Blue White Illustrated

port and using those benefits to attract top recruits. All of which brings us back to Barkley. During a recent Coaches Cara- van stop in Allentown, Franklin spoke about the young prospect's develop- ment, citing his dazzling high school highlight tape and his potential impact on the Nittany Lion backfield. But mostly, he talked about the player's off-field maturation, as evidenced by his decision to give his conference championship medal to someone he had only just met. "The thing I love most about that, number one, is that he did it," Franklin said. "But number two is that the media and the community have reinforced that behavior. So now he's hopefully caught the bug of giving and service and trying to do kind things for other people. Be- cause when that happens, it's going to [prompt] him to keep doing it. It becomes ingrained in the fabric of who he is. "So I'm really, really proud of him. He's got a really bright future in a lot of different areas. And I love the fact that he chose to stay home and represent the university in the blue and white. I think there's something special about playing for your school in your state and being a hometown hero and a local kid who's done well. That's going to pay divi- dends for him for a very, very long time." And for Penn State, as well. ■ W E B S U R V E Y Ryan Bates: He was head and shoulders the best player on the field in the state championship game. With the depth problems on our of- fensive line last year, coupled with his smarts, if he is physically strong enough to play, he could make an im- pact at center. ptomaselli To me, the obvious choice is Saquon Barkley, but I also think John Reid might make an impact. Seems like we always have a young DB step up and really contribute. doublehaul Brandon Polk... I predict he'll have a major impact on kickoff returns. He's got tremendous speed and is very elusive. PSU Man Saquon Barkley (offense): He gives a dimension to the backfield that no- body else has. He can catch the ball out of the backfield and even line up in the slot like he did in high school. He also has the best ability to play in space and make people miss. It is that dimension that nobody else has that will enable him to get on the field ear- ly while learning the rest of the play- book. Ryan Buchholz (defense): I am a big fan of Buchholz's tape. He is a bigger, more physical defensive end. Behind Nassib and Sickels we have very little in the way of game-proven talent. I think he could be Nassib's backup, especially on early downs before pos- sibly giving way to a Cothran or Brown in third-down situations on the second unit. hat20 I'm gonna go with Juwan Johnson. You can't teach size and speed, and he definitely has both! Plus, he'll have a potential top-10 NFL draft pick throwing him the football this up- coming season in Hack. It all hinges on how well and how quickly the of- fensive line comes together, of course! Defensively, I just might have to go with Manny Bowen. The kid is a freakish athlete, and he has a nose for the football at the linebacker posi- tion. CaptainStabbin1 Saquon Barkley will arguably be the best running back talent on the squad this season. Combine this fact with our lack of experience behind Akeel Lynch and it would not surprise me to see him earn substantial reps by the second half of the season. Brazillm10 Don't sleep on Andre Robinson. I know I'm a Mid Penn homer, but the kid reminds me of a short Tony Hunt. Has just enough speed to get away from defenders for a big run from time to time, but still has the power to get 4 yards when there is only a hole for 2. NittanyLogan'11 I'm thinking positively here. I am hoping we can redshirt all of our true freshmen so that we don't have to burn their redshirt year. Otherwise, it will be Barkley. I like Bates as well, but no use losing a year if he is not going to start. And I don't think he is (this year anyway). JoePano19 Which true freshman do you envision having the biggest impact in 2015?

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