18 Days Until Kansas Football: Video Game All-Stars - Bryce Torneden
In this story:
The return of the NCAA Football video game is scheduled for next summer, and that gives us the perfect opportunity to highlight some players that didn't get an opportunity to appear in the series during it's hiatus.
Thanks to a rating system that includes individualized ratings of college players that we discussed on the Rock Chalk Podcast, we are able to take correct that oversight. This rating combines their base talent level with their actual college production to come up with an overall look at their performance.
A reminder that our Video Game All-Stars series will look at recent Kansas players who played well at Kansas but never got an opportunity to be captured with a virtual version of themselves. We will look back at their careers, and include a projection of what their overall rating would have been had the games been around.
Today we jump to the back of the defense to again hit a position that has been a position of strength for the Jayhawks over the years. It's time to put the spotlight on hometown safety Bryce Torneden.
Other Player Spotlights in this series:
Daniel Wise
Mike Lee
Joe Dineen
Andrew Parchment
Pooka Williams
Hasan Defense
Dorance Armstrong
Recruiting Bio
A 5'10", 181-lb two-way star out of Lawrence Free State High School in Lawrence, KS, Torneden came to the Jayhawks with some high expectations. His final season of high school saw him account for 2,452 yards of total offense with 11 rushing touchdowns and 12 passing touchdowns. He also totaled 84 tackles and four interceptions at free safety, and earned first-team all-state honors.
Torneden was a huge signing for the Jayhawks, especially since it came right after another local recruit picked Oklahoma instead of the Jayhawks. His recruitment was led by defensive coordinator Clint Bowen, and while he was only rated as a two-star recruit, the coaching staff was excited to have him. He flipped his commitment from North Dakota State to join the Jayhawks.
Production at Kansas
| Season | Total Tackles | Solo Tackles | Sacks | Fumbles Forced/Recoverd | Passes Defended | Interceptions/TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0/0 |
2017 | 61 | 46 | 2 | 0/0 | 1 | 0/0 |
2018 | 88 | 61 | 2 | 0/0 | 0 | 1/1 |
2019 | 74 | 49 | 0.5 | 1/1 | 1 | 0/0 |
Torneden was another consistent performer for the Jayhawks during his time in Lawrence. His 2018 season was easily his best in the stat book, but I think a lot of that has to do with teams avoiding him more in 2019. His final season he was arguably more impactful.
He was known for his big hits as much as his passion for the city of Lawrence and the program. By the end of his career, he was a vocal leader both on and off the field.
Best Game
Torneden's two best games statistically came in the 2018 season, but it was a huge play in 2019 that almost gave the Jayhawks a chance to get another big upset in their recent history.
October 19, 2019: 50-48 Loss at #15 Texas
Stat line: 8 tackles, 5 solo tackles, 1 fumble recovery
The offense was the big story of this game, which is probably fair given just how high scoring this game was. But it was the safety combination of Mike Lee and Torneden that delivered the biggest defensive play to keep the Jayhawks in this game late.
With just under 7 minutes to go in the game, Lee poked the ball out after a reception and Torneden jumped on it to give Kansas the opportunity to drive down and tie the game. They ultimately lost, but this was a precursor to the craziness to come the next week against Texas Tech.
September 15, 2018: 55-14 Win over Rutgers
Stat line: 6 tackles, 3 solo tackles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 interception, 1 touchdown.
You could argue that this wasn't a super impressive stat line, until you realize that the majority of this came in the first half as Kansas absolutely demolished Rutgers early in this one.
The defense was so dominant in this one that the result was never in doubt. Torneden was a huge part of that.
After Kansas
Torneden entered the 2020 draft but was not selected, and was not able to latch on with a team. He was able to continue his career playing in The Spring League for the Sea Lions.
Torneden spent the 2022 season playing with the Pittsburgh Maulers in the USFL. He was the only player from the team selected for the All-USFL team this season.
Video Game Rating
Base Rating: 73
Production Bonus: 17
Total Rating: 90
Bryce Torneden was a highly rated 2-star player, so he had a lot of ground to make up compared to others on this list. But he was still able to accomplish a rating in the 90s due to his consistent production over multiple season.
While the ratings we have are not broken down into the individual attributes that you would typically see in a game like the Madden series, it is possible to guess which attributes would be the highest. I don't think there is much question that his awareness would be one of the highest stats, and his ability to close makes me think speed would also be very high.
A reminder that our video game ratings are provided by CFB Winning Edge, which is an independent outlet focused on college football analytics that has developed team, player and coach ratings based on a wide range of current and historical data.
Patreon supporters have access to their FBS Team Profiles, which includes ratings for over 11,000 individual players across all 131 FBS teams, as well as ratings for every head coach, offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator, and strength of schedule metrics. In addition to stats, recruiting data, injury reports, and player movement information, they also offer three sets of projected point spreads for every FBS game based on separate projection models, as well as projected win totals.
You can find more information about what they offer by going to their Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/CFBWinningEdge
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