NFL Draft: Matt Barkley wins

There’s a rush following this year’s draft to depict Matt Barkley’s decision to stay at USC for his senior year, rather than declaring himself eligible for the NFL draft last spring, as a mistake on a colossal scale.

The fiscal rationale is simple: in 2012 he would have gone as a first-round draft pick earning, with bonus/salary, in the eight figures. This year he went as a fourth-rounder, drafted by an Eagle team under new coach Chip Kelly which will institute some form of a read-option offense that, at an initial glance, may only serve to underscore one of Matt’s perceived weaknesses: foot-speed.

The New York Times’s Judy Battista went so far as to say “From any angle, Barkley’s decision was wrong for him.” She’s omitting one key angle: Barkley’s.

Matt’s insistence throughout his rapidly unraveling senior year that he remained content with his decision to stay was widely viewed as a polite veneer on a massive miscalculation. A look at his uncommon consistency of word and deed suggests otherwise.

In January 2010, when many of those responsible for the NCAA-sanctions that befell USC –  including a two-year postseason ban, the loss of 30 scholarships, and, essentially, the forfeiture of the 2004 National Championship – were either resigning, getting fired, or making a hasty exit (see: Carroll, Pete), Barkley held fast in his commitment to the school. He not only affirmed his decision to stay, but in the absence of a key program leader to do so, he called incoming recruits to let them know of his intentions.

As Trojans’ punter Kyle Negrete later told Sports Illustrated, “He was the spokesman for the university, and he was 19.”

Barkley was quoted as telling recruits, “I’m still here. I’m going to stick it out. We’re going to make it happen. USC is bigger than one person, one coach.” What would have been the consequences to his teammates, and as importantly his own perception as a trusted leader, if he had then transferred from USC?

After the 2011 season, Barkley faced another leave-stay decision, this time on the question of declaring for the NFL draft or returning to USC, earning his degree and playing his senior year for the Trojans. Quoting his December 2011 press conference:

“I am prepared to play quarterback in the NFL. It’s my dream to play quarterback in the NFL, and I intend to make that dream a reality. But I also know that I came to the University of Southern California to compete and have a rare journey as a USC football player, earn a degree from this exceptional university, and forge lifelong bonds with the Trojan family. I will earn my degree, the bonds have been forged, but I know in my heart I’ve not yet finished my journey as a Trojan football player.”

Again, in terms of his development as a leader, the essential role of any quarterback, what would have been the repercussions of then changing course and departing USC to enter the NFL draft? How would those bonds with the “Trojan family” have fared?

Barkley’s decision to stay caused him significant short-term financial loss; that is without question. What he gained was proof to himself, and everyone who knows him or knows of him, that he could and would adhere to his own principles.

If the decision to stay at USC bore no risk for Barkley, the measure of courage to make it would have been nominal. As has been proved, the financial risk was massive, and the courage thereby should be viewed as commensurate. It is naïve to suggest that he was unaware of the risk, or that he simply made a foolish mistake. Barkley knowingly prioritized the potential financial gain as lower than his personal commitment to his teammates and the school.

Despite his fall in the draft charts, Barkley will not be a pauper any time soon, “If I need a job someday, I’ll probably be able to get one through a Trojan, and that’s a securing thought,” Barkley told Sports Illustrated last summer. He will not likely need one soon. Barkley’s potential for success with the Eagles is greater than most people allow him.

Chip Kelly’s Oregon offenses always varied according to the strengths of their personnel, and often the passing routes the Ducks ran (and will be required more frequently in the NFL) came off an inside zone read, coupled with a play-action fake, that placed a premium on system knowledge over foot-speed. The likelihood of a straight transfer of Kelly’s read-option to the NFL is virtually zero; it will certainly be modified.

Barkley’s exceptional command of the USC playbook was well-known, and he will be a quick study of a system that is especially familiar to a top PAC-12 player.

Even after falling to the fourth round, Matt never veered from his mature perception of the situation.

“I stayed positive this whole time, and haven’t looked back. I’m blessed that the Eagles believe in me and are willing to give me a chance. And I’m looking forward from here on out. And no matter where you end, it’s just the beginning of the next chapter, [the] next story of your life.”

Barkley suffered fiscally from his decision, but remains virtually assured of becoming an extremely wealthy young man. He has also shown exceptional perspective, principles and conduct despite an onslaught of adversity, often coupled with ridicule. Isn’t that the real newsworthy story?