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S P R I N G P R A C T I C E R E P O R T able to hold onto a beautifully thrown deep ball in the Citrus Bowl. The spring game will likely give us our first look at Levis, Johnson and Rober- son. All three have been in the program for less than a year, but Franklin said he's pleased with how the quarterback posi- tion is shaping up. "I've got a lot of con- fidence in the guys that we have in our quarterback room," he said. "I really do." 2 Who are those quarterbacks going to be throwing to in 2019? This is the other big question on of- fense. The receiver corps was a disap- pointment in 2018, as a series of dropped passes served as the most ob- vious manifestation of the unit's sea- son-long backslide. Between them, Thompkins, Johnson and Polk had 21 drops last year, 55 percent of the team's 38-drop total. Johnson showed as a red- shirt sophomore, and again with his spectacular one-handed sideline catch against Ohio State, that he can be a prime time performer, but Thompkins and Polk never really transcended their roles as complementary threats. The closest thing Penn State had to a go-to wideout last year was Hamler, as the coaches were able to put his breathtak- ing speed to good use throughout the season. Even so, his 42 catches consti- tuted the lowest team-leading total at Penn State since 2011, when Derek Moye finished with 40. Given the unit's struggles, maybe it's for the best that Penn State is making what amounts to a clean break at this position group. Johnson and Polk are transferring, Thompkins has graduated, and position coach David Corley has ex- ited, too, having been dismissed after only one season on the staff. Still, those losses leave PSU with a lot of holes to fill starting this spring, as Johnson, Thompkins and Polk combined to make 20 starts last season. Of the re- turning wideouts, only two – Hamler and Dotson – have caught more than 10 passes in a season. All six of the scholar- ship receivers who are working out this spring have either freshman or sopho- more eligibility in 2019. It all sounds a bit worrisome, and maybe those worries will prove well- founded when the season begins. But maybe they won't. One of Franklin's fa- vorite coaching mantras, a mantra he re- peated in February, is this: "The further away from the ball you are, the easier it is to get on the field earlier." What that means for the Lions is that former four- and five-star recruits like Dotson, Justin Shorter and Daniel George will have ample opportunity to prove themselves this spring. Dotson has gotten a head start, having taken over for the strug- gling Polk late last season and finishing Penn State Athletics and its student- athletes again took an active role with the 47th IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon at the Bryce Jordan Center in February, helping raise more than $10.6 million for the =ght against pediatric cancer. Four student-athletes represented Penn State's Student-Athlete Advisory Board (SAAB), and a =>h represented another organization. They were among the hundreds of Nittany Lion students who volunteered or participated in THON activities. SAAB raised a record $70,396.25 for THON, which ranked No. 4 among THON's 400- plus General Organiza- tions. A total of $10,621,683.76 was raised by more than 700 THON dancers, who did not sit for 46 hours, and 16,500 student volunteers. SAAB's previous record-high THON total was in 2010, when the students raised $64,116.17. Since 2000, SAAB has raised just over $800,000 for THON, the Four Diamonds Fund and pediatric can- cer patients. The four SAAB dancers were Francisco Bisono of the wrestling team, Abby Myers and Jenny Rizzo of the =eld hockey team and Sara=na Valenti of the women's soccer team. Tess Kearns from women's cross country/track and =eld also danced in THON. Kearns was a SAAB THON Committee chair the past three years. Along with the dancers and several committee members, numerous stu- dent-athletes attended THON and par- ticipated in Student-Athlete Hour and a THON favorite, the Pep Rally. A total of 18 teams danced in the Pep Rally, with the men's gymnastics team chosen the winner of the dance competition for the third consecutive year. Several Penn State teams also hosted families as part of the THON Explorers Program. Since 1977, THON has partnered with the Four Diamonds Fund at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital to help de- feat childhood cancer. More than $157 million has been raised since the event's inception, with at least 95 percent of its annual fundraising total going directly to Four Diamonds. ■ Nittany Lion athletes help make THON a success MAKE SOME NOISE James Franklin greets Owen Bonn, 5, during a tour of the Lasch Building, part of the THON Ex- plorers Pro- gram. Photo by Juan Duran

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