Blue White Illustrated

With Allen and Robinson vying to back up Barkley – and with four-star fresh- man Miles Sanders set to arrive this summer – it's no wonder that offensive players have been so effusive about the potential of Penn State's backfield. Of- fensive tackle Andrew Nelson described it as "probably one of the strongest units on our team." "You put any of those guys back there and they're going to pick up yards, they're going to make plays," Nelson said. "I think they've all done a great job this spring, and they're definitely a real strong suit to this offense." If his electrifying debut was any indi- cation, Barkley will be getting the ma- jority of those carries. And as his sopho- more season approaches, he's eager to shine a spotlight on the people who have helped him get where he is. He is certain to be the object of considerable media attention in the coming months, but he hasn't been fazed by the spotlight so far and has a big support system to help him deal with what's to come. "I would have to give big credit to my parents and my family, making sure I stay grounded, always keeping me level- headed. Also where I'm from, my high school coaches and my community did a great job, too," he said. "As I came up here, Coach Franklin, Coach [Charles] Huff are also doing a great job in trying to keep me level-headed. I talk to my parents every weekend, and they know a lot of attention has come my way, but they just always tell me to stay focused and stay humble." ■ S I T E L I N E S • B W I . R I VA L S . C O M R E A D E R S W E I G H I N O N T H E B L U E -W H I T E G A M E I could go on for hours about Moor- head's schemes, but in the long run PSU's offensive success will come down to two things: 1) Continued improve- ment in execution and 2) Moorhead's ability to dissect a defense in-game. Overall I loved what I saw, obviously. I can't wait to see them put it on the field vs Kent State. SJLuvsLions It's obvious they are much more organ- ized and it's early in the process of ac- tually implementing Moorhead's of- fense. I thought both QBs did well. Mc- Sorley is further ahead, but Stevens is a completely different player than last spring. The move of Moorhead to QB coach is great. If we can play defense we will become a royal pain in the a-- to play. Especially with the type of skill athletes this offense will entice to come here. rll1957 I would have liked to see Stevens have a few more series with the ones. Trace does seem to be ahead but also had the better end of the roster. Stevens and Robinson both looked much better on the Blue squad. Doublehaul While the QBs can certainly pick up yards we couldn't get last year, it's the extra threat that they provide that's more important. Using a couple of op- tions or designed runs is fine, but to run your QB a lot just asks for them to get injured. You can see the difference in ex- perience that McSorley brings, and that's not a knock on Stevens, who is go- ing to be a fine player. njlion The first-team offense looked very good. My concern is whether they were that good or the defense was that bad. The defensive line and the linebacker corps (especially without Bell and Wart- man-White) are concerns. And by the way, I'll take an accurate QB with a mediocre arm over a big-armed inaccu- rate QB any day of the week. Jason1743 All I can say is I came away impressed, and it has been a long time since… I have felt this good. I thought I was watching Baylor or an SEC game instead of our Nits. The key was a quarterback who had poise, composure, conviction, per- ception, accuracy and threw bullets! He never looked lost, no hoppers on short passes, was able to run from his shadow and basically looked like a seasoned vet. I know it is only a spring game and we have a long way to go, but my confi- dence level is up there, and we have so many more options available on offense now. My blood pressure is back to nor- mal for the time being. MD.NIT23 The up-tempo style of play and the speed at which the QBs are taught to get rid of the ball will work to our advantage big time. Meyer at OSU doesn't have Manning or Brady type quarterbacks running his system. He runs a very simi- lar scheme to Moorhead using stud run- ning backs and athletic quarterbacks who are accurate on short and midrange passes and can make plays with their legs when needed. Brazillm10 It would have been interesting to see the offense go against the first-teamers on D (or at least those who were there; Givens and White both looked pretty good, BTW). Some of the kids on de- fense, I have never heard of. tgar My guess on the starting offensive line: LT – Nelson, LG – Bates, C – Gaia, RG – Mahon and RT – Palmer, with Beh, Dowrey, Gonzalez (I thought he strug- gled a bit, though) and Jenkins providing depth. We didn't see a number of guys, either, so it's probably too early to be definite about anything. I do think, though, we're in much, much better shape on the OL this year (agree with the Coach, surprise, surprise). An awful lot of talent didn't play, so there's going to be so much more come fall. Carter, Buchholz, Wartman-White, Bell, Apke, Monroe, J. Miller, Charles and Camp- bell, to name a few, and then there are the incoming freshmen. The team is just going to keep on getting better, in my opinion. The next four-plus months are going to kill me waiting for the season to get here LOL. mickey_PSU

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