Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1410640
O C T O B E R 2 0 2 1 15 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M "Every time the ball is in the air, it's ours. That's the motto we live by. That's how you become a great receiver, and we hold ourselves to a high standard. That's how we're going to be one of the best receiver groups in the country." — Senior wide receiver Jahan Dotson "One of the things that we've done that's been pretty interesting, we don't do it at ev- ery position, but sometimes we have the play- ers rank themselves. "I know [cornerbacks coach] Terry Smith does this a lot. He'll have the corners rank themselves, and then you total them all up, and more times than not, the players see it the same way the coaches do. "What's always interesting, though, is that there will be an outlier where a player sees himself really high, but the rest of the room, his peers, don't see it that way. I think it's re - ally valuable information. "But for the most part, everybody sees it. It's just like with reporters. The local media, you guys, are here all the time. You know what the depth chart is, and so does our team." — Head football coach James Franklin "This isn't Clifford's first time on the 'po - tential leap?' list, which is a reminder that he hasn't leaped yet. He ranked 38th in Total QBR last season, and if James Franklin's Nit- tany Lions are to return to top-10 status, he's got to make a jump. But with former Texas and Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich taking over the play-calling, and an experienced and exciting skill corps at his disposal, that's not out of the realm of pos- sibility." — Bill Connelly, ESPN.com analyst, in his list of college football's 25 most important players in 2021. Connelly categorized Penn State fifth-year senior Sean Clifford and Oklahoma starter Spencer Rattler as "quar- terbacks with a potential game-changing leap in them." "At his introduction, [basketball head coach Micah] Shrewsberry said he wanted Penn State to play like a scrappy 'underdog type of team.' That shouldn't be a problem, because the Lions are going to be underdogs most nights. But they've gone 18-21 in Big Ten play over the past two seasons, so they've shown they can compete on a nightly basis. "If Shrewsberry can parlay his impressive credentials into success on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal, that underdog men - tality might not be quite so easy to conjure up in the years to come." — Athlon Sports College Basketball 2021-22 Preview "I know what drives them, I know what pushes them, and I know when they 're down. I can look at Rasheed [Walker] and say, 'What's wrong?' He says, 'How did you know?' Because I know you. "Last year, I couldn't see their body language or how they were truly feeling or what it's all about. To get through those days is how you get them to become better people and also better football players." — Offensive line coach Phil Trautwein, speaking to SI.com about his relationship with his players this year "Sometimes it feels like CSB [Cam Sullivan- Brown] is older than I am. He's been here a long time. I have a tremendous amount of respect for CSB. He's been through a lot, and he provides some consistency that doesn't necessarily show up in the stat line. He's a consistent player. He'll work hard; he'll do what he's supposed to do. "He's not necessarily a vocal leader, so right now I'm challenging him. He's an old vet who's been around, and he's done things the right way. I do believe he's going to have some very big plays this season, whether it's moving the chains on third down or getting in the end zone." — Wide receivers coach Taylor Stubble - field on senior Cam Sullivan-Brown They Said It Senior receiver Jahan Dotson had a 49-yard touchdown catch early in the third quarter to spark Penn State's offense at Wisconsin. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL