Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/260491
N
o recruiting class is ever perfect.
That truism applies even to Alaba-
ma's Class of 2014, which includes
six ;ve-star prospects and is the con-
sensus choice as the nation's best.
Bearing that in mind, I can't imagine
there is a rational Penn State football fan
out there who isn't thrilled with the job
that James Franklin and his assistant
coaches did in their ;rst month on the
job. If Alabama wasn't able to achieve
perfection, there is no way Franklin and
his assistant coaches could have been
expected to address all the weaknesses
and problems that presently exist on
Penn State's roster. There is only so
much that 25 student-athletes can be
expected to do.
But having said that, I'm convinced
that Penn State's new coaches did the
best job they could possibly do under
the circumstances. When Franklin was
named head coach on Jan. 11, I believed
the Nittany Lions would be fortunate to
;nish any better than the middle of the
Big Ten pack in the recruiting rankings. I
certainly would not have expected the
sta< to dramatically improve Penn
State's positional speed and athletic
ability. Nor would I have anticipated
that the Lions would end up with the Big
Ten's top wide receiver class and per-
haps one of the top ;ve wide receiver
classes in the country or with possibly
the best group of defensive backs ever to
arrive at Penn State in a single recruiting
class.
And yet, that's exactly what Franklin
and his assistant coaches accom-
plished during their frenzied recruiting
journey in the three weeks leading up
to signing day. They added great posi-
tional speed, and not just at the skill
positions. They recruited the Big ten's
top wide receiver class, and they as-
sembled a thoroughly impressive group
of defensive backs.
It's not a perfect class by any means.
Penn State still has a lot of holes to ;ll
before it can once again be considered a
championship-caliber team. But the
Nittany Lions took a giant step forward
on Feb. 5.
With that in mind, here's a look at the
major strengths of Penn State's Class of
2014:
POSITIONAL SPEED This is one of the most
overlooked parts of the college game.
One of the major reasons why Alabama
has won three national championships
in the past ;ve years is because Nick Sa-
ban has been able to recruit outstanding
positional speed. The Crimson Tide
don't just have speed at the positions
where you expect it, such as wide re-
ceiver, running back and defensive
back; they also have it at the linebacker
spots, on the o