March 17, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Football returns to Happy Valley on Friday afternoon when the Nittany Lions take the field for their first of 15 spring practices.
With the Blue-White Game 32 days away (April 18 at 4 p.m.), head coach James Franklin previewed the start of spring drills on Tuesday afternoon in Beaver Stadium.
Following a strong winter conditioning period, the Nittany Lions are primed to take another significant step forward during spring practice.
"It's amazing to think just year two in general how much different it is in every aspect," said Franklin. "From last year where they haven't even done that yet to now, going out on the field and having a foundation laid on offense, defense and special teams, expectations, how we do things, morning workouts, Coach (Dwight) Galt's program. We got the majority of our team now that have been through these things. That experience counts and is important."
Franklin detailed a number of areas during Tuesday's press conference. Take a look below at a few highlights as the Nittany Lions kick off spring practice.
Legitimate Two-Deep
What a difference a year makes for Penn State's depth heading into spring drills. The Nittany Lions will enter the first practice of 2015 with a two-deep of scholarship players at virtually every position. The benefits of added depth are plentiful, but added depth means added competition for every spot across each position. Added competition circles back to core value No. 1 for the program - Compete in everything. Franklin wants to see the team live by that motto each time it steps on the field.
"We just had much more depth across the board," said Franklin. "That's in general. Offense, defense and special teams. We have pretty much a legitimate two deep at every position, which we did not have last year."
Depth Up Front
No spot will reap the benefits of increased depth more than the offensive line. The Nittany Lions could not fill a legitimate depth chart at all five offensive line positions at this time last year. This spring, Penn State enters spring ball with a two deep at each position up front.
"The fact that we're going to have two deep of scholarship players is exciting," Franklin said. "We had a bunch of guys that have had some experience. Last year I think at this point we had two returning starters in the beginning of spring ball... We have five or six guys now that started a game."
Increased depth will play a paramount role in quarterback Christian Hackenberg's growth this spring, but the impact a deep offensive line can have on a team stretches far beyond one position. As Franklin noted on Tuesday, a strong group up front helps the other units on offense, in addition to the defensive line.
"It stunts everybody's development when you're struggling up front, let alone with a second team and first team as well," Franklin said. "We're real pleased. Those guys have been awesome. I could go on and on about a number of these guys, the improvement they've made, how dramatic it has been, almost to a man, to every single guy there that has really made some really good strides in so many different areas."
One starting spot the Nittany Lions will be looking to replace when the season begins is at left tackle. Donovan Smith will be playing football on Sundays come the fall, which leaves a void at a critical spot on the offensive line. Franklin noted junior Albert Hall, freshman Sterling Jenkins, junior Paris Palmer and redshirt freshman Chance Sorrell as candidates to replace Smith. Additionally starting right tackle Andrew Nelson could move to the left side if it is necessary.
Position Changes
Senior Jordan Lucas headlines a list of position changes for Penn State this spring. Lucas will move from corner to safety. Additionally, redshirt freshman Amani Oruwariye will move from corner to safety. With the team's depth at corner, Franklin and the coaching staff feel like Lucas has the chance to be special at the safety position with his skillset and number of experienced players at corner.
In addition to the two moves at safety, Franklin noted that running backs Adam Geiger and Jack Haffner are moving to the defensive side of the ball (Geiger at safety and Haffner at linebacker). Geiger and Haffner are two team-first student-athletes with a desire to be special teams aces in 2015. Moving to the defensive side of the ball grants the duo opportunities to tackle every day at practice, while staying at the running back position would not.
Strength at Special Teams
Building on season one, Franklin is expecting big things from the special teams units in 2015. The team's overall depth increase will pay big dividends for the special teams units (kicking, punting and kickoff).
"Really excited about special teams and what we're going to be able to do there," Franklin said. "I think it can become a strength for us."
Despite the added depth across the board, Penn State will enter spring practice without a player at a specialist position on scholarship. However, that does not mean there is a lack of talent or competition for starting spots. Sophomore Daniel Pasquariello and redshirt freshman Robby Liebel will compete for the punting spot this spring.
Joey Julius and Chris Gulla (who moves from punter) headline the list of candidates working towards handling the kicking duties. Both spots will be an open competition this spring.
"One of the things we're talking about doing with the spring game is opening the spring game with a kicking competition before the spring game gets started just so I can make sure that these guys have got enough kicks in front of a crowd," Franklin said.
"We're thinking about doing the same thing at halftime with the punters. Do a competition with those guys, because you just don't know through the spring game if you're going to get enough live reps and see how they're going to react in that environment."
Development at Quarterback
No one is happier to see Penn State's growth and development at each position on the offense than junior quarterback Christian Hackenberg. Following a record-breaking effort in the Pinstripe Bowl, the veteran signal caller is eager to take another step forward.
"I want Christian to be able to work on his development and his role in this offense, fundamentals, technique, understanding of the schemes, being demonstrative with other offensive players about how specifically he wants a route run, what we're doing in protection and why, checking out a runs into passes or passes into runs," said Franklin. "Not just during spring, but during spring and then being able to do that all offseason."
Press Conference Quote Book
- Expectations for the Defense
"Defensively, much more competitive depth across the board. Excited about that. Our focus this spring is going to be about techniques, not tactics. Really try to get to our fundamentals, things like that. It's our goal to identify playmakers and put them in position to be successful...Although you guys know we have base philosophies, we want to find our playmakers and put them in position to be successful, then develop our schemes around that. Our challenge is replacing Mike Hull. I think that's clearly our challenge on defense, not just because of the football player Mike Hull was, but also his leadership and also the position he played, being the quarterback of the defense, making all those calls."
- Expectations for the Offense
"Offensively, improve on our fundamentals and techniques. Same thing. Back to the basics. Gain a better understanding of concepts, not just the plays themselves, understanding the big picture. Cultivate depth. Competition with redshirt players I think is really going to help us. Our challenge, continue to develop the offensive line. You have heard me say this before. You really should not play defensive tackle or offensive line until your redshirt sophomore year. We have way too many redshirt freshmen in our two deep still, but I think we have a chance for great improvement."
- Expectations for Special Teams
"All our specialists are a year older. If you look from 2013 to 2014, we actually improved in punt return average, kickoff return average, touchbacks on kickoffs, kickoff, touchdowns allowed and punting average. Although we have to get better in that area, there were some improvements made. We played nine true freshmen and we had 12 true freshmen and first-year players combined play on special teams."