Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/703041
P R E V I E W had 56-yard runs against Ohio State and Michigan, a 54-yarder against Rutgers and a 22-yarder against Michigan State. Those openings should be more plentiful now that Penn State is finally starting to build some depth along the offensive line. In addition, Moor- head's offensive scheme is de- signed to spread out opposing defenses and create running lanes. Given that he's gouged opponents every time he's gotten the ball in the open field, it's likely that he's head- ed for a big year, even if the line still needs some time to jell. And if the line surpasses ex- pectations, the sky's the limit. Barkley has already shown that he has the vision, speed, balance and overall athleticism to be a star, and af- ter a highly productive year in the Nit- tany Lions' weight training program, he should have even more tackle- breaking power than he displayed last season. With Sanders, Robinson and Allen also vying for carries, this could turn out to be one position group in which Penn State ranks among the nation's better teams. Said Moorhead, "Be- tween Saquon… and the one-two punch of Andre and Mark, and obvi- ously we've got some guys coming in, I think it gives you multiple options with that position, for guys who have different skill sets." – M.H. PHIL'S TAKE With the arrival of prep All-America running back Miles Sanders in late June, Penn State is as deep as it's been at this position group in probably a decade. Saquon Barkley has the poten- tial to emerge as a first-team All-Big Ten performer and become Penn State's next All-America running back. It's my firm belief that Barkley, Sanders, Mark Allen and Andre Robinson provide Penn State with one of the two top running back groups in the Big Ten heading into the 2016 season. school players who aspire to major-college stardom, only a fraction attain it. And even if he were good enough to play in the Football Bowl Subdivision, he knew that the winnowing process would con- tinue at the next level, making it even more unlikely that he would ever have a career in the National Football League. "I was like, 'Not me. I don't want to play college football,' " Barkley said. But, unwilling to give up, Gilbert urged the young player to think it over before making a final decision. So he did. He was a 15-year-old, 160-pound soph- omore playing for the Zephyrs, whose pro- gram was not known for producing ma- jor-college football players. He knew that he would need to change his approach to the game if he wanted to keep playing after high school. Specifically, he needed to gain weight. So he intensified his weight training and learned about the benefits of proper nutrition. Within two years, he had added 30 pounds. By the time of his arrival at Penn State, he had added 15 more, tipping the scales at 205 in the summer of 2015. "It's good weight, and I did it smart," he said, noting that he refused the creatine and supplements that are common. "It was just like natural protein: steaks and chicken and stuff like that. Eating healthy and changing my body and developing to try to be a beast, to be honest. I wanted to be a freak athlete. That's what I want to be." Taking football more seriously, Barkley trained harder, and soon began to see results. He got bigger, a little faster, and after at- tending a summer skills camp at Rutgers, he earned an offer from Scarlet Knights coach Kyle Flood. Unfamiliar with the process of major-college football recruiting, Barkley jumped at the opportunity. "To be honest with you, me and my head coach were shocked," he said. That was because the only film he had sent out was from his time on the junior varsity team. He was playing defense on the JV video, but Rutgers saw pure potential and offered him a chance to play running back. He accepted the Knights' scholarship offer, and even though he was later persuaded by Franklin to play his college football at Penn State, he remains grateful to Rutgers MARK ALLEN Steve Manuel