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N O V E M B E R   1 4 ,   2 0 1 8 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 15 With two games remaining in the regular season, punter Blake Gillikin is hopeful that Penn State wins out and finds itself in a sunny bowl destination next month. "I haven't played near home my whole college career," said the native of Smyrna, Ga., an Atlanta suburb. "That would be pretty cool. At the end of the day, we just have to focus on winning these last two games for that to even to be possible, so that's what we're focused on at this point." It's not as though he needs more incen- tive, but the potential to experience a bit of nice weather in the middle of a cold North- eastern winter is highly motivating. For someone from the South, the thought of punting on a football field far from central Pennsylvania has its appeal right now. But this isn't just something that November brought in. Starting with the downpour at Pitt in week two, Penn State has played in some lousy weather this year. In October, it started to cool down for the Michigan State game. Then came a trip to Indiana during which the wind gusts reached 21 miles per hour, followed by a cold, wet, gloomy home game against Iowa. The winds in the Big House weren't friendly either, although not nearly as menacing as the Michigan defense. Then this past Sat- urday, there was snow on the ground in Beaver Stadium before the game against Wisconsin. The temperatures never got far above freezing during the afternoon, and the blustery winds didn't help mat- ters. Those unfavorable field conditions have contributed to a decline in Gillikin's num- bers this season, his third as the team's starting punter. "Compared to my first two seasons, [the stats are] probably not like I expected, to be honest with you," he said. "This year, I think, has been the toughest… that I've had to deal with in my first three years, just from a wind perspective and rain. I think at times I've done a great job putting our team in position to be successful, but other times I've come up short, so I'm just trying to look at the things I've done well, and things I've done not so well this year and trying to improve every day and hopefully grow on it the last three games of the sea- son." Gillikin is holds out hope for a warm bowl destination, but there are two more cold- weather games that will help determine where Penn State ends up in the postsea- son, and Gillikin is doing what he can to prepare for the elements. While his team- mates might be practicing more oBen in- side Holuba Hall this time of year, Gillikin is making sure to get outdoor reps during the week. "Even when it gets colder, I try to go out and work outside more," he said, "because you don't really get that many opportuni- ties to work with the weather." Gillikin averaged 42.8 yards per punt as a freshman and 43.2 yards last year, but his numbers have dipped slightly this sea- son. Through 10 games, he's averaging 42.7 yards per attempt, but he's been very effective the past two games despite hav- ing to deal with some wind and rain. His average in November is 44.0 yards on 11 punts. Compared to last season, however, he is not placing the ball inside the 10 at the same rate. He's done it eight times this year, compared to 18 times last season. That's not completely attributable to the weather. It also takes into account a mod- erate change in philosophy or strategy. Under first-year special teams coordinator Phil Galiano, who took over for Charles Huff this past off-season, there's been a greater emphasis on the direction of the punt. "It's good to have a multitude of different kicks in your bag, almost like golf," Gillikin said. "We're trying to do a lot more this year with locating the ball and stuff like that [than what] I had done with Coach Huff. I think that can really help our team out. I think it's probably a little bit of an adjustment for me this year, so I think that's something I need to work on in the off-season – being able to locate the ball better." This year, as Gillikin suggested, the re- sults haven't matched his preseason ex- pectations. "The biggest thing is consistency," he said. "I think especially my sophomore year I was more consistent than I'd been my freshman year, and I've kind of taken a step back in that area. I think probably some of that [is attributable] to the weather, trying to do different things to combat the different conditions. I think what I need to get back to is focusing on having fun with the process and not thinking too much about changing tech- nique, or what have you, that may be af- fected by weather, so I think it's just being able to focus on my process. Not trying to do too much is key for me moving for- ward." That effort to move forward will include a senior season with the Nittany Lions. There had been some preseason specula- tion that a standout junior year might tempt Gillikin to opt for a professional football career once he became draB-eligi- ble. But he said earlier this week that he plans to be back in 2019. "A lot of people will think about that dur- ing their careers," he said. "For me, it's never really been a decision. When I com- mitted here, I committed to play for this team for four years, and that's not really going to change at this point. I'm just fo- cused on helping this team win the rest of the season and beyond that, next year as well." T I M   O W E N | O W E N . T I M . B W I @ G M A I L . C O M As stormy season nears end, Gillikin seeks consistency BLAKE GILLIKIN Steve Manuel

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