Blue White Illustrated

July 2016

Penn State Sports Magazine

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have to show accuracy this summer on short to midrange kicks. BLAKE GILLIKIN P/K, 6-2, 182 Atlanta, Ga. The coaches saw all they needed to see from Gillikin in the 9- nal of the Georgia Class AAA tournament this past fall. In a 38-31 overtime victory over Blessed Trinity, the Westminster spe- cialist had punts of 58, 62 and 65 yards. He also put six kicko;s into the end zone for touchbacks. The only kicko; that didn't sail past the goal line was a perfectly exe- cuted onside kick in the fourth quarter that his team recovered in order to help send the game into OT. Additionally, Gillikin connected on all three 9eld goal attempts, including a 53-yarder. Franklin called it "as impressive a performance as we've ever been around." Gillikin will be called upon for similar e;orts during his career at Penn State, most immediately at punter. Of the new- comers listed, I believe he has the best chance of grabbing a starting spot right away. The Lions 9nished 11th in the Big Ten last year with an average of only 39.3 yards per punt, and even that was an im- provement over their league-worst 36.6- yard average in 2014. One of the team's biggest needs is for a punter who can pin the opposing o;ense deep and ":ip the 9eld." Gillikin could also join Barbir in the battle to handle kicko;s. Either way, it ap- pears Charles Hu;'s special teams unit is set to receive a couple necessary upgrades. MICHAL MENET OL, 6-4, 290 Birdsboro, Pa. I'm reluctant to put an o;ensive lineman on this list, given how rarely true freshmen even see the 9eld, much less make an impact, at this position group. But Menet could be an exception. In July 2014, practicing pass blocking sets during summer camp, he might have been the most fundamentally sound o;en- sive lineman on campus. And he wasn't even a junior in high school yet. He's been on Penn State's radar as its top OL recruit since then, and there's a growing sentiment that he will have a legitimate chance to see the 9eld this fall. And it's not just his growing frame – he weighed almost 290 pounds as of early April – that makes him a contender. He's also very versatile. "You'd like to recruit guys that create :exibility, guys with tackle body types," Franklin said. "You want guys who are 6- foot-4 or taller, who could go in and play guard. Typically, guards are a little bit shorter with a little more girth to them, but the reason, I'm saying all this is that we want guys who create :exibility in terms of athleticism, movement, power and intelligence. I think Menet is one of those guys." Although Menet has the size to play tackle, if he's to see the 9eld this fall, it will most likely be within the interior of the line. MILES SANDERS RB, 5-11, 195 Pittsburgh, Pa. Sanders makes this list just one year a=er Barkley's inclusion, and for similar reasons. Both were four- star recruits and both were considered the best player in Pennsylvania in their respective classes. Given his credentials and his unique skill set, it was tough to deny Barkley a shot at playing time. Like- wise, it could be di

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