Ryan ChartrandCal Poly senior wide receiver Ramses Barden will make one final collegiate appearance on Saturday as he prepares to take his game to Sundays in the fall.
Barden will play in the Under Armour Senior Bowl at 4 p.m. tomorrow in Mobile, Ala. in a game that will be televised nationally on the NFL Network.
The 6-foot-6 receiver has already turned some heads during practice as he helps his north squad get ready to battle the south.
“He’s not wide-eyed here – he belongs,” Cincinnati Bengals wide receivers coach Mike Sheppard told the Palm Beach Post. “The overused word on him between now and the draft will be ‘raw’ because people will say small school and this, that and whatever.
“He’s better than raw.”
The Cincinnati Bengals coaching staff is coaching the north roster while Jacksonville Jaguars’ staff will coach the south.
Originally selected to play in the 84th East-West Shrine Game on Jan. 17, Barden instead opted to play in the Senior Bowl a week later.
The Senior Bowl practices are attended by hundreds of NFL general managers, coaches and scouts.
Barden is one of five players from the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) who were selected to the Senior Bowl this year. Also selected were Sam Houston State quarterback Rhett Bomar, Central Arkansas quarterback Nathan Brown, Jackson State defensive back Domonique Johnson and Liberty running back Rashad Jennings.
Cal Poly had one of its greatest seasons in school history compiling an 8-3 record and securing the Mustangs’ first Division I home playoff game.
Barden was a huge part of the team’s success, catching 67 passes for 1,257 yards and 18 touchdowns. He caught at least one touchdown in all 11 Cal Poly games this season, tying the NCAA mark for consecutive games with a touchdown reception in a season set by Randy Moss.
He also holds NCAA records for most consecutive games with a touchdown catch (20) and most career games with a touchdown reception (32). He is 13th on the all-time scoring receptions list with 50.
Barden finished his senior season first in the Great West Football Conference in receiving yards per game (114.3) and scoring (9.8) and was second in receptions per game (6.1).
He was named offensive player of the year in the Great West for the second consecutive year and was named to the All-Great West first team for the fourth time.
Barden finished fourth in the voting for the Walter Payton Award, given to the FCS’ best offensive player.