Penn State in the Super Bowl: Saquon Barkley Chases More Nittany Lions History
Saquon Barkley’s football journey continues to reach new peaks, as the former Penn State running back has helped lead the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl LIX matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. After three seasons at Penn State and six with the New York Giants, Barkley could soon add another Super Bowl ring to the Nittany Lions’ rich football legacy.
While Barkley’s stardom has reached MVP levels in Philadelphia (he ran for a franchise record 2,005 yards during the regular season), he’s not the only Penn State alum with a chance to win a title Feb. 9 in New Orleans. The Eagles roster two more former Nittany Lions: wide receiver Jahan Dotson and cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields, who’s on Philadelphia’s practice squad, also seek their first Super Bowl rings. For Kansas City, Chiefs center Hunter Nourzad has a chance to win a title in his rookie season.
Either Nourzad or a trio of former Penn Staters will end the NFL’s season by hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. No matter the winner, those four players will continue an historic run of former Nittany Lions competing on Super Bowl teams. The program has sent players to 54 of the 59 Super Bowls since 1967. Forty-seven Penn State athletes have won 66 Super Bowl rings, with the most recent being in 2024, when Donovan Smith was on Kansas City’s title-winning squad.
For many reasons, Barkley’s story would be the most high-profile among the four Penn State alumni in Sunday’s game. His otherworldly combination of size, athleticism and balance has been evident since his 2015 freshman season in Happy Valley. Barkley finished his Penn State career ranked first in program history in both all-purpose yards (5,538) and touchdowns (53), becoming a Nittany Lions legend and solidifying his status as a generational player.
After being selected second overall by New York in the 2018 NFL Draft, Barkley consistently was an elite weapon in a struggling offense. The Giants made the playoffs just once with Barkley. He signed a three-year deal with Philadelphia last year and has excelled in a run-heavy offense, owning 14 games of 100-plus rushing yards including the postseason.
Dotson blossomed into an elite wide receiver at Penn State and was drafted by Washington in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft after totaling 1,182 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns in his senior year. While just 24 years old, Dotson is still seeking his breakout NFL season. The Commanders traded him to Philadelphia prior to the 2024 season after he totaled 1,041 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns in two seasons. With the Eagles, he’s functioned as the team’s WR3 behind A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith.
Castro-Fields, who was with the Nittany Lions from 2017-21, has previously seen NFL snaps with the Commanders and is now on Philadelphia’s practice squad. Nourzad, a fifth-round selection by Kansas City last spring, is now Andy Reid’s backup center behind Creed Humphrey. He appeared in one game this season.
Among Big Ten teams, Penn State and Michigan are tied for the lead with three active alumni on the two Super Bowl 59 rosters, per SportsGrid’s Ben Stevens. The last time there were no former Nittany Lions between the two Super Bowl rosters was 2010’s Super Bowl XLIV matchup between the Saints and Colts.
Penn State in the Super Bowl
Here’s the updated list of every Penn State Nittany Lion who has been to the Super Bowl. The asterisk represents a Super Bowl champion.
