Chris Barclay is in his sixth season as running backs coach. He was hired Jan. 13, 2017.
During the 2021 season in which Purdue won nine games and captured the TransPerfect Music City Bowl, a trio of Boilermakers combined for more than 1,000 yards on the ground. King Doerue led the running back group with 533 yards, while Zander Horvath and Dylan Downing added 320 yards and 178 yards, respectively.
Under Barclay's guide in 2020, Horvath emerged as the Boilermakers' top ground threat, leading the team with 453 yards rushing on 89 carries (5.0 ypc) and two touchdowns in six games. He led Purdue with 746 all-purpose yards (124.3 ypg), adding 304 yards receiving to his rushing numbers. Horvath was named Third Team All-Big Ten.
The 2019 season saw Barclay turn to a true freshman and a former walk-on to carry the load in the backfield. Doerue led the Boilermakers with 451 yards rushing and five touchdowns in his first collegiate season, while sophomore Horvath chipped in with 377 yards and a pair of scores on the ground.
Senior running backs D.J. Knox and Markell Jones teamed up to rush for 1,420 yards and 13 touchdowns during the 2018 season. Knox led the charge with 157 carries for 883 yards and eight scores, while Jones’ effort against Indiana in the Old Oaken Bucket game, including a 32-yard touchdown run, helped propel Purdue to a second straight bowl game.
Barclay’s inaugural season with the Boilermakers saw his position group hit hard by injury. Despite a weekly rotation of healthy rushers, the running backs averaged 4.4 yards per carry and 151.4 yards per game on the ground. Against Indiana, Jones rushed for 217 yards on 31 carries. The yardage total against the Hoosiers was the seventh-most in school history. Jones’ late surge allowed him to lead Purdue with 566 yards for the season, while three other backs gained 250 or more yards on the ground for the year.
Barclay joined the Boilermakers after spending the 2016 season as running backs coach at Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers won the Conference USA championship and the Boca Raton Bowl.
Under Barclay’s guidance, Anthony Wales was named the Conference USA Championship Game Most Valuable Player and the Boca Raton Bowl Offensive MVP. Wales rushed for 1,621 yards on 237 attempts (6.8 average) and a school-record 27 touchdowns. Wales’ touchdown total led the nation, while his yardage total ranked eighth among FBS players. Wales finished the season ranked 13th in the FBS in all-purposes yards with 1,944.
Prior to Western Kentucky, Barclay spent the 2014 and 2015 seasons as running backs coach at Marshall. In 2014, Barclay led Devon Johnson to 1,767 rushing yards on 206 attempts (8.6 average) and 17 touchdowns. Johnson was a 2014 Doak Walker Award semifinalist, finishing sixth in the nation in rushing yards and 13th in rushing touchdowns in his first seasons as a running back after moving from tight end. As a team, the Thundering Herd led the conference in rushing yards per game (271.9), rushing touchdowns (40) and yards per carry (6.8) in 2014.
Marshall’s return units thrived under Barclay, finishing fifth nationally in kickoff return average in 2015 (27.6 yards) and 10th in 2014 (24.6). The Herd finished second in punt return average in Conference USA in 2015 (10.5).
Marshall won the 2014 Conference USA championship, 2014 Boca Raton Bowl and 2015 St. Petersburg Bowl with Barclay on staff.
Previously, Barclay spent two seasons (2012-14) as running backs coach at William & Mary. He got his start in collegiate coaching as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Wake Forest, in 2011.
The Demon Deacons’ all-time leading rushing and scorer (non-kicker) with 4,032 yards, 40 touchdowns and 240 points, Barclay was the first player in Atlantic Coast Conference history to lead the league in rushing three consecutive seasons, finishing with 1,192 yards in 2003, 1,010 in 2004 and 1,127 in 2005. He was named First Team All-ACC twice and was the 2005 ACC Player of the Year. He was inducted into the Wake Forest Football Hall of Fame in 2016. Barclay scored three touchdowns in a game against Purdue at Ross-Ade Stadium on Sept. 21, 2002.
Signed as an undrafted free agent by the Cleveland Browns, Barclay played in the National Football League for three seasons with the Browns (2006-07), Tennessee Titans (2007), New Orleans Saints (2007) and Atlanta Falcons (2008). He also played with the Berlin Thunder in NFL Europe in 2007 and the New York Sentinels in the United States Football League in 2009.
Barclay (born Oct. 15, 1983) graduated from Wake Forest in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology. He and his wife, Ashlee, have two daughters, Houstyn and Harrisyn.
Chris Barclay