Blue White Illustrated

T here are two areas where Penn State's football team has to show signs of dramatic improvement this spring – one on o;ense, one on defense. On o;ense, the Nittany Lions need to display more explosiveness, particularly in the running game. On defense, they need their linebackers to be more e;ec- tive against both the run and the pass. During the 2020 season, even though it :nished its nine-game season ranked second in the Big Ten behind Ohio State with an average of 430.3 yards per game, Penn State was less productive than it had been the previous four years. From 2016-19, the Nittany Lions had a repu- tation under James Franklin's leadership for o;ensive explosiveness, but they weren't able to challenge opposing de- fenses that same way last season. The Lions gained 3.9 yards per run and 7.5 yards per pass, which worked out to an average of 5.5 yards per play. Simply put, those numbers weren't where they needed to be – or where they had been in the past. With Journey Brown and Noah Cain out of the lineup, Penn State's running game endured its most anemic perform- ance since 2014, which was Franklin's :rst year as the team's head coach. There wasn't a running back on the ros- ter who averaged more than 4.9 yards per carry. The health problems that sidelined Brown and Cain (and occasionally Devyn Ford) meant that the Nittany Lions had to rely much more than ex- pected on true freshmen Keyvone Lee and Caziah Holmes. Lee :nished as Penn State's leading rusher with 438 yards on 81 carries. His longest run of the season was a 31-yarder against Michigan. You wouldn't necessarily expect a runner like Lee, who is pushing 240 pounds, to break o; 50- or 60-yard runs with regularity, but the Lions didn't get those kind of runs from anyone else, ei- ther. In fact, Lee's 31-yard scamper in Penn State's 27-17 victory over the Wolverines was the team's longest run- ning play of the season by a player with 50 or more carries. When you compare that performance to the one Penn State put together in 2019, in particular the 53-39 win over Memphis in the Cotton Bowl, the di;er- ences are striking. Brown's longest run in 2019 went for 85 yards against Pitt. Ford had an 81-yard touchdown run against Idaho, and quarterback Sean Cli;ord's longest run was 58 yards. All told, :ve Penn State players had runs from scrim- mage of at least 44 yards. In addition to Brown, Ford and Cli;ord, Ricky Slade had a 44-yarder, while backup quarter- back Will Levis had a 49-yard carry. As a team, the Nittany Lions averaged 4.8 yards per carry and 6.1 yards per play. They totaled 34 rushing touchdowns, the Big Ten's second-highest total. In 2018, Penn State's running game was even more explosive, averaging 5.1 yards per carry. And the threat of a po- tent running game opened up opportu- nities for the passing game, as the Lions averaged 7.5 yards per pass and 6.1 yards overall. One other example of how de:cient Penn State's running game was through- out the 2020 season was its performance in the red zone. In 2019, the Nittany Lions were very e;ective inside the op- ponent's 20-yard line. Of their 52 red zone opportunities, they scored on 47, including 37 touchdowns, 28 of which were supplied by the running game. Last season, Penn State had 37 red zone scoring opportunities and con- verted on just 28, 19 of which were touchdowns. That trend has to change dramatically if Penn State hopes to re- develop the type of explosive o;ense that it :elded in previous years. The secret to PSU's success on o;ense from 2016 through 2019 was the explo- siveness and balance the team was able to achieve. The ability to create big plays in both the running and passing games kept opponents from trying to make the Nittany Lions one-dimensional. That wasn't the case last season, as the Lions were only capable of producing ex- plosive plays with their passing game. Jahan Dotson led the way, with freshmen Parker Washington and KeAndre Lam- bert-Smith contributing, too, as they gained con:dence and experience. Looking ahead to the 2021 season, Penn State's No. 1 objective coming out of spring practice, at least as far as the back:eld is concerned, must be to :nd running backs who can create explosive plays. It doesn't matter who. It could be Ford, Holmes, Baylor transfer John Lovett or maybe even Lee. Whatever the case, some combination of those players has to be able to supply Penn State with the element that was missing from its o;ense last season. In 2019, PSU had thunder (Cain) and lightning (Brown) in its running game. As I see it, Lovett, Holmes and/or Ford need to provide the lightning. A balanced and explosive run- ning game will cure what ailed Penn State's o;ense in 2020. The Nittany Lions also need to make strides on defense, particularly at line- backer. If you were to look only at their statis- tics from last season, you would come away feeling that Penn State's starting trio – Ellis Brooks in the middle, Bran- don Smith at the Sam outside linebacker PHIL'S CORNER Here's where the Lions must improve this spring if they're to rebound in 2021

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