Blue White Illustrated

S E P T E M B E R 1 7 , 2 0 1 6 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . c O M 7 C O A C H S P E A K • E X C E R P T S F R O M J A M E S F R A N K L I N ' S P O S T G A M E P R E S S E R On the Lions' depth being tested by injuries: We have to continue to work on developing depth. We have to continue to do a great job in recruiting, and then we have to do a great job of keeping guys healthy as much as we possibly can. We still have some positions, like linebacker, where we have some challenges. At one point, we had seven starters out on de- fense, if you count [Evan] Schwan. I think that's seven guys who are limited in their time, but it is what it is. We just have to keep working through, keep grinding, and keep developing those guys. I loved how the defense handled it. It wasn't one coach, it wasn't one player who said one thing about it, it was next man up, and they went in there and bat- tled. On Brandon Smith: Brandon hasn't gotten a whole lot of work with the first team. I'm not sure if he's had any work with the first team, to be honest with you. But he's a guy who, I think, is what we need to continue to build here, at Penn State, as a university and as a football program. Guys who are going to take advantage of opportunities, guys who are going to prepare for their op- portunity when it comes, and take ad- vantage of it. It was great to have him break the team down at the end of our locker-room [talk] and I also told him that he's going out tonight to celebrate with his teammates, whether his wife likes it or not. If you don't know, Bran- don is married. I told Brandon I wanted him to go out and enjoy himself with his teammates. His wife might be upset with me, but he has earned it. On getting off to a good start: I thought we did start out better [than last week at Pitt]. We had some turnovers that slowed us down later in the game and put our defense in tough spots, but I did think we started better. I think that is something that we want to do. If you look statistically, it's 80 per- cent or higher nationally if you're win- ning in the first half. I think it's 82 percent or higher in the Big Ten, specif- ically at Penn State, it is 82 percent or higher if you are winning in the first half, you typically win the game, so that is an emphasis for us. We want to start out strong, and then I think one of the better things we do is rush the passer. We need to be more consistent up front stopping the run and being account- able, which I thought we were better at today except for a few plays, and now we can get a lead and force people to throw the ball a little bit more, and that's something we do a pretty good job of, pressuring the quarterback. Penn State hosted roughly 60 prospects from across the nation for Saturday's "stripe out" game against Temple. The group was highlighted by three prospects who were making official visits: defensive tackle Matthew But- ler, wide receiver K.J. Hamler and linebacker Anthony Hines. Butler, a three-star prospect from Garner, N.C., originally narrowed his list to Duke, North Carolina State, South Carolina and Tennessee in July. How- ever, he said at the time that, al- though PSU is outside of his top four, the Lions would receive an official visit this season. This was his second official visit, his first having been to Duke earlier this month. Hines' visit was a bit of a surprise. Since the summer, the Plano, Texas, native has made it clear that Okla- homa, Texas and Texas A&M are three schools that are standing out, but the Nittany Lions are firmly within his top 10. Hines is expected to stay down South, but a good visit this weekend could make things in- teresting, as Hines is expected to make his decision at the end of No- vember. Hamler is no stranger to University Park, as he's taken multiple unofficial visits over the past year. Originally from the Detroit suburbs, he trans- ferred to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., this past summer but suffered a setback at the start of the season, tearing his anterior cruciate ligament. His injury was the main reason he was on campus this weekend, as IMG had a game on Saturday. Heading into this weekend's visit, Michigan State and Oregon were believed to be the teams to beat. The Class of 2018 was also well- represented, as Blue White Illustrated confirmed seven junior prospects who were in attendance and already held an offer from the staff. The most important prospect was running back Ricky Slade of Woodbridge, Va. Slade, the second-ranked running back in 2018, has taken four visits to Penn State dating back to February. Virginia Tech and Ohio State are be- lieved to be Penn State's top competi- tors, but Slade isn't expected to make a decision until next spring, at the earliest. Another notable running back who made the trip was Iverson Clement of Mount Holly, N.J. The nation's sixth- ranked running back in 2018, Clement has been interested in the Nittany Lions since last season, but he wasn't able to make the trip until this past weekend. While it's still very early in his recruitment, Clement has spoken highly of head coach James Franklin and his assistant coaches. If the Lions were to miss out on Slade, Clement has given reporters the im- pression that Penn State is a school he will seriously consider. –RYAN  SNYDER RECRUITING Lions welcome three for official visits

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