Blue White Illustrated

T H E M O N T H I N . . . Don't worry about Noah Cain starting games for Penn State. Just make sure he finishes them. The soft-spoken, piano-playing freshman from The Bayou is al- ready the Nittany Lions' No. 1 running back. When it counts. And those numbers are staggering: In the fourth quarter of Penn State's last two games — against Purdue and at Iowa — Cain has had 23 carries for 149 yards, for a 6.5-yards per carry average, with 7 first downs and 2 touchdowns. That's covering some lawn, boyz. MIKE POORMAN STATECOLLEGE.COM Franklin never likes to spend too long waxing poetic on a win with the media. Every win is the same, he likes to say. A win against Ohio State feels the same as a win against Idaho, he insists. But there's no denying how important [the win over Iowa] was to the Penn State program, one that last beat a ranked team on the road in 2013, with a 31-24 upset over Wisconsin. JOSH MOYER CENTREDAILY.COM Lamar Stevens could become one of the most heralded Nittany Lions ever if he becomes a Big Ten player of the year or a first or second-team All-American. That is all doable. He could be a double-double machine. He came back to de- liver an NCAA berth for Penn State and Pat Chambers and to leave a legacy. Now, if the guard play of Myles Dread and Jamari Wheeler can deliver on their hype then the Nittany Lions will have the pieces to be in the NCAA tournament and do something once invited. There are a lot of non-believers and those who question if this is all plausible. All of them are outside the Penn State locker room and immediate circle. There will be a great debate about the star power of this roster and its lasting effect — but only if Penn State can finish the season deep into March. ANDY KATZ NCAA.COM O P I N I O N S PSUtixman@gmail.com www.PSUtixman.com Get your PSU Football Tickets at go t ti cke t s? k c i t t t e k man@g .PSUtixm www. at ootba Get yo k c i t t o gm .PSUtixman.com all ur s t s e k A C A D E M I C S PSU sets school record in graduation survey Penn State student-athletes continue to graduate well above their peers na- tionwide, delivering a third consecutive record academic performance, accord- ing to data announced by the NCAA in October. The NCAA's annual graduation rates study of institutions across the nation revealed Penn State student-athletes at the University Park campus earned a Graduation Success Rate of 91 percent to break the school's record of 90 percent, which was previously set in the 2010, 2017 and 2018 NCAA reports. Nittany Lion students posted a 91 percent gradu- ation rate compared to the 88 percent average for all Division I institutions for students entering from 2009-10 through the 2012-13 academic year. Penn State student-athletes have de- livered a Graduation Success Rate in the 88-91 percent range during each of the past 13 NCAA reports, improving from 88 percent in the 2015 report to 89 per- cent in 2016 to 90 percent in 2017 and 2018 and a record-breaking 91 percent 8gure in 2019. Eighteen of the Nittany Lions' 27 teams (men's and women's track and 8eld/cross country teams combined) earned a Graduation Success Rate at or above the Division I national GSR aver- age for their respective sports. Nineteen Penn State squads had a GSR of 90 per- cent or higher. "We continually strive for comprehen- sive excellence at Penn State, and this record-breaking graduation rate shows our student-athletes continue to per- form at a high level in the classroom, in competition and in the community," ath- letic director Sandy Barbour said. "Our student-athletes, coaches, sta9 and ad- ministration have always put a high value on academic excellence, and this gradua- tion rate shows our commitment to Penn State's values and is an important piece of our Penn State story." ■

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