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never made it past the practice squads of the Broncos, Washington, Carolina and Indianapolis. Barres was not at Penn State when the next three Canadians joined the team. Tight end Francis Claude, a 6-4, 220- pounder from Laval, Quebec, was re- cruited in 2005. He attended and played for Champlain College Prep in Lennoxville. Claude was on the Penn State roster for three years but was hampered by injuries and may not have played in a game. He returned home in 2008. Urschel arrived in 2009, as did fellow offensive lineman Alex Mateas of Ottawa. The 6-3, 310-pound Mateas was on the scout team as a freshman and was expected to be a re- serve right guard in 2010 but was not listed on the fall roster. Mateas also was reportedly set back by injuries but went on to play for the University of Connecticut (2012-14) and has played for the CFL's Ot- tawa Redblacks since 2015. 'I already gave my word' Urschel could have gone to Princeton or Cornell, and after he committed to Penn State in 2009, Stanford's then-coach, Jim Harbaugh, tried to convince him to de- commit. Urschel described his recruit- ment in his recent autobiography, "Mind and Matter: A Life in Math and Football," co-written by his wife, journalist Louisa Thomas. Urschel had wanted to play football since age 5, when he saw a photo of his fa- ther playing for the University of Alberta. The family had moved from Winnipeg, where Urschel was born, to Buffalo. But his parents divorced when he was 3 and he was raised by his mother, who stressed academics over sports. He went to the all- boys Jesuit Canisius High on an academic scholarship. By the time he was ready for college, he was one of the best scholastic linemen in western New York and an ex- ceptional student who was planning to study aeronautical engineering. Princeton was one of several schools that were seriously recruiting him to play football, but for a while, Penn State was the only major college that was in pursuit. Urschel's mother, Venita, pushed him to- ward Princeton, but Urschel "didn't feel [it was] a place where it would be fun to play football, and that was what I really cared about." He made his official visit to Penn State in January 2009 and told Pa- terno he was committing to the Lions. "Later that week I was in the car with my mom when the phone rang," he wrote in his autobiography. "It was Jim Har- baugh… saying they'd let the ball drop and wanted to offer me a scholarship. Stanford, I mouthed to my mom. She started shaking her head vigorously and mouthing, Yes! Yes! "I had to tell Harbaugh that I had al- ready committed to Penn State. Har- baugh asked how he could change my mind. I already gave my word, I said. I thanked him and got off the phone." And that is why, five years later, Urschel left Penn State with bachelor's and mas- ter's degrees in mathematics, a perfect 4.0 GPA, first-team All-Big Ten and third-team All-America honors, and the National Football Foundation's 2013 Campbell Trophy, which goes to college football's top scholar-athlete. Penn State's sixth Canadian was run- ning back Akeel Lynch, who was a fresh- man when Urschel was a redshirt junior in 2012. Lynch was born and raised in Toronto but crossed the border to play at F E A T U R E S Canadians shine in U.S. college game Bronko Nagurski, an inaugural inductee in both the college and pro football halls of fame (in 1951 and '63, respectively), is the most famous Canadian na- tive to play college football in the United States. Nagurski was born and raised near the small Canadian border town of Rainy River and was a ferocious tackle and fullback for the University of Minnesota from 1927-29, a consensus All- American in his senior year. The precise number of Canadians with playing experience in the U.S. is not known and would be almost impossible to research. Canadian journalist Justin Dunk, cited as the pre-eminent Canadian Football League insider, lists 60 Canadians who have played in the U.S. since 1966, the start of the Super Bowl era. Three Penn Staters are on his list but, curiously, Pete Giftopoulos is not among them, so there are some omissions. Two of the best-known Canadian players had mostly successful NFL careers, with quarterback Mark Rypien leading Washington to a Super Bowl victory in 1991. Then there's Roy Gerela. Gerela was the kicker for Pittsburgh's Super Bowl champions of 1974, '75 and '78. He was so popular with the fans that they formed a group they named Gerela's Gorillas to cheer for him during games. Two others, Jesse Palmer and Nate Burleson, are now network sports com- mentators. Below are some of the more well-known Canadian players who gained fame playing American college football. –L.P. NAME COLLEGE POS YEARS HOME Jesse Palmer Florida QB 1997-2000 Ottawa Tony Mandarich Michigan State OL 1985-88 Oakville, Ont. Mark Rypien Washington State QB 1981-85 Calgary Tim Biakabutuka Michigan RB 1993-95 Montreal Rueben Mayes Washington State RB 1982-85 North Battleford, Sask. Roy Gerela New Mexico State K 1966-68 Sarrail, Alta. Nate Burleson Nevada WR 2000-02 Calgary

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