounted for somebody,” he said. “You just can’t be lazy on your job. It’s somebody’s job to always look out for a receiver or a running back, so just don’t get lazy at your job.”