Super Bowl I: Dave Robinson, Green Bay*; Harrison Rosdahl, Kansas City
Super Bowl II: Dave Robinson, Green Bay*
Super Bowl III: Ralph Baker, New York Jets*; Glenn Ressler, Baltimore
Super Bowl V: Glenn Ressler, Baltimore*
Super Bowl VII: Bruce Bannon, Miami
Super Bowl VIII: Bruce Bannon, Miami*
Super Bowl IX: Jack Ham, Franco Harris, Pittsburgh*
Super Bowl X: Jack Ham, Franco Harris, Pittsburgh*
Super Bowl XI: Dave Rowe, Ted Kwalick, Oakland*
Super Bowl XII: Tom Rafferty, Dallas*
Super Bowl XIII: Jack Ham, Franco Harris, Pittsburgh*; Tom Rafferty, Dallas
Super Bowl XIV: Matt Bahr, Jack Ham, Franco Harris, Pittsburgh*
Super Bowl XV: Chris Bahr, Matt Millen, Oakland*; Bob Torrey, Philadelphia
Super Bowl XVI: Pete Kugler, San Francisco*
Super Bowl XVII: Larry Kubin, Rich Milot, Washington*; Jimmy Cefalo, Paul Lankford, Miami
Super Bowl XVIII: Chris Bahr, Matt Millen, Jim Romano, Los Angeles Raiders*; Larry Kubin, Rich Milot, Washington
Super Bowl XIX: Jimmy Cefalo, Paul Lankford, Miami
Super Bowl XX: Mike Hartenstine, Matt Suhey, Chicago*; Jon Williams, New England
Super Bowl XXI: Brad Benson, New York Giants*; Stan Short, Denver
Super Bowl XXII: Rich Milot, Washington*
Super Bowl XXIII: Pete Kugler, San Francisco*
Super Bowl XXIV: Pete Kugler, Matt Millen, San Francisco*
Super Bowl XXV: Matt Bahr, Bob Mrosko, New York Giants*; Shane Conlan, Mitch Frerotte, Mike Alexander, Buffalo
Super Bowl XXVI: Andre Collins, Tim Johnson, Matt Millen, Washington*; Shane Conlan, Mitch Frerotte, Buffalo
Super Bowl XXVII: Shane Conlan, Mitch Frerotte, Keith Goganious, Buffalo
Super Bowl XXVIII: Keith Goganious, Buffalo
Super Bowl XXX: Darren Perry, Eric Ravotti, Pittsburgh
Super Bowl XXXI: Marco Rivera, Green Bay*; Sam Gash, Todd Rucci, New England
Super Bowl XXXII: Marco Rivera, Brett Conway, Green Bay
Super Bowl XXXIV: Terry Killens, Mike Archie, Tennessee
Super Bowl XXXV: Sam Gash, Kim Herring, Baltimore*; Kerry Collins, Joe Jurevicius, Brandon Short, New York Giants
Super Bowl XXXVI: Kim Herring, Tyoka Jackson, St. Louis
Super Bowl XXXVII: Joe Jurevicius, Tampa Bay*
Super Bowl XXXVIII: Shawn Mayer, New England*
Super Bowl XXXIX: Justin Kurpeikis, New England*; Eric McCoo, Philadelphia
Super Bowl XL: Jeff Hartings, Pittsburgh*; Bobby Engram, Joe Jurevicius, Seattle
Super Bowl XLI: John Gilmore, Robbie Gould, Chicago
Super Bowl XLII: Jay Alford, Kareem McKenzie, New York Giants*; Kyle Brady, New England
Super Bowl XLIII: Sean McHugh, Scott Paxson, Pittsburgh*; Levi Brown, Arizona
Super Bowl XLV: Andrew Quarless, Green Bay*; Jeremy Kapinos, Pittsburgh
Super Bowl XLVI: Jimmy Kennedy, Kareem McKenzie, New York Giants*; Rich Ohrnberger, New England
Super Bowl XLVII: NaVorro Bowman, San Francisco
Super Bowl XLVIII: Jordan Hill, Michael Robinson, Seattle*
Super Bowl XLIX: Garry Gilliam, Jordan Hill, Seattle
Super Bowl 50: Jordan Norwood, Denver*
Super Bowl LI: Chris Hogan, New England* (Hogan played lacrosse at Penn State)
Super Bowl LII: Stefen Wisniewski, Philadelphia*; Chris Hogan, New England
Super Bowl LIII: Chris Hogan, New England*; Garrett Sickels, Los Angeles
Super Bowl LIV: Stefen Wisniewski, Jordan Lucas, Kansas City*; Robbie Gould, Anthony Zettel, Kevin Givens, San Francisco
Super Bowl LV: Chris Godwin, Donovan Smith, A.Q. Shipley, Tampa Bay*; Stefen Wisniewski, Kansas City
Super Bowl LVI: Grant Haley, Nick Scott, Los Angeles*
Super Bowl LVII: Miles Sanders, Philadelphia
Super Bowl LVIII: Ji’Ayir Brown, Kevin Givens, San Francisco; Donovan Smith, Kansas City
Super Bowl LIX: Saquon Barkley, Jahan Dotson, Tariq Castro-Fields, Philadelphia; Hunter Nourzad, Kansas City
