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Chris Godwin, Saquon Barkley Named to All-Big Ten Second Team

Penn State's two brightest offensive stars were honored by the Big Ten.

By Nick Polak
Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Penn State's offense may not have reached all of their goals in 2015, but two of its key cogs were honored on Tuesday night by being named to the 2015 All-Big Ten second team. Freshman running back Saquon Barkley was a selection by both the media and the coaches, and Chris Godwin was named a second team member by the media.

Barkley set a school freshman record for rushing yards, amassing 1,007 in basically nine games (good for an average of 112 yards per game) to go with 8 touchdowns. His 1,007 yards ranked 4th in the Big Ten. Barkley enrolled at Penn State as a highly touted (4-star, No. 16 RB in the country) player out of Whitehall, Pennsylvania. He was initially set to attend Rutgers, before James Franklin was able to flip him to the Nittany Lions. The sky is the limit for Barkley, as his numbers should only continue to improve as a serviceable offensive line begins to form in front of him. It should also be noted that Barkley probably would have been awarded Big Ten Freshman of the Year, if not for redshirt freshman Jabrill Peppers (can you say, technicality?).

Chris Godwin came into this season, perhaps as the most exciting receiving option the Nittany Lions had. Yes, DaeSean Hamilton was the one who had the breakout season in 2014, but Godwin's big play ability was very evident towards the end of 2014, particularly in his huge Pinstripe Bowl performance. Godwin not only built on the bowl game, but succeeded possibly even the most optimistic fan's expectations. He proved himself to be one of the most physical receivers in the Big Ten, almost always requiring more than one tackler to get him on the ground, and only after tacking on 5-10 more yards onto the play. Godwin finished the season with 63 receptions for 968 yards and 5 touchdowns. He was 5th in the Big Ten in receptions, and 2nd in receiving yards.

Finally, the aforementioned DaeSean Hamilton may not have had the statistically-dominant season he had a year ago, but he was still an important and trusted weapon for quarterback Christian Hackenberg, and was named as an honorable mention to the all-Big Ten teams.

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