Marshawn Lynch attended Oakland Tech in Oakland, California where he was a running back on the football team. As a junior, Marshawn rushed for 1,320 yards and scored 20 total touchdowns on his way to all-league honors. As a senior he rushed for 1,722 yards and 33 total touchdowns. He received all-league honors for the third consecutive season. Marshawn was considered to be one of the top 10 running back prospects in the nation and he accepted a scholarship to the University of California where he became an instant contributer. He carried the ball 71 times for 628 yards and 8 touchdowns as a true freshman. He added 19 receptions for 147 yards and two more scores. Marshawn also averaged over 24 yards per kickoff return as a freshman. He was named to various all-freshman teams at the conclusion of the season. As a sophomore, Marshawn became Cal's featured back, carrying the ball 196 time sfor 1,246 yards and 10 touchdowns. He caught 15 passes for 125 yards and averaged 20.8 yards per kick return on 12 attempts. Marshawn was named honorable mention all-Pac Ten following his sophomore season. As a junior, Marshawn set career highs in attempts (223), rushing yards (1,356), rushing touchdowns (11), receptions (34), receiving yards (328), and receiving touchdowns (4). He was named first team all-Pac Ten and Pac Ten offensive player of the year. Marshawn Lynch still has a year of eligibility left but he has opted to leave school early and enter the 2007 NFL draft.

Marshawn Lynch has been the starting running back at California for the past two seasons. During that time he has proven to be a fairly durable player with no major injury issues. He has a good combination of size, strength, and speed for a running back. He quickly squares his shoulders with the line of scrimmage and rarely loses yardage. He hits the hole hard, runs low to the ground, and displays excellent vision. Lynch is a powerful between the tackles runner with the strength to run through arm tackles. He also has enough speed to get to the outside and turn the corner. He can be an elusive runner in the open field who will typically make the first defender miss. He can be a very difficult player to bring down with one defender. He breaks a lot of tackles and does a good job of finishing runs, always falling foward to gain additional yardage. He wasn't used much in the passing game until his junior season, but he has proven to be a reliable receiver with solid hands. Marshawn isn't the biggest or fastest running back out there, but he has a good combination of both. He is a powerful inside runner who can also turn the corner on the outside. Though he doesn't have elite speed, he is fast enough to run away from defenders when he breaks free in the open field. Marshawn could improve his route running and his pass protection to become a more complete back at the next level. He carried the ball just under 400 times in college so he hasn't had a lot of wear and tear on his body. Marshawn Lynch is as close to a complete back as you will find this year. He is a franchise running back who should be selected in the top half of the first round in the 2007 NFL draft.