Barden looks to impress in bowl

GLENDALE — A stellar four-year career at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, capped by a record-breaking senior season, put Ramses Barden squarely on the college football map and on the radar of NFL scouts.

The 2005 Flintridge Prep graduate’s 2008-09 exploits on the field also earned him a coveted invitation to the 2009 Senior Bowl and an experience that stands to further raise his stock for the upcoming NFL Draft beyond any of his accomplishments in a Mustangs uniform.

“There’s a lot to be gained just by being here,” said Barden, a 6-foot-6 wide receiver, who will suit up for the North squad for the 4 p.m. PDT game on Saturday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala., which will be televised live on the NFL Network. “There’s a number of other players in the same situation as [me], who have had successful seasons and have this last opportunity to showcase their abilities against the elite players in the country.”

Short of the annual NFL scouting combine, which is less than a month away, this is the biggest shot between now and the NFL Draft on April 25-26 that players from both the North and South squads will get at making a lasting impression on NFL teams.

It’s an especially valuable opportunity for Barden, a multiple All-American who caught 67 passes as a senior for 1,257 yards and 18 touchdowns and was a finalist for the Walter Payton Award, but played at a small Football Championship Subdivision school that didn’t receive constant national attention throughout the year.

Barden, who has been projected by some draft analysts to go as early as the third round in the NFL draft, now has the stage to prove his ability and readiness to compete against and alongside some of the top NFL prospects in the nation in an environment that simulates that of the pros.

Each squad is coached by a staff from an NFL club — Barden’s North team is coached by the Cincinnati Bengals’ staff, while the South is coached by the Jacksonville Jaguars’ — and the playbooks and preparation regimen are as sophisticated as would be expected for a professional organization.

“It’s been interesting learning the new offense so far with the Bengals staff,” said Barden, whose Cal Poly team ran the triple-option under Coach Rich Ellerson. “It might only be a third of the actual playbook that we’re working with, but it seems four times as large as Cal Poly’s.