[edit] Early years Lynch attended Oakland Technical High School. In his 2004 season, Lynch was voted a PrepStar and SuperPrep All-American and was also voted as the San Francisco East Bay Player of the Year in which he amassed 1,722 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns in only 8 regular season games, and an additional 375 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns in 2 post-season games. In addition to being a star football player, Lynch was also an excellent track sprinter and played on Oakland Tech's basketball team beside former Cal star and current Boston Celtics forward Leon Powe. Marshawn also played defensive back in high school, accumulating 20 interceptions his senior year. His coaches put him at defensive end for one game, and he had 3 forced fumbles. Rivals.com had him ranked #1 in the nation as a Defensive Back, but he decided to stick to his passion at running back. Lynch also played some quarterback and wide receiver in high school.[4] Lynch ended his high school career as the 2004 No. 2 running back in the nation behind Adrian Peterson by Rivals.com. [edit] College career Lynch attended University of California, Berkeley playing for the Golden Bears where his major was social welfare. As a true freshman in 2004, Lynch was the primary backup to senior J.J. Arrington. Lynch carried the ball 71 times for 628 yards with 8 rushing touchdowns and an additional 147 yards on 19 receptions and 2 receiving touchdowns. In 2005, Arrington graduated and Lynch became the starting running back. Even though he missed 2 games due to a hand and finger injury, he still amassed 1,246 rushing yards with 10 touchdowns on 196 carries and an additional 125 yards on 15 receptions. In the 2005 Las Vegas Bowl, Lynch ran for 194 yards and 3 touchdowns on 24 carries and was named MVP. In addition to his great running ability, he also has a tight grip on the ball, fumbling just once in his career. Lynch wore jersey No. 24 his freshman year but switched to No. 10, his high school number. This switch placed him in sequence with his cousins Virdell Larkins (No. 9) and Robert Jordan (No. 11), also teammates at Cal.[5] In the 2006 preseason, Lynch earned a spot on the watchlist for the Maxwell Award, was named 8th best player in the nation by Sports Illustrated and earned several preseason All-American accolades. On July 22, 2006, the Cal football program officially launched the campaign for Lynch to win the 2006 Heisman Trophy with the opening of the website Marshawn10.com featuring Lynch's highlights from the 2004, 2005, and 2006 seasons. [6]. Lynch was named to the 2006 All Pac-10 team First Team[7]. Lynch not only earned various awards, he also scored the game-winning overtime touchdown against Washington, which he said was his favorite career highlight. After which Lynch spontenously drove around the football field in an injury cart, pretending to ghost ride (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqMsT_2teus&mode=related&search=). Lynch was also named the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year in 2006 and an AFCA (Coaches') All-America in 2006 In his final game for California, Lynch ran for 111 yards and 2 touchdowns against Texas A&M in the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl on December 28, 2006. He shared the Co-Offensive Player of the Game award with teammate, quarterback Nate Longshore. On January 2, 2007, Lynch announced he would forgo his senior season and entered the NFL draft.[8]