Blue White Illustrated

P E N N S T A T E F O O T B A L L >> THE ONE AND ONLY R U N N I N G B A C K S He's following in the footsteps of a beloved player, but Miles Sanders isn't interested in emulating anyone. He just wants to be Penn State's next great RB nside the Beaver Stadium media room fol- lowing Penn State's spring game, Miles Sanders attracted a hoard of reporters – the kind of group usually found gathered around one of the top performers of the after- noon or one of the team's eccentric personal- ities. Sanders did not fit either description. He touched the ball only three times, netting a mere 6 yards. And he's far from the most talk- ative player donning blue and white, his teammates say. Even so, Sanders held the answer to one of the most crucial questions facing the Nittany Lions this season: How will this team go about replacing one of the most talented players in college football? The simple answer is that Sanders doesn't plan to try. He isn't going to make an effort to step into Saquon Barkley's shoes. Instead, he will rely on his own distinct characteristics to fill the backfield position that opened up when the all-purpose standout opted to forgo his final season to enter the NFL. His approach is rooted in a piece of advice from Barkley himself. The thrust of that ad- vice? "Just be me, don't worry about what everybody else is saying," Sanders recalled. "Just be me. Play like how I play, and do what I've got to do to help this team win. "Every time I do an interview or something, people are saying, 'You want to be the next Saquon,' or 'You've got to be the next Saquon.' But at the end of the day, I'm not Saquon, so I'm just going to be me, play like how I play, and that's it." Rated as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com and tabbed the top all-purpose running back in his class, Sanders has the football pedigree to pair with the flashes of brilliance that the Nittany Lions hope will become a full-season phenomenon as they transi- tion toward 2018. Even with an elite player ahead of him eating up the majority of the tailback reps, Sanders managed to fight his way onto the field in his first two years of eligibility. To date, he has rushed 56 times in his career for 375 yards and three touchdowns. His aver- age of 6.7 yards per carry was surpassed by only 11 qualifying running backs in the Football Bowl Subdivision last season. Lineman Michal Menet said he thought Sanders handled his role well. "He just waited for his opportunity and did everything he could so that when it came, he would be able to shine," Menet said. "Every time he was in the game... he was playing well. I think it just goes to show how hard he's been working waiting for his opportunity." | MILES TO GO Sanders heads upfield against Michigan last season. The junior running back saw limited action in his first two seasons as Saquon Barkley's backup, but he averaged a team-best 6.7 yards per carry. Photo by Steve Manuel I

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