Blue White Illustrated

returned from spring break in mid-March. The night before practice was set to begin, Gaia learned that he, too, was moving to o8ense. "He found out for sure the Sunday we came back from spring break, and Monday was practice," Dowrey said. "That night, he got his playbook. So I told him what I could. I'd had a few meetings, but we were pretty much both jumping in brand new." By the Blue-White Game, they were both running with the 7rst team, and that was a transition in itself. Said Dowrey, "I was going from a guy who was running with the twos and threes and scout teams to a guy who was repping with the ones. It put a lot of pressure on me, but I think it was good, because it forced me to have higher expectations for myself, higher standards. I think that helped me out throughout the whole spring." Will Dowrey and Gaia be able to hold onto those spots on the 7rst-team unit? That's a question for preseason practice. If Nelson is healthy this fall and a few of the freshman tackles show potential, Ma- hon could end up back at guard, which wouldn't be a problem for him. "I'll do whatever the team needs," he said. Or maybe, if Laurent shines at center, Mangiro gets a shot at one of the starting guard spots. The 6-3, 309-pound redshirt junior was injured this spring and didn't take part in the Blue-White Game, but if he's OK in the fall, he'll likely be in the mix for a starting spot somewhere. For now, it's all a jumble. But it's a competitive jumble, which is what Franklin wanted when he showed up at Penn State insisting that all the starting jobs were up for grabs. He may not have wanted this exactly, but players have em- braced his competitive mindset and have vowed to approach the summer condi- tioning program with the idea that they have to maximize every last shred of po- tential. "I know I'm gonna do everything I can to be the best player I can be," Dowrey said. "I know every guy beside me is going to do everything he can to be the best player he can be. We're going to be all right. I know we're going to step up." ■ N E W C O M E R S O F I N F L U E N C E W E B S U R V E Y Andrew Nelson. By far. Offensive tackle is the biggest position of need, and Nelson will start and play the most out of any freshman. I'm excit- ed about the other guys but have learned to temper my expectations for freshman contributions over the years. Unless they are truly special, even though they can get on the field and inconsistently make an impact on it, in the long run they are almost never critical to the team's success. Guys like Christian Hackenberg and other special freshmen are rare ex- ceptions to the rule. Hopefully Nel- son is next. dicemen99 Redshirt freshman: Andrew Nelson (if we are lucky). True freshman: one of the walk-on punters. George50 As a group, I think the defensive backs will have the biggest impact. Not only will they give us needed depth in the secondary, they can also improve our kick coverage units. Jack66 Redshirt freshman: Andrew Nel- son. Incoming freshman: Koa Farmer. Freshman group: wide re- ceivers. hat20 Troy Reeder. In my opinion, he will be in the linebacker rotation and will compete with Nyeem Wart- man for playing time. As the year goes on, I expect him to play a lot of football. Ceasar After Nelson, I think it will be Reeder. He's one injury away from starting. Psugo Redshirt freshmen: Andrew Nel- son/Brendan Mahon. Early enrollee: D'Andre Thompkins. True fresh- man: Koa Farmer. ptomaselli Nelson, DaeSean Hamilton, Reeder, Thompkins and a wildcard of Farmer. LaJolla Lion Which freshmen – true or redshirt – do you foresee having the biggest impact in 2014? efore Jason Nolf, Bo Nickal and Nick Nevills – the three blue- chip recruits who headline Penn State's incoming freshman class – ever wrestle a match together in Rec Hall, they wrestled one at Pitt. Lucky Panther fans. Selected for the 40th annual Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic March 16, which is held in the Fitzgerald Field House in Pitts- burgh, they received one of the highest honors in high school. And for the 7rst of probably dozens of occurrences, Nolf, Nickal and Nevills – all three of whom are ranked among the top 10 overall recruits in the Class of 2014 – were part of the same dual meet. For this once, however, they weren't on the same team. Nolf com- peted for Team Pennsylvania; Nickal and Nevills, residents of Texas and California, respectively, were on Team United States. They all picked up victories. Nolf got a 6-3 win over Tyler Berger of Oregon, Nickal a 14-9 decision over Stephen Losieau of Lancaster Catholic and Nevills | THINKING BIG New recruits determined to keep Penn State on top B LAYING DOWN THE LAW Nick- al (left), Nevills (center) and Nolf, aka The Law Firm, had a chance to meet up at the Dap- per Dan Wrestling Clas- sic in March. Photo courtesy of Jason Nolf W R E S T L I N G

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