Blue White Illustrated

State's present roster are members of the classes of 2014 and '15. Sophomore cor- nerback Grant Haley is the fastest player on the team with a reported 40 time of 4.32 seconds. Next is Thompkins, who also has turned in a sub-4.4 40. But what has really highlighted the speed and athleticism that the classes of 2014 and '15 have brought to the team are the per- formances of Barkley, Polk and Godwin on o9ense. In the Nittany Lions' home opener against Bu9alo, the o9ense pro- duced six "chunk" plays. Franklin's def- inition of a chunk play is a running play that gains at least 15 yards or a pass completion that gains at least 20 yards. All six of those chunk plays against the Bulls were by Barkley, Polk and Godwin. Barkley had runs of 33, 24 and 17 yards, Polk ran two 8y sweeps for 20 and 22 yards and Godwin caught a 38-yard pass from Christian Hackenberg in the fourth quarter to give Penn State a 7rst down at Bu9alo's 9-yard line. Two plays later, Barkley ran 9 yards for a touch- down. Aside from the big gains those three players produced, Penn State didn't have a lot of dramatic moments on o9ense against the Bulls. If you take Barkley, Polk and Godwin out of the mix, the Nittany Lions' longest run was a 12- yarder by Lynch, and their longest catch was an 11-yard reception by redshirt junior Geno Lewis. From the first day Barkley walked onto the practice field, Franklin, his staff and every member of the team knew they were watching a special tal- ent. There was every reason to believe that Barkley was a player who could make a major impact his freshman year at Penn State. "He's just a great player, and I've said that since the first day he stepped on campus." Hackenberg said. "I think we did a good job of getting [Barkley and Polk] in positions where they could be successful, minimizing the thinking and just making sure we could get them the ball in space and utilize their strengths. "I think that's huge, especially for guys who are young. You make sure you get them the ball, and their con7dence goes up. They did a great job of responding. They're assets to our football team right now." There's no question that Hackenberg is right. And his praise for Barkley and Polk also applies to Thompkins, Farmer and Scott on the punt- and kicko9-re- turn units. It's been a long time since Penn State has incorporated this kind of speed into its return game. The program has had some excellent return special- ists over the years, a list that includes such players as Gary Hayman, O.J. Mc- Du:e, Bruce Branch and Derrick Williams. But never have the Nittany Lions had so much depth on one team in a single year. Against Bu9alo, freshmen ac- counted for 161 of Penn State's 200 re- RUNNING FREE Playing his first game in Beaver Stadium, Barkley fueled the Nittany Li- ons' second- half surge against Buffa- lo. The fresh- man running back finished with 115 rush- ing yards and a touchdown on only 12 carries. Photo by Steve Manuel

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