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rusher with 198 yards on 21 carries and two rushing TDs. His longest run is a 45- yarder, and he has completed 2 of 3 passes for 36 yards. On defense, it's not as easy to pick the freshman player who has made the biggest contribution. But with lineback- ers Nyeem Wartman-White, Brandon Bell and Jason Cabinda all su;ering in- juries that caused them to miss a sub- stantial portion of the season, and with Carl Nassib, Austin Johnson and An- thony Zettel moving on to the NFL, Penn State needed and received better- than-anticipated production from red- shirt freshman Kevin Givens at the three-technique defensive tackle posi- tion and true freshman Cameron Brown at linebacker. Givens has played in every game this season, totaling 24 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. He ranks fourth on the team in tackles for loss, trailing only Garrett Sickels (12.5), Evan Schwan (8.5) and Bell (7.5). His 4.5 sacks put him in third place behind Sickels and Schwan, both of whom have six. Givens :ts perfectly into Penn State's six-man rotation at defensive tackle and has exceeded expectations with his per- formance this season. His focus heading into the o;-season should be on gaining weight and strength. If he ends up play- ing at around 290 pounds in 2017, he will be an even bigger force for the Nittany Lions. Brown has played in every game on special teams and started at linebacker against Minnesota and Maryland in early October. He has 29 tackles and one tackle for loss and has been credited with an assist on a sack. In addition to Givens and Brown, three other redshirt freshmen have had a major impact on Penn State's defense this season. Those players are: • RYAN BUCHHOLZ A 6-6, 270- pounder, Buchholz has played in 12 games, seeing action at both the strong- side defensive end position and the three-technique spot. Penn State tries to get its four best pass rushers on the :eld in third-and-long situations, so it makes sense to use Buchholz at defen- sive tackle. He heads to the Rose Bowl with 16 tackles, including 4.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. • SHAREEF MILLER The 6-5, 255- pound defensive end has 22 tackles, in- cluding 5.5 tackles for loss and two sacks. He's been part of a :ve-man rota- tion at defensive end along with Sickels, Schwan, Buchholz and Torrence Brown. • ROBERT WINDSOR Standing 6-4, 305 pounds, Windsor has played in every game, recording 22 tackles in his :rst season of action at the one-technique spot. He's part of the Lions' six-man ro- tation at defensive tackle, teaming with three-technique DT Antoine White. The other pairings are Parker Cothren/