Cal Poly senior receiver Ramses Barden was one of five “under-the-radar” prospects an “NFL executive” told Newsday could go on the first day of April’s NFL Draft.
The others were Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry, Baylor offensive tackle Jason Smith, Troy safety Sherrod Martin and LSU fullback Quinn Johnson.
Barden is currently one touchdown catch away from tying Jerry Rice’s Football Championship Subdivision (then Division I-AA) record of 17 consecutive games with a scoring reception.
He caught four passes for 77 yards and a touchdown Saturday against Idaho State. In the rain, the Mustangs went mostly to the run, racking up a school Division I record with 459 yards on the ground.
Still, though, Barden managed to make some spectacular plays, including the one-handed, spiraling grab to the left.
Ironically, even though he plays for an 0-9 team, Idaho State’s D.J. Clark is widely rated as one of the best cornerbacks in the FCS because of his combination of size (6-foot-2, 200 pounds) and speed (he clocked a 21.6 in the 200-meter dash in high school). Still, at times, Barden essentially had his way.
Because Cal Poly gets off to such sizable leads so early in games, the Mustangs often pound the ball, which hurts Barden’s numbers — as did the Hurricane Ike-induced cancellation by McNeese State of the teams’ third-week meeting, not to mention the fact that Cal Poly was unable to schedule 12 games before the season, anyway, for a myriad of reasons.
While his chances for the Walter Payton Award seem to have been hurt by those factors out of his control, he could still have a shot. A couple sports information directors (who vote) and coaches have told me they’d select Barden.
But realistically, expect it to go to a quarterback, again. The last, and only wide receiver to claim one was former Villanova star and eventual Atlanta Falcon Brian Finneran.
But who is most deserving? Who would you vote for at this point?
Although the video quality leaves a little to be desired, here’s a YouTube reel of Barden’s 12-catch day during a 69-41 win over Southern Utah on Oct. 25: