Matt Barkley

Matt Barkley

Matthew Montgomery Barkley is an American football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills. He played college football at the University of Southern California. Barkley was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He has also played for the Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals. His father, Les Barkley, was an All-American water polo player at USC from 1976 to 1979.

About Matt Barkley in brief

Summary Matt BarkleyMatthew Montgomery Barkley is an American football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League. He played college football at the University of Southern California. Barkley was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He has also played for the Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals. Barkley’s father, Les Barkley, was an All-American water polo player at USC from 1976 to 1979. Barkley is the son of former NFL player Les Barkley and his wife, Susan. He is the nephew of former U.S. Marine and NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Barkley. Barkley attended Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California. He was named 2007 football Gatorade National Player of the Year, and then the 2007 Gatorades national male athlete of the year. Barkley also won the 2007 Glenn Davis Award, given to the best high school football player in Southern California, and the inaugural Joe Montana Award as the nation’s top high school quarterback. He graduated from high school on December 18, 2008, and enrolled in USC in January 2009. Barkley has been described as a cross between Joe Montana and Tom Brady by his high school coach. His father was a U.N. World War II veteran and served as an ambassador for the United Nations in the 1970s and 1980s. Barkley played in the Under Armour All-America Game at the Florida Citrus Bowl on January 4, 2009, where he completed 11-of-22 passes for 237 yards and two touchdowns and led the White team to a 27–16 victory over the Black team.

In the spring of 2009, Barkley was named the number two quarterback behind Aaron Corp. Afterward, ESPN Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. stated that he believed that Barkley would be a true freshman in three years, who will be a No. 1 pick in the draft in the 2014 NFL draft. Barkley passed for 3,576 yards and 35 touchdowns in 2007, completing 63 percent of his passes with nine interceptions. His 2008 senior season started slow, with Barkley throwing nearly as many interceptions as touchdown passes and the Monarchs barely keeping above. 500; however, his performance turned around and Mater dei rallied to 7–3 and entered the playoffs. The Monarchs made it to the quarterfinal, falling to Tesoro High School and ending the season 8–4. In 2009, he was moved back to the number one high school prospect in America by ESPN, having dropped to tenth during his senior season. He would play for the USC Trojans for the next four seasons, from 2009 to 2012. In 2011, he played in a game against the Arkansas Razorbacks in which he was named co-MVP of the game. In 2012, he started the season opener against Arkansas for the TroJans. In 2013, he became the No. 2 quarterback behind Mitch Mustain, who had been the starting quarterback at Arkansas for eight games in 2006 and gave strong performances during spring practices.