Former ACC Player of the Year Chris Barclay Credits Wake Forest for On & Off Field Success
2/18/2022 8:00:00 AM | Football
Barclay found success in the classroom, community and on the field during his time in Winston-Salem.
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WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – While rewriting the Wake Forest Football record book, Chris Barclay ('09) could often hear his father's voice while carrying the ball.
"Cut," the voice implored.
Barclay evades one tackler and gets to the second level of the defense, only to hear the voice again.
"Cut, cut!"
Put in the running back position by his first coach, his father Larry Barclay, in pee-wee flag football; Barclay sought a collegiate destination that would allow him to chase his dreams from the backfield.
"That was where I was most natural," Barclay said. "When I was first on the field playing flag football, that was the position I played.
"When Wake Forest offered the opportunity to play running back, especially at my stature, it showed a lot of faith. I became dedicated to giving it my all for the institution and I think it all worked out pretty well."
Coming from Louisville Male High School, Barclay heard often from then Wake Forest defensive coordinator Dean Hood, who is now the head coach at Murray State. Hood had family from Kentucky and recruited the state for head coach Jim Grobe.
"They did have a presence in the state of Kentucky because of Dean Hood," Barclay explained. "Wake Forest was recruiting the state, and me and my family took a liking to coach Hood.
"He was telling me I had the opportunity to play running back. I didn't have a ton of those opportunities because with my size as most programs were looking at me more as a corner or a receiver. I really liked Dean, and he was a big, strong figure in my recruitment."
He joined the team in the summer of 2002, expecting to be the fifth-or-sixth running back on the depth chart, but that changed quickly. One running back was ruled ineligible, then another fell to an injury, and Barclay got a chance to contribute as a true freshman.
"Right before the season started, Tarence Williams broke his ankle," Barclay recalled. "That immediately moved me up the ladder, so I had to get ready to play. I was in a third-string role and wasn't too bad in the end. It was the domino effect for me, but all things happen for a reason."
Barclay rushed for 703 yards and nine touchdowns on 144 carries as a freshman, the only sub-1,000 yards season for the future Demon Deacon career rushing leader. He went for 1,192 yards and 12 touchdowns, statistically his best season, as a sophomore despite being hobbled with an injury.
"The biggest injury I sustained was in my sophomore year," Barclay said. "It was a high ankle sprain against Boston College. I was blocking for Cory Randolph, our quarterback, who took off running, so he followed me and ended up getting tackled into my ankles. They rolled up. I had to wear linemen cleats for six weeks. I played through it, but I was hobbled. Other than that, I was pretty healthy and played a lot of snaps."
A high ankle sprain isn't something you'd normally see someone play through.
"It was a different time," Barclay said with a chuckle. "I was pretty motivated. I was starting for the first time and was chomping at the bit to prove myself. The offensive line and coaching staff did a great job and we had some success."
While the high school-to-college transition on the field was seamless for Barclay, he found the academics a welcome challenge at Wake Forest. He felt prepared, but still had hurdles along the way.
"There was certainly a transition, but that was one of the reasons I chose Wake Forest," Barclay said. "I wanted to be challenged in the classroom and the football field, and wanted to experience the best of both worlds. That was the appeal. Then the class sizes and size of the enrollment — it was intimate, and I was attracted to that.
"I was fortunate, because my high school was challenging and was a college-prep curriculum at Louisville Male High School. People went onto college and did well. We were prepared for community college to the Ivy League. I was ready for the rigors of college, but I had to figure out time management and being on my own for the first time. Then juggle all that around athletics. I am so thankful we had great resources in place and a great academic support staff."
It was the intimate, family feel that drew Barclay to Wake Forest and what helped him become a success during his four years as a Demon Deacon.
"I knew that college would be a challenge and a transition," he explained further. "But I was attracted to the fact that there were small class sizes and there was an intimate feel. It was personal. It was a village surrounding me to help me achieve success. I wouldn't be a number or get lost in the shuffle. I felt like I was more than a student ID number, I was Chris Barclay, and I feel like everybody had that experience. That was big for me in the transition overall."
Barclay was named the ACC Player of the Year in 2005 and still holds the Wake Forest career records for rushing yards (4,032) and rushing touchdowns (40). Along with being a two-time First Team All-ACC performer, he was inducted into the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.
"That was a special day and a special moment that I will cherish forever — just the amount of blood, sweat and tears that went into getting there," he said about breaking the rushing record formerly held by James McDougald. "There were so many teammates who had a part of that, with all the sacrifices they made along the way."
Barclay wrapped up his brief NFL career in 2009.
"I was ready for something different," he said. "I was with four different franchises over three seasons. It was wearing on me and I just wanted something different.
"I went home and helped coach my high school team at Male, and worked a couple of odd jobs, like at UPS. The transition and adjustment was difficult, but I did find a lot of fulfillment working with the high school kids and seeing the improvements they made. That was really fulfilling to me, so I found myself going over to the high school more frequently."
He was studying for the GRE to get a master's in physical therapy when he got a call from the Wake Forest Football office.
"They were asking if I wanted to be a grad assistant," Barclay said. "She walked me through the steps. My first job with the program, in 2010, was the recruiting assistant for Ray McCartney, who was our recruiting coordinator.
"I helped out on offense a little bit, but was mostly focused on recruiting. That was how it started. I wouldn't do it any other way. It was awesome. I didn't quite know what I was getting into. I was always interested in coaching college ball, and once I started dabbling at the high school level, I figured I could do this. Once I got my hands on, I fell in love with it and knew this is what I wanted to do."
