Biography

BIOGRAPHY

Derrick Barnes was born May 29, 1999, in Covington, Kentucky. He is a linebacker in the NFL.

He attended Holy Cross High School, where he played basketball and ran track in addition to playing linebacker and running back on the football team. As a senior, he was named first-team All-State and the Class 2-A, District Six Player of the Year after leading the team with 126 tackles on defense and rushing for 1,567 yards and 22 touchdowns on 150 carries on offense. Barnes originally committed to play college football at Toledo going into his senior year but changed his commitment to Purdue after receiving an offer from new head coach Jeff Brohm.

Barnes played in 12 games with two starts during his freshman season. He became a starter as a sophomore and finished the season with 92 tackles with 8 tackles for loss and 3 sacks. After the regular season, he was moved to the defensive end position going into 2018 Music City Bowl. He stayed as a pass rusher during his junior season and finished the year tied for the second-most sacks on the team with 7.5 along with 11.0 tackles for loss. As a senior, Barnes returned to the middle linebacker position and led the Boilermakers with 54 total tackles and was second on the team in tackles for loss with 5.5, and was named second-team All-Big Ten.

Barnes was drafted in the fourth round, 113th overall, by the Detroit Lions in the 2021 NFL Draft.