Bill Belton

Bill Belton
Penn State Nittany Lions No. 1
Position Running back
Class Senior
Career history
College
Bowl games
High school Winslow Township High School
Personal information
Date of birth February 8, 1993
Place of birth Sicklerville, New Jersey
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight 202 lb (92 kg)
Stats at ESPN.com
Stats at CBSSports.com
Stats at Rivals.com

William Earl "Bill" Belton II (born February 2, 1993) is an American football running back who plays for the Penn State Nittany Lions. He is currently the starter at tailback after senior Silas Redd transferred to USC amidst sanctions from the NCAA in wake of the Penn State child sex abuse scandal. He was an all-state quarterback at Winslow Township High School where he played for Mike McBride.

Early years

Belton was born in 1993 in Sicklerville, New Jersey. He attended Winslow Township High School where he played quarterback and was named all state in New Jersey. He was the first player in New Jersey history to record two consecutive seasons of 2000 passing yards and 1000 rushing yards.[1]

Recruiting

Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight 40‡ Commit date
Bill Belton
ATH		 Sicklerville, New Jersey Winslow Township High School 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 191 lb (87 kg) 4.6 Jan 18, 2011 
Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 234
  • ‡ Refers to 40 yard dash
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

[2]

College career

2011

Belton was a significant component to the offense in his freshman season, working primarily out of the "Wildcat" formation.[3] He totaled 65 rushing yards on 13 carries in 8 games. His best game of the year came in the TicketCity Bowl where he carried the ball 6 times for 35 yards. He was one of only four true freshman to receive significant playing time.

2012

Coming into spring practice, Belton was expected to back up Silas Redd and provide an occasional change of pace. But when Redd transferred to USC in wake of sanctions against the Penn State program, Belton was named the starter.[4][5] In Penn State's first game against the Ohio Bobcats, Belton carried the ball 13 times for 55 yards.[6] Belton missed the next two games against Virginia and Navy respectively due to an ankle injury. He was expected to return against Temple on September 22, but once again sat out.[7] On Twitter, Belton suggested he would return for the game against Illinois saying "Time for Illinois. Guess who's backkkk".[8] Though Belton did return for the game against Illinois, he has since taken a back seat to running back Zach Zwinak. In the game against Northwestern, Belton recorded only 4 carries for 12 yards, while Zwinak totaled 28 carries for 121 yards and a touchdown.[9] Bill Belton played his best game of the season on October 20 against Iowa. He rushed 16 times for 103 yards and 3 touchdowns.[10] Belton was benched by coach Bill O'Brien against Purdue on November 3 after having a poor week of practice. Teammate Zach Zwinak played instead and posted a 21 rush for 134 yard stat line.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Bill Belton Profile - Penn State Official Athletic Site". Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  2. ↑ "Bill Belton - Yahoo! Sports". Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  3. ↑ Kern, Mike. "Bill Belton is Penn State's new starting runningback". Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  4. ↑ "PSU's Bill Belton knows his time is now". Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  5. ↑ "Bill Belton grows into starter, replacing transfer Redd". Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  6. ↑ "Ohio Bobcats vs. Penn State Nittany Lions Box Score". Retrieved 1 September 2012.
  7. ↑ Wogenrich, Mark. "Penn State defeats Navy 34-7 at Beaver Stadium". Morning Call. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
  8. ↑ Mink, Nate. "Bill Belton Drops Hint on Twitter that He'll Return at Illinois". Penn State Football Notebook. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  9. ↑ "Northwestern Wildcats vs. Penn State Nittany Lions". Recap - October 06, 2012 - ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  10. ↑ "Penn State vs. Iowa". CBSSports.com Game Tracker - Football. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  11. ↑ Giger, Cory. "Penn State-Purdue notebook". AltoonaMirror.com. The Altoona Mirror.