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s problems in the fall. The Lions must also find replacements for Howle and Urschel. Heading into spring practice, Mangiro was looking like the leader at center, with Mahon, Alosi and converted defensive lineman Dowrey in the mix at guard. But Franklin's arrival has given everyone a clean slate, so there's no telling what to expect, and any changes to the depth chart are provisional, with the reinforce- ments still months away from enrolling. Long story short, new offensive line coach Herb Hand is certainly going to earn his paycheck this spring. DEFENSIVE LINE KEY PERSONNEL T: Tarow Barney (Jr.), Parker Cothren (R-Fr.), Brian Gaia (R-So.), Austin Johnson (R-So.), Antoine White (Fr.); E: Brad Bars (R-Sr.), Deion Barnes (R-Jr.), Curtis Cothran (R-Fr.), C.J. Olaniyan (R-Sr.), Garrett Sickels (R-Fr.), Evan Schwan (R-So.), Anthony Zettel (R-Jr.) LOSSES Kyle Baublitz, DaQuan Jones THE GOOD Three starters – Barnes, John- son and Olaniyan – are back this year, so new position coach Sean Spencer should be able to create some of his trademark chaos. Olaniyan ended his junior season on a high note, totaling three tackles, three QB hurries and an interception in Penn State's season =nale against Wis- consin. The Lions should also get a liA from Barney, a juco transfer who is already on campus and will take part in spring practice. THE BAD Jones will be very di@cult to replace aAer leading the Lions with 11.4 tackles for loss last season. Moreover, the team needs a bounce-back season from Barnes. The Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2012, Barnes =nished with four tackles for loss and two sacks last season and brie>y surrendered his starting position. The de- cline in productivity likely had a lot to do with the increased attention he received from blockers, so Penn State will have to create more havoc elsewhere on the line to free up the junior playmaker. And it will have to do so without Larry Johnson calling the shots. This will be the =rst spring practice since 1995 in which Johnson won't be overseeing the defensive ends. SPRING STORYLINE Finding someone to man the one-technique tackle spot will be Penn State's biggest challenge this spring. That's why Barney's signing was so important. A juco transfer, he enrolled in January and will be able to participate in spring practice, where his competition will likely come from Gaia. White is also on campus aAer graduating early from Millville (N.J.) High, but the 280-pounder Spencer away from Bowling Green to take charge of the defensive line. The Commodores went on to post 86 sacks during the next three seasons and 6nished in the top 25 nationally in total defense all three years. In January, Franklin brought Spencer to Penn State following the departure of longtime Nittany Lions defensive line coach Larry Johnson. While players and fans were disap- pointed to see the highly popular assistant move on – especially when his next stop turned out to be Ohio State – Spencer has an outsized personality and an appreciation for the history he's being asked to up- hold, qualities that should go a long way toward helping him fill the void. "I have tremendous respect for what this program has done," he said. "It's powerful, man. At times you get emotional. You look around and you're like, 'I'm at Penn State.' You know what I'm saying? I'm coaching at Penn State, and that's pretty cool." It's easy to see why Franklin and Spencer hit it o7. They're both high- energy guys with roots in the Penn- sylvania State Athletics Conference and a desire to compete at an elite level. Born in Hartford, Conn., Spencer played safety at Clarion in the early 1990s before getting his 6rst coaching job as the assistant in charge of running backs at Shippens- burg. Like Franklin, his path to Penn State consisted of a series of gradual steps. Before reaching the Football Bowl Subdivision, there were stops at Trinity, Holy Cross, Villanova and Hofstra. At Vanderbilt, Spencer was known as "Coach Chaos." The nickname was bestowed on the practice 6eld one day by strength coach Dwight Galt, and it stuck. It's now on his business card, and his young daughter Alysia refers to herself as "Baby Chaos." While with the Commodores, he developed defensive end Tim Fugger into a seventh-round dra8 pick. Be- fore leaving for Nashville, he played a key role in the early development of Bowling Green defensive tackle Chris Jones, who went on to sign with the New England Patriots last year and led all NFL rookies with 6ve sacks. Spencer is hoping for even more success at Penn State. "I can't wait for the opportunity to coach those guys and make them better," he said. "Our concentration and our focal point will be on being the best defen- sive line we can be in this conference, in this nation. That's what we're go- ing to focus on, and the rest will take care of itself. I had the good fortune to coach Chris Jones for two years at Bowling Green, and he starts for the New England Patriots right now. Tim Fugger is playing for the New York Jets, so we've sent some guys on, but it was because of their ability. We just had to re6ne it. "Obviously, at a place like Penn State, you're going to get some kids with tremendous ability. You walk through those walls and there are some [future] dra8 picks here. Coach Johnson did an unbelievable job of developing guys. I plan on doing the same thing." I R E P O R T

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