F O O T B A L L
Incoming
freshmen
look sharp
in Big 33
Coach Mike Matta was careful not to
push his Pennsylvania team too hard as
he prepared it for the Big 33 Classic last
month. Keenly aware that his players
would soon be starting their college ca-
reers, Matta didn't want to expose them
to too much risk for the sake of a sum-
mer all-star game.
But he also knew that he had a differ-
ence-maker in Miles Sanders, and he
wanted to give the four-star running
back every opportunity to do what he
does best.
"We're going to be getting the ball in
his hands as much as
possible," Matta said a
few days before the
game. "He'll mainly play
in the backfield, but we
want to get him in the
slot when we can and
different things like
that. … I'm not going to
overwork these guys,
not in a game like this.
But we plan to use him
heavily. I think he could
have a special night on Saturday."
Sanders did not disappoint. The Pitts-
burgh native needed only one play to
make an impact on the game – and to
send pulses racing among all those Penn
State fans who are eager to see him in blue
and white this fall. After a Damar Hamlin
interception gave Pennsylvania the ball at
the Maryland 21-yard line, quarterback
Devante Cross threw downfield on the
NEWS
NOTES
&
TROPHY GAME
Brown (left) and
Sanders show off
their MVP hard-
ware after the Big
33 Classic, which
was won by Penn-
sylvania, 26-14, in
June.
Photo cour-
tesy of Marlene
Sanders
