One year ago, LSU running back Leonard Fournette gave college football fans a taste of what was to come with 1,034 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on 187 carries in his freshman season. Fournette followed that performance up with an outstanding start to this year that proved to be unsustainable, but he still finished the year with 1,741 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns.
November is the month in which the top freshman players usually start to show their potential after making the adjustment to the college game and that is what makes it such an important month when it comes to talent evaluation. Here is a look at the best freshman performances from the month of November with an eye towards what we can expect from these rising stars looking ahead to their sophomore seasons.
Saquon Barkley, Penn State Nittany Lions
Running Back
The Penn State offense has been an absolute mess this season with problems along the offensive line in particular really hurting when it comes to protection issues in the passing game. However, the one bright spot this season has been the outstanding play of their freshman running Barkley, who appears to be the real deal.
Barkley topped the 100-yard mark twice in three November games and finished the year with 1,007 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. The Nittany Lions appear to have hit it big with their freshman running back and there is every reason to think he will be a star behind an improved offensive line. With quarterback Christian Hackenberg expected to move up to the NFL, Barkley will be one of the focal points of this offense going forward.
Josh Rosen, UCLA Bruins
Quarterback
Rosen’s numbers in November are interesting because while it was the worst statistical month of any for him in terms of production, he still threw for 1,120 passing yards and four touchdowns while guiding the Bruins to a 2-2 record. That included wins at Oregon State and Utah. Rosen was thrown into the fire right away as a freshman quarterback for a major Pac-12 program and he more than held his own with 3,351 passing yards and 20 touchdowns compared to nine interceptions.
Now Rosen will have the entire offseason to work on his game and continue to develop both physically and mentally. A lot was put on him to lead on a team that entered the year with College Football Playoff expectations. While they fell flat, a strong finish to the season should have him primed to take another major step forward in his sophomore season next year.
Derwin James, Florida State Seminoles
Safety
James made an immediate impact at Florida State and has excelled as a safety all year. A strong finish is putting the exclamation mark an incredible freshman season. James finished second on the team in tackles with 77 along with two forced fumbles and three passes broken up. James is a hard-hitting safety that can hold his own in coverage and attack opposing rushing attacks up near the line of scrimmage, so if you don’t recognize his name now, get used to it because he is going to be an absolute star once again for the Seminoles next season.
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Josh Adams, Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Running Back
The Fighting Irish were absolutely decimated by injuries this season and while it ultimately cost them the opportunity to compete for a playoff spot, it did open the door for some young stars to show what they can do including the freshman running back Adams.
The 6’1’’, 212-pound back absolutely dominated down the stretch with 492 rushing yards and two touchdowns in four November games. Adams has all of the tools to be a force at the running back position and a strong November is enough to project him to have a strong sophomore year at Notre Dame next season. He’s been playing a lot behind C.J. Prosise but he’s a senior. Adams should be the No. 1 option heading into training camp next season.
