Mater Dei's Barkley national athlete of the year

BEVERLY HILLS - Once Matt Barkley's name was called, he sat there for a moment, looked around and blushed like he had just made his first catch.

Technically, the Mater Dei prodigy is a quarterback. But since last throwing a football during a game in the fall of 2007, Barkley has played the part of receiver, hauling in a half-dozen national and local awards.

The biggest grab came Wednesday when Barkley was selected as the Gatorade national male athlete of the year for the 2007-08 school year.

“I was totally not expecting this,” Barkley said. “It is a little bit (overwhelming). I thought I was the underdog, for sure. Looking at what these kids have accomplished, it's ridiculous - Olympic trials and national records.”

Barkley, who has committed to sign a national letter of intent with USC, passed for an Orange County-record 3,576 yards and 35 touchdowns. He led the Monarchs to a Trinity League co-championship, the Pac-5 Division quarterfinals and was the Register's Offensive Player of the Year.

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Matt Leinart, a former standout at Mater Dei and USC, presented Barkley with the award. When the two later sat down for a joint interview and were asked who the best quarterback was to play at Mater Dei, they pointed at one another.

“He's far better than I was in high school,” Leinart said. “He's more polished. He's more everything.”

Leinart then joked: “We'll see what he does in college.”

That will have to wait a year as Barkley became the first junior to win the award in its six-year history. In December, Barkley became the first junior to win the national football award, handed out since 1985.

A panel of sportswriters, commentators and coaches made the selection based on the athletes' 2007-08 résumé, academic achievement and character, impact on team success and breadth of accomplishment demonstrated to this point in their career.

Barkley's off-field ventures include tutoring underprivileged youth, founding a Christian fellowship for Mater Dei athletes, and leading Monarchs for Marines, which has raised $100,000 for families of wounded and fallen Marines. A few weeks ago, Barkley, who has a 3.77 GPA, spoke to a group of kids at the Newport Sports Museum about the importance of staying on top of school work.

“We've been given so much,” Barkley said of himself and his peers. “We're responsible for giving back. God gave me the ability to share what I can do with others.”

Barkley won the award over five other male finalists. Chanelle Price, a track and field runner at Easton Area High in Easton, Pa., was the female recipient.

Former winners include LeBron James (2003), Candace Parker (2004) and Kevin Love (2007).

Related: More Barkley stats, photos, stories

Contact the writer: amaya@ocregister.com