Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1525333
S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 4 6 1 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M NCAA had stepped in to reduce the sanc- tions: safeties Garrett Taylor and Daiquan Kelly, defensive tackles Kevin Givens and Robert Windsor, defensive end Shareef Miller, quarterback Tommy Stevens, tight end Nick Bowers and offensive lineman Paris Palmer. Maybe some of those prospects would have signed anyway, but the NCAA's move came on the heels of Franklin's high-profile hiring and helped rein- force the perception that Penn State was emerging from its post-scandal malaise. Taylor, a four-star defensive back from Richmond, Va., was the highest-rated player in the 2015 class, placing 85th na- tionally in the On3 Industry Ranking, 33 spots ahead of a four-star running back named Saquon Barkley, who had commit- ted in February. The class ranked 14th in the country, Penn State's highest finish since a ninth- place showing in 2010. Several of its players — notably Barkley and offensive linemen Palmer, Ryan Bates and Steven Gonzalez — would go on to play major roles in the Nittany Lions' stunning 2016 turnaround season, during which they won the Big Ten championship and nearly reached the College Football Playoff. Back To Work While a return to title contention was a lot closer than anyone could have imag- ined at the time, the immediate challenge facing Franklin following the NCAA's sanction rollback was to get his team re- focused on the 2014 season. When the Nittany Lions gathered for the first time after hearing the news, Franklin saluted the 49 players remain- ing from the 2012 team who had famously stuck around even after the NCAA gave the squad a blanket transfer waiver. The players received a standing ovation from their teammates, Franklin said, and were told "how much we are all in debt to them and how much respect the uni- versity, the alumni and the community have for them, and that they are going to play for them, because they were here for this program and this university when we needed them the most." Then everyone got back to work. It was the coach's first campaign at Penn State, and it began with a rousing 26-24 win over the University of Central Florida on a walk-off field goal by Sam Ficken, fol- lowed by a 21-3 victory over Akron. Week 3 brought a trip to Rutgers, which was playing its first conference game since joining the Big Ten. The Scarlet Knights hadn't faced their longtime bor- der rival since 1995, but there remained a deep well of residual disdain in Piscat- away for all things blue and white, stem- ming from their 2-22 record against PSU. With a crowd of 53,774 cheering them on, the Scarlet Knights jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the second quarter. As it had done so often in the past, though, Penn State broke their hearts. Christian Hackenberg led the Lions back, hitting passes of 53 and 23 yards to Geno Lewis in an 80-yard fourth-quarter drive. The Knights had kept PSU out of the end zone for nearly 59 minutes, but then Bill Belton scored on a 5-yard run with 1:13 left, and Penn State escaped with a 13-10 victory. "We've got a gritty group of guys who never stop believing," Franklin said. "We have a lot of work to do, but we got a win today." He was definitely right about all the work that needed doing. Although Penn State was 3-0, its unblemished record concealed some significant concerns. The offensive line, which surrendered 5 sacks at Rutgers, was the biggest of the team's worries. It didn't matter much in a 48-7 romp over Massachusetts in the Lions' nonconference finale, but there was soon to be a reckoning. Hope Restored Northwestern held Penn State to 50 rushing yards and sacked Hackenberg four times en route to a 29-6 victory at Beaver Stadium on Sept. 27. It was a so- bering reminder that the NCAA hadn't done anything to change the composition of the 2014 team. The Nittany Lions were still a long way from having the kind of offense that could elevate them to title contention. The Wildcats' rout touched off a four- game losing streak. A double-overtime loss to No. 13 Ohio State offered some hints of what was to come in a few years, but the defeats left Franklin's team in jeopardy of missing out on the postsea- son. It wasn't until a 30-13 victory over Temple on Nov. 15 that PSU earned its sixth win and attained bowl eligibility. After dropping its last two regular- season games to Illinois and Michigan State, Penn State received an invitation to face Boston College in the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. An early-winter trip to the Bronx was hardly what the pro- gram was accustomed to, but PSU made the most of its opportunity. Fittingly, it was Ficken, the hero of the season opener against UCF, who brought an exciting end to the campaign. Playing in his final college game, he hit a 45-yard field goal to tie the score with 20 seconds left in regulation, then he drove home a PAT that gave Penn State a 31-30 over- time win after Boston College had missed its own extra-point attempt moments earlier. "I think experiences and games like this have restored hope," Franklin said amid the postgame celebration. In the end, that may have been the biggest takeaway from Penn State's first campaign under its new coach. The Nit- tany Lions eked out a winning record by the slimmest of margins in 2014, com- pleting a 7-6 season when Ficken's PAT sailed through the uprights. It wasn't a season for the ages, but for the first time since July 2012 when the NCAA laid down a set of sanctions that were described by some as worse than the death penalty, players could pursue their highest goals. "There's nothing being held back from them in terms of opportunities," Franklin said. "They have the ability to chase their dreams now." ■ "There's nothing being held back from them in terms of opportunities. They have the ability to chase their dreams now." F R A N K L I N