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them," Galt said. "I think physically, they do fit that true running back/quar- terback model that we really try to pro- duce from that position. They're very well-prepared. So right now, I'm not going to back off. I'm going to do differ- ent stuff. "Their program, they're two or threes now, but they're going to go to another level. I'm not going to say tier four, but they're going to go to another level be- cause I want to save their shoulders. I mean, they're already so strong. They're very explosive. They keep their leg strength and really focus on speed and movement." RUNNING BACK Journey Brown's ascent continues. He had a 295-pound bench press when he arrived in the summer of 2017, but he hit 395 pounds this winter, second only to Saquon Barkley's posi- tion-best 455-pound bench. Brown also improved his squat to more than 500 pounds this winter. "He's just been punching the clock every week, every month for his almost three years here," Galt said. "He was not a great squatter before. He didn't have the flexibility or the strength in his legs. So I think that just his patience, his con- sistency, coming in every day and work- ing hard, is really starting to pay dividends for him." Brown was said to weigh 211 pounds heading into spring practice. Although Galt didn't get into specifics for the rest of Penn State's running backs, he did have good things to say about the room as a whole, noting the continued progression of Noah Cain, Devyn Ford and early enrollee Caziah Holmes. "That's a great room," Galt said. "Not only are they all hard workers, they're all very gifted. And they all kind of take that same approach, and that's a little bit of a gift from Saquon. That was the culture that he tried to provide that room, and then Miles [Sanders] did a really, really nice job doing it in his one year where he was the guy and now Journey has kind of picked up that mantle." OFFENSIVE LINE Asked to pick a tier- three player who had made great strides over the course of his career at Penn State, Galt cited offensive tackle Will Fries. Knocking out three sets at 405 Five former Penn Staters participated in this year's NFL Scouting Combine, which took place Feb. 24-March 1 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Here's a look at how they fared: CAM BROWN As a senior, Brown fin- ished with 72 tackles, 5.5 tackles for a loss and two sacks to go along with four pass breakups, four quarterback hurries, a pair of fumble recoveries and a forced fumble. The veteran outside linebacker earned a third-team All-Big Ten nod from conference coaches and honorable mention honors from the media. Going into the combine, Brown had said he was eager to show scouts that he could move better than his rangy, 6- foot-5, 233-pound build might suggest. He turned in a 4.72-second 40-yard dash and a 35.5-inch vertical jump. Ac- cording to NFL.com's scouting report, he impressed with his ability to cover ground laterally and use his length to disengage from slot blockers but needs to add muscle mass to reach his full po- tential. "Brown has the speed and length to put himself into position to make plays," wrote NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein, "but he overshoots open field tackle op- portunities. He is average in zone cover- age, but has intriguing rush/blitz potential that might be tantalizing. He might climb the ladder from a backup to something more if he can play stronger and with more discipline." K.J. HAMLER Last season, Hamler led all Nittany Lion receivers with 56 catches for 904 yards and eight touchdowns, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from both the coaches and media. According to one oddsmaker, he was second only to Alabama's Henry Ruggs III in projections of who would run the fastest 40-yard dash at the com- bine. That projection ended up not mat- tering, as Hamler announced beforehand that he wouldn't be partici- pating in on-field drills due to a tweaked hamstring. He did post 15 reps in the bench press and conducted interviews. Zierlein described the 5-9, 178-pound Hamler as an "explosive slot target who hits the scales as a lightweight but could have heavyweight impact on games. Hamler's blazing speed is used solo and in route combinations to stress second- aries and create big plays. He had an alarming number of drops in 2019 and the routes are ragged, but his athleticism and separation burst on all three levels helps mitigate those concerns." YETUR GROSS-MATOS After totaling 17.5 sacks and 35 tackles for loss during the past two seasons, Gross-Matos opted to forgo his final year of eligibility to enter the draft. Listed at 6-5, 266 pounds, he played primarily at the strongside defensive end spot at Penn State but sometimes moved inside on third-and-long passing downs. He said he's willing to do whatever is asked of him at the next level. "Wherever [the defensive line coach] wants me to line up is where I'm going to line up," Gross-Matos said. "He's going to get the most out of me in that posi- tion." Assessed as a possible first- or sec- ond-round draft choice, Gross-Matos didn't run at the combine but did per- form 20 reps in the bench press and had a 34-inch vertical leap and 120-inch broad jump. Zierlein likened his build to that of a power forward and praised his "impressive length, fluidity and short- F O O T B A L L Former Lions show o pro potential at NFL Combine

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