Fansided

10 candidates to be on the cover of NCAA Football from 2014-present

By Dominic Gugliotta

LOUISVILLE, KY - SEPTEMBER 30: Lamar Jackson #8 of the Louisville Cardinals runs with the ball during the game against the Murray State Racers at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium on September 30, 2017 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KY - SEPTEMBER 30: Lamar Jackson #8 of the Louisville Cardinals runs with the ball during the game against the Murray State Racers at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium on September 30, 2017 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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GLENDALE, AZ – DECEMBER 30: Running back Saquon Barkley #26 of the Penn State Nittany Lions walks on the field during the second half of the Playstation Fiesta Bowl against the Washington Huskies at University of Phoenix Stadium on December 30, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona. The Nittany Lions defeated the Huskies 35-28. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, AZ – DECEMBER 30: Running back Saquon Barkley #26 of the Penn State Nittany Lions walks on the field during the second half of the Playstation Fiesta Bowl against the Washington Huskies at University of Phoenix Stadium on December 30, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona. The Nittany Lions defeated the Huskies 35-28. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

3. Saquon Barkley

Saquon Barkley may very well be the most impressive running back prospect to come out of college in the last decade. Coming from Penn State, Barkley set the college football world on fire with his insane quads, incredible leaping ability and lower-body strength.

Under James Franklin and alongside running quarterback Trace McSorley, Barkley torched Big Ten defenses all throughout his career. Whether it was in big-time moments or on irrelevant 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon games, Barkley was making the highlight reel.

Barkley received a ton of touches throughout his three years with the program, with 18 touchdowns in both of his final two years. In his junior season, Barkley also returned two kickoff returns all the way to the endzone showing how versatile a scorer he was as a Nittany Lion.

Unlike Fournette and Elliott, Barkley simply outruns you with his speed or makes a player look silly with his unbelievable sideline-to-sideline cuts and hurdles. He is simply never afraid to do the impossible when he is given a handoff.

Not only would he make an awesome cover photo with the blue and white with a player below him as he hurdles them, but the game would have been magnified by the presence of his natural skill set. An offense that included McSorley, Barkley and Chris Godwin would have been high scoring, versatile and perfect for any player’s preferred offensive system.

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