Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1378330
He's just a mature guy who's a good stu- dent of the game and has a good skill set as well. He's going to play a lot of foot- ball." Ebiketie began giving Penn State's of- fensive linemen problems on the first day of spring practice. Rasheed Walker was impressed with his quickness, describing him as "twitchy." "Twitchy is a term I use for guys who have real fast movements," Walker said. "For example, Jayson Oweh, he's real twitchy, just with how fast he can move. One trait that [Ebiketie] has as a defensive lineman that really sticks out to me is his ability to bend the edge. You know how D-ends try to get around the hip of the offensive tackle? He can run so low to the ground and stay on balance. It's crazy. That's one thing I noticed that he's real good at. He's real good at playing the run, he's real strong, real stout. I feel like we got better this spring by taking reps with each other. I feel like I'm a pretty good of- fensive tackle and he's a pretty good speed rusher, so that's work that we needed." The coaching staff will be looking to see the results of that work on the field this fall. They also want to see both Isaac and Ebiketie add a few pounds over the sum- mer. "You would like to see them, come next season, be in the mid- to high 250s, so that they can play the complete season over 250 pounds," coach James Franklin said. "Both of them have a history of los- ing weight as the season goes on. For them to be the every-down defensive ends that we need them to be [they'll need to add weight]." Isaac is coming off a 2020 campaign that left him feeling unsatisfied – not just because of the team's losing record but because he wasn't entirely happy with his own performance. Although he played in all nine games, finishing with 13 tackles, 1.5 sacks and two quarterback hurries, he didn't have the kind of impact that he be- lieves he's capable of making. "I'm glad I got the chance to play," he said, "but I feel like I have a long way to go." With spring practice now in the books, Isaac said he and his teammates have been motivated by a desire to never again feel the way they did last year. Ebiketie wasn't part of that season, but he endured a similar experience at Tem- ple, as the Owls skidded to a 1-6 finish. As with his future teammates at Penn State, the 2020 campaign was the first losing season of his college career. Now it's time for everyone to put that moti- vational fuel to good use. "We're all hard workers," Isaac said, "and we all know what we want this year after what happened to us last year. We went 4- 5. We've got a chip on our shoulder this year, so we all are working extremely hard, and it's going to show. It's going to pay off for us, and we know it." ■ >> Penn State is bringing back the Coaches Caravan, albeit in a differ- ent, more station- ary form this year. Members of ei- ther the Nittany Lion Club or Penn State Alumni As- sociation will be able to participate in the 2021 Virtual Coaches Caravan. The online event will take place from June 1-3, with a different lineup of coaches on hand beginning at 7 p.m. each night. Ath- letic director Sandy Barbour will join the coaches all three evenings. As in previous editions of the cara- van, Penn State coaches will share updates on their programs and an- swer questions as time allows. View- ers will have the option of submitting a question when they register, and they can choose to attend all three nights or individual events. All Coaches Caravan events are ex- clusive to members of the Penn State Alumni Association and Nittany Lion Club, and the events will not be shared via social media platforms. Registration is free, but members need to register in advance to attend. Those wishing to attend can register at the Nittany Lion Club website (nittanylionclub.com) or the Penn State Alumni Association site (www.alumni.psu.edu). ■ Coaches Caravan to return in June Tuesday, June 1 James Franklin............................ football Erica Dambach...........women's soccer Clarisa Crowell............................ softball Je5 Tambroni................ men's lacrosse Wednesday, June 2 Micah Shrewsberry... men's basketball Sarah Brown......women's gymnastics Carolyn Kieger...... women's basketball Guy Gadowsky.......... men's ice hockey Thursday, June 3 Russ Rose............... women's volleyball Char Morett-Curtiss..........field hockey Cael Sanderson........................wrestling Je5 Cook............................men's soccer T U E S D A Y , J U N E 1 | 7 : 0 0 - 8 : 3 0 P . M . W E D N E S D A Y , J U N E 2 | 7 : 0 0 - 8 : 3 0 P . M . T H U R S D A Y , J U N E 3 | 7 : 0 0 - 8 : 3 0 P . M . C O A C H E S C A R A V A N L I N E U P BARBOUR