The Cal 100: No. 18 – Marshawn Lynch
We count down the top 100 individuals associated with Cal athletics, based on their impact in sports or in the world at large – a wide-open category. See if you agree.
No. 18: Marshawn Lynch
Cal Sports Connection: Lynch was a standout football player at Cal for three seasons (2004-2006).
Claim to Fame: He was an All-America selection in 2006, was selected to five Pro Bowls, and has drawn headlines for a variety of things, including a cart ride at Memorial Stadium and a COVID discussion with Dr. Anthony Fauci
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Marshawn Lynch has made an impact in so many different ways, it’s hard to put him in a category. He’s even made an impact with things he didn't do, such as not speaking to the media and not getting the ball on one pivotal Super Bowl play.
Name someone else who was an All-American at Cal and a five-time Pro Bowl pick, whose injury-cart ride at Memorial Stadium is classic video, who discussed COVID in a video with Dr. Anthony Fauci, who was a speaker at Princeton, and who had one of the greatest runs in NFL history. Not to mention his non-participation in the two things in the preceding paragraph that drew national attention.
Let’s take these things one at a time:
---Lynch was a star at Cal for three season (2004 through 2006), rushing for more than 1,200 yards twice, catching 68 passes in his career, helping the NeGolden Bears to a No. 4 ranking in the 2004 final regular-season rankings when he averaged 8.8 yards per carry as a freshman, and being named All-American in 2006 by the American Football Coaches Association.
But he is most remembered for his drive around the field in an injury cart following Cal’s 2006 overtime win over Washington:
---Lynch rushed for 10,413 yards and had 287 receptions in his 12-year NFL career. He rushed for more than 1,000 yards six times, and led the league in rushing touchdowns twice. He becomes eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2025, and has a good shot to make it.
But his NFL legacy is not about his numbers as much as for two plays.
One play was his run against the Saints, considered by some as the best run in the history of the NFL:
The other came in the Super Bowl following the 2014 season, and Lynch wasn’t even involved in the play. The fact that Lynch was not involved was the point.
Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson threw an interception in the closing seconds of a 28-24 loss to the Patriots after the Seahawks had reached the New England 1-yard line. You can hear commentator Cris Collinsworth telling a national TV audience after the play, “I cannot believe the call. You've got Marshawn Lynch in the backfield. You've got a guy that has been borderline unstoppable in this part of the field. I can't believe the call." Most of America was thinking the same thing.
Lynch talked about the play with Pat McAfee:
---Lynch received national attention for saying nothing. Well, technically not nothing. During a mandatory interview session prior to a Super Bowl, Lynch answered every media question by saying, “I’m just here so I don’t get fined.”
---In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci wanted to connect with the African American community in the Oakland area, so who did call? Marshawn Lynch. That shows the respect and impact Lynch has within that group. Here is how Bay Area news handled that discussion:
And here is the entire Fauci-Lynch discussion:
---Lynch was named the 2020 Class Day speaker at Princeton University, joining the likes of Dr. Fauci, Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Jerry Seinfeld, Katie Couric, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell and movie director Christopher Nolan, all of whom have filed that role over the years.
Aside from all those things, Lynch has been an actor, a producer, a philanthropist, and a video game character.
Lynch is part of groups that own soccer teams and an NHL team. He developed his Beast Mode nickname into a Beast Mode brand, which includes an apparel line, retail store, and at least one partnership with international brands. The Mars company offered him a two-year supply of Skittles, the candy he loves. Lynch is an entrepreneur in the cannabis business. He is known for his frequent community involvement and is an important part of the California Legends Collective that operated as Cal’s NIL platform.
We’ll finish with a Lynch interview with Conan O’Brien, which may be the definitive Marshawn Lynch interview:
The Cal 100: No. 19 Brutus Hamilton
Cover photo of Marshawn Lynch courtesy of Cal Athletics
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