Aug. 22, 2017
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State junior running back Saquon Barkley (Coplay, Pa.) and senior tight end Mike Gesicki (Manahawkin, N.J.) were both selected to the Preseason Associated Press All-America team.
Barkley is a preseason first-team All-American for Sporting News, Lindy's, Street & Smith and Athlon Sports. Additionally, he was named the #5 player in FBS by SI.com and earned the #1 spot on Sports Illustrated's "Feldman's Freaks" list heading into the 2017 campaign. Barkley was stellar in 2016, claiming Graham-George Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, Ameche-Dayne Big Ten Running Back of the Year and the Chicago Tribune Silver Football for the Big Ten's best player last season. Barkley was named to the All-Big Ten first team by the coaches and media, which made him a unanimous first team choice.
Barkley led the Big Ten and was fifth in the FBS in total touchdowns (22) and was tops in the conference and 21st nationally in all-purpose yards (140.86 ypg). The junior back was second in the conference and 24th nationally with 106.9 rushing yards per game. His 1,496 yards in 2016 broke the Penn State sophomore season record and rank fifth on the single-season charts. Barkley heads into his junior season 12th on Penn State's career rushing yardage list (2,572) and 10th in career rushing touchdowns (25). Just the eighth player in program history to have multiple 1,000-yard seasons, Barkley had a streak of 14 consecutive games with at least one rush of 20 yards snapped at Rutgers (11/19), a streak that was the second-longest in college football in the last 20 years (19 - LaMichael James, Oregon (2008-10).
Gesicki, who is a preseason All-American according to Athlon, Street & Smith, Lindy's and Sporting News, had a breakout campaign in 2016, breaking the Penn State single-season record for receptions and yardage by a tight end. His 48 catches broke the record held by Andrew Quarless (41; 2009) and his 679 receiving yards best Mickey Shuler's previous mark of 600 receiving yards (1977). Gesicki also tied the Penn State season record for touchdown catches for a tight end (5) in 2016. He led the Big Ten and was tied for seventh nationally in receptions and receiving yards by a tight end. For his efforts, Gesicki was named second-team All-Big Ten by the media and All-Big Ten honorable mention by the coaches. Gesicki has four or more catches in seven of his last 12 games.
The sixth-ranked Nittany Lions open the season against Akron at noon on ABC.
The Nittany Lions' home schedule features a trio of non-conference games, including Pitt's first visit to Beaver Stadium since 1999. The Nittany Lions open the season against Akron (Sept. 2; noon) and face Pitt (Sept. 9; 3:30 p.m.) and Georgia State (Sept. 16; 7:30 p.m.) in a three-game homestand to start the year. In Big Ten play, Penn State welcomes Indiana (Sept. 30), Michigan (Oct. 21), Rutgers (Nov. 11; noon - Homecoming) and Nebraska (Nov. 18) to Happy Valley.
Single-game tickets for the 2017 Penn State football season presented by PSECU are available for five home games (Akron, Georgia State, Indiana, Rutgers, Nebraska). For information on joining the Nittany Lion Club and purchasing new 2018 season tickets, as well as club seating in Beaver Stadium, fans can visit www.PSUnrivaled.com, call 1-800-NITTANY weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office weekdays from 9 a.m-4:30 p.m. More than 9,000 new season tickets have been sold and the season ticket allotment for 2017 has been exhausted.