Blue White Illustrated

and o?en had to use every bit of his elu- siveness just to get back to the line of scrimmage. But a?er surrendering touchdowns on a 44-yard pass from receiver Terry God- win to Malcolm Mitchell, a 17-yard pass from Greyson Lambert to Godwin and a 21-yard run by Sony Michel, Penn State regrouped behind McSorley. His touch- down pass to Lewis was a fourth-and-12 gem on which the junior wideout tapped his toes down just before tumbling out of bounds. The throw to Hamilton was even bet- ter, a dart over the middle that the soph- omore managed to pull in between three defenders. The Nittany Lions had repped the play in practice and were ready to call it as soon as they got the right look from Georgia's defense. Mc- Sorley put enough zip on the ball that no one but Hamilton could get it, even though he was throwing into tra>c. "Trace was tremendous," Hamilton said. "No lack of con;dence. He was getting the play calls right, he was making the right reads and doing everything he could to put us in position to win the game." That the Lions didn't win it was large- ly due to a sluggish ;rst half in which they fell behind by a couple of touch- downs. They had simply spotted Geor- gia too big a lead, one that even a hot quarterback couldn't overcome. Said Franklin, "You can't come out and start slow the way we did and think you're going to beat that type of opponent in a bowl game." So now the Nittany Lions turn their attention to the 2016 season. They'll have a new o=ensive coordinator and a new quarterback, but they return eight starters on o=ense, a list that includes Godwin, Hamilton and Barkley, the top true freshman running back in the country in 2015. During the past two seasons, Penn TIM OWEN ASSISTANT EDITOR THE PICK Get ready for the most anti- climactic prediction of the bunch: The of- fensive line that starts PSU's 2016 season opener will look much like 2015's. THE RATIONALE There's promising talent saturating the lower rungs of its OL depth chart, but if PSU is to be at its best, it'll need battle-tested veterans up front leading the way. The Nittany Lions lose senior leader Angelo Mangiro to graduation, and his replacement at cen- ter will depend on whether experienced upperclassman Wendy Laurent is able to fend o= a challenge from freshman Ryan Bates. Otherwise, I'm anticipating that many familiar faces will return to their respective posts. That doesn't mean I'm predicting similar results, however. Three or four potential starters – Paris Palmer, Brian Gaia, Derek Dowrey and Laurent – will be in their ;?h year, while Andrew Nelson, if healthy, should be en- tering his collegiate prime. Before long, all of that experience has to yield results. With a new OL coach at the helm, these reinvigorated linemen will be eager to ;nish their careers on a positive note. ■ LOU PRATO CONTRIBUTING WRITER THE PICK Another previously little- known player will emerge and eventually become an All-Big Ten and possibly a ;rst- or second-team All-American. THE RATIONALE Look no further than Carl Nassib as an example. But there have been others over the years, including of- fensive linemen such as Steve Wisniewski in 1987 and his nephew Stefen Wisniews- ki in 2009. Steve, then a sophomore, be- came a starter in the second game of the 1986 season and a ;rst-team All-Ameri- can in '87. Stefen was a backup as a fresh- man in 2007 and went on to start for three years and win All-Big Ten and ;rst-team All-America honors in 2010. With all the criticism of the o=ensive line in James Franklin's ;rst two years and a new assis- tant coach set to take over the unit in 2016, the emergence of a lineman or two would be startling but welcome by every- one except Penn State foes. Two fresh- man interior linemen who were redshirt- ed in 2015 – Ryan Bates and Steven Gon- zalez – are getting the most mention by insiders. But maybe an incoming fresh- man will be an overnight success. ■ RYAN SNYDER RECRUITING REPORTER THE PICK Miles Sanders will play a signi;cant role in the o=ense as a true freshman. THE RATIONALE James Franklin played plenty of freshmen during his ;rst two seasons, and I don't expect 2016 to be much di=erent. In this year's class, there are multiple prospects who can make a serious impact, but the sight of Sanders and Saquon Barkley in the same back;eld is what I'm most looking for- ward to. Make no mistake, Barkley will be the lead back, but Sanders brings a level of explosiveness that even Saquon can't match. Sanders recently rea>rmed his commitment to PSU a?er considering a visit to Michigan State. That's great news for the Lions, because he should ;t right into Joe Moorhead's o=ense. One other name to remember: Blake Gillikin. An At- lanta native, Gillikin averaged more than 43 yards per punt as a senior, and he's stepping into a situation that a=ords him a shot at early playing time. Will he be a perfect ;x as a freshman? Of course not. But he's a solid punter who can swing ;eld position in Penn State's favor. ■ A N D B E Y O N D A T T H E 2 0 1 6 N I T T A N Y L I O N S

• Cover