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P E N N S T A T E F O O T B A L L >> T H E 2 0 1 8 S E A S O N to finish off the Mountaineers. A few more ball-hawking plays like that would be welcome. Through six games, the Lions were tied for eighth in the Big Ten with six interceptions, and only four of those picks had come from defensive backs..................................GRADE C+ SPECIAL TEAMS THE GOOD Hamler and Thompkins have given the Nittany Lions a couple of scary-good options in the return game. Hamler's 52-yard kickoff return against Appalachian State got Penn State's comeback off to a rousing start, and Thompkins scored against Pitt on a 39- yard punt return. Both are among the Big Ten leaders in their respective spe- cialties. Blake Gillikin has been his usual dependable self, averaging 42.8 yards per punt, and Rafael Checa had 24 touchbacks on his first 44 kickoffs. THE BAD There have been some iso- lated breakdowns here and there. App State scored on a kickoff return and also caught the Lions off-guard on an onside kick. Kent State pulled off the onside kick gambit, too, and Michigan State turned a fake punt into a drive-sustain- ing first down. But the big concern here is that true freshman place kicker Jake Pinegar has hit only 4 of 8 field goal attempts. Through six games, he was the only one of the Big Ten's top 10 kick-scorers who wasn't above 50 percent. FRANKLIN SAYS "I would say our special teams have been inconsistent. I think our return game is more ex- plosive right now than it had been. We have some guys who scare defensive coordinators, scare special teams coordinators and get everybody in the stadium sitting on the edge of their seat. That's what you want. I've been talking about that for a while. Last year, we used Saquon [Barkley] for that very reason in some of those roles. But I think we're in a good place right now. We've got multiple guys who can make plays with the ball in their hands. … I think our freshman kickers have been doing a really good job. Our kickoffs, when he hits it right, have been deep and put us in a really positive position to cover the kicks and limit opportunities. I still think we can be a little bit more consis- tent there, but considering that we've got two true freshmen kicking for us, I think both of them have done a really good job." SUMMARY The Lions have been so good in the red zone this season that they haven't had to rely much on Pinegar to salvage drives. But as the schedule gets tougher, it's likely that they'll need him to hit some pressure kicks. He went 2 for 3 against Ohio State, with his miss coming from 46 yards. His continuing development will go a long way toward determining the special teams' final grade. Until then..................GRADE C+ GOING THE OTHER WAY Taylor takes back an interception against Ohio State. It was the Nittany Lions' fifth pick of the season, and the third of the year by a de- fensive back. Amani Oruwariye had the other two. Photo by Steve Manuel

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