Barclay just completed his fifth season as running backs coach for Purdue.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – While rewriting the Wake Forest Football record book, Chris Barclay ('09) could often hear his father's voice while carrying the ball.
"Cut," the voice implored.
Barclay evades one tackler and gets to the second level of the defense, only to hear the voice again.
"Cut, cut!"
Put in the running back position by his first coach, his father Larry Barclay, in pee-wee flag football; Barclay sought a collegiate destination that would allow him to chase his dreams from the backfield.
"That was where I was most natural," Barclay said. "When I was first on the field playing flag football, that was the position I played.
"When Wake Forest offered the opportunity to play running back, especially at my stature, it showed a lot of faith. I became dedicated to giving it my all for the institution and I think it all worked out pretty well."
Coming from Louisville Male High School, Barclay heard often from then Wake Forest defensive coordinator Dean Hood, who is now the head coach at Murray State. Hood had family from Kentucky and recruited the state for head coach Jim Grobe.
"They did have a presence in the state of Kentucky because of Dean Hood," Barclay explained. "Wake Forest was recruiting the state, and me and my family took a liking to coach Hood.
"He was telling me I had the opportunity to play running back. I didn't have a ton of those opportunities because with my size as most programs were looking at me more as a corner or a receiver. I really liked Dean, and he was a big, strong figure in my recruitment."
He joined the team in the summer of 2002, expecting to be the fifth-or-sixth running back on the depth chart, but that changed quickly. One running back was ruled ineligible, then another fell to an injury, and Barclay got a chance to contribute as a true freshman.
"Right before the season started, Tarence Williams broke his ankle," Barclay recalled. "That immediately moved me up the ladder, so I had to get ready to play. I was in a third-string role and wasn't too bad in the end. It was the domino effect for me, but all things happen for a reason."
Barclay rushed for 703 yards and nine touchdowns on 144 carries as a freshman, the only sub-1,000 yards season for the future Demon Deacon career rushing leader. He went for 1,192 yards and 12 touchdowns, statistically his best season, as a sophomore despite being hobbled with an injury.
"The biggest injury I sustained was in my sophomore year," Barclay said. "It was a high ankle sprain against Boston College. I was blocking for Cory Randolph, our quarterback, who took off running, so he followed me and ended up getting tackled into my ankles. They rolled up. I had to wear linemen cleats for six weeks. I played through it, but I was hobbled. Other than that, I was pretty healthy and played a lot of snaps."
A high ankle sprain isn't something you'd normally see someone play through.
"It was a different time," Barclay said with a chuckle. "I was pretty motivated. I was starting for the first time and was chomping at the bit to prove myself. The offensive line and coaching staff did a great job and we had some success."
While the high school-to-college transition on the field was seamless for Barclay, he found the academics a welcome challenge at Wake Forest. He felt prepared, but still had hurdles along the way.
"There was certainly a transition, but that was one of the reasons I chose Wake Forest," Barclay said. "I wanted to be challenged in the classroom and the football field, and wanted to experience the best of both worlds. That was the appeal. Then the class sizes and size of the enrollment — it was intimate, and I was attracted to that.
"I was fortunate, because my high school was challenging and was a college-prep curriculum at Louisville Male High School. People went onto college and did well. We were prepared for community college to the Ivy League. I was ready for the rigors of college, but I had to figure out time management and being on my own for the first time. Then juggle all that around athletics. I am so thankful we had great resources in place and a great academic support staff."
It was the intimate, family feel that drew Barclay to Wake Forest and what helped him become a success during his four years as a Demon Deacon.
"I knew that college would be a challenge and a transition," he explained further. "But I was attracted to the fact that there were small class sizes and there was an intimate feel. It was personal. It was a village surrounding me to help me achieve success. I wouldn't be a number or get lost in the shuffle. I felt like I was more than a student ID number, I was Chris Barclay, and I feel like everybody had that experience. That was big for me in the transition overall."
Barclay was named the ACC Player of the Year in 2005 and still holds the Wake Forest career records for rushing yards (4,032) and rushing touchdowns (40). Along with being a two-time First Team All-ACC performer, he was inducted into the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.
"That was a special day and a special moment that I will cherish forever — just the amount of blood, sweat and tears that went into getting there," he said about breaking the rushing record formerly held by James McDougald. "There were so many teammates who had a part of that, with all the sacrifices they made along the way."
Barclay wrapped up his brief NFL career in 2009.
"I was ready for something different," he said. "I was with four different franchises over three seasons. It was wearing on me and I just wanted something different.
"I went home and helped coach my high school team at Male, and worked a couple of odd jobs, like at UPS. The transition and adjustment was difficult, but I did find a lot of fulfillment working with the high school kids and seeing the improvements they made. That was really fulfilling to me, so I found myself going over to the high school more frequently."
He was studying for the GRE to get a master's in physical therapy when he got a call from the Wake Forest Football office.
"They were asking if I wanted to be a grad assistant," Barclay said. "She walked me through the steps. My first job with the program, in 2010, was the recruiting assistant for Ray McCartney, who was our recruiting coordinator.
"I helped out on offense a little bit, but was mostly focused on recruiting. That was how it started. I wouldn't do it any other way. It was awesome. I didn't quite know what I was getting into. I was always interested in coaching college ball, and once I started dabbling at the high school level, I figured I could do this. Once I got my hands on, I fell in love with it and knew this is what I wanted to do."
Barclay just completed his fifth season as running backs coach for Purdue.
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