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S P R I N G P R A C T I C E R E P O R T already on campus. With very few proven players around them, there's no reason not to give them a serious look this spring. And if one or more of them impress, there's no reason to think they won't be major contributors in the fall. Of course, the receiver corps is only one component of the passing game. One point that Franklin has consistently emphasized is that the Lions didn't sim- ply struggle to find receiving threats to complement Hamler and tight end Pat Freiermuth the past two seasons. They also had more difficulty protecting their passers and getting the ball downfield than they did in 2016 and '17. Conse- quently, the fix will require more than just a strong showing this spring from the aspiring starters at wideout. "We've got to be more consistent," Franklin said. "That's in throwing the ball, in accuracy. We've got to be able to make the defense defend the entire field. If you look back with Trace [McSorley], we did a great job of attacking that wide-field comeback a lot, taking that access. Most defenses are going to give you a soft corner to the field and try to take the shorter throws away. I thought we did a good job over the last number of years of attacking with our slots. "I think we've done a good job with our tight ends, but we've got to do a bet- ter job getting the ball to our outside re- ceivers, and that is accuracy, that is aggressiveness, that is consistently catching the ball, that is consistently creating separation. It's not one thing, it's a little bit of all of it. But we need more production, there's no doubt about it. … At the end of the day, we have to throw and catch for a higher percentage. I think that's the biggest thing that we can do, and that production will create more explosive plays just based on op- portunities." 3 The defensive sta+ is di+er- ent, too. How is John Scott Jr. fitting in as DL coach? The Nittany Lions certainly didn't want to lose Sean Spencer, who had been with Franklin since their tenure at Van- derbilt and had established himself as one of the country's top defensive line coaches. But it was unrealistic to think that the Lions would be able to hold onto him forever given his success at devel- oping NFL-caliber D-linemen. Of the 21 players who have been drafted at Penn State since 2015, four have been Spencer's pupils, and two more – Yetur Gross-Matos and Robert Windsor – are likely to hear their names called this year. Eventually, some folks in the NFL decided that if Spencer could develop future pros, he could probably develop current pros, too. He was hired in late January by the New York Giants, setting in motion yet another coaching search at Penn State. That search ended on Feb. 8 with the hiring of Scott, formerly of South Car- olina. This will be Scott's first time coaching in the Big Ten, but he does have a Penn State connection, having worked with defensive coordinator Brent Pry at Georgia Southern, Western Carolina and Louisiana-Lafayette earlier in his career. When he was hired, Scott hailed those ties as an asset that will help him adapt quickly to Penn State. "I can't wait to work with Coach Pry and the defensive staff," he said. "I have known Coach Pry for more than 20 years as a player, grad- uate assistant and position coach, and he has definitely had an impact on my career. I can't wait to get rolling with the defensive line and continue to build on the tradition they have established." Scott has an extensive resume that in- cludes some high-profile college jobs (Texas Tech, Arkansas, South Carolina) along with a two-year stop in the NFL with the New York Jets. He grew up in Greer, S.C., and spent most of his career coaching in the South. Prior to his hiring by Penn State, his only job north of the Mason-Dixon Line was his stint with the Jets. In addition to his contributions as a position coach, it will be interesting to see how he figures into the Nittany Lions' recruiting efforts. They've pulled some great players out of the Carolinas over the decades, from Bobby Engram to Courtney Brown, but have only landed two Carolinians since Franklin took over: receiver DeAndre Thompkins and linebacker Brelin Faison-Walden. It would certainly be helpful to have a strong presence in that part of the coun- try going forward. As to the more immediate question of how Penn State's defensive line will come together in 2020, there's a lot of reason for optimism. Despite having to replace Gross-Matos and Windsor, Scott is inheriting a solid group of returnees. Shaka Toney and Antonio Shelton are back at defensive end and tackle, re- spectively, and the candidates for the two vacancies all look promising. One particularly noteworthy player is defen- sive end Jayson Oweh. While attending the NFL Combine in February, Gross- Matos raved about the redshirt sopho- more's potential. "I think I'm pretty fast," Gross-Matos told NFL.com. "I ran against him and I got smoked." 4 Which of the freshmen ap- pear ready to make an im- pact this spring? As noted previously, the receiver corps is the place where preparation and op- portunity are most likely to intersect. Neither Jones nor Dunmore saw action last season, even though they could have played in up to four games without sac- rificing a year of eligibility. Franklin in- dicated last November that the two were itching to play and were disappointed to sit out, describing them as "very com- petitive, very confident." "Those are tough conversations, guys who obviously expect to play and we end up redshirting them," Franklin said. "I think early on, those things are tough, but then they kind of figure it out and get it and understand. The scrimmages on Sundays have been really good. Going against our No. 1 defense every single day in practice, I think, has been really good for them. They're starting to fill out physically. Their bodies are chang- ing. And then the adjustment to school. Those guys are doing good. I've been re-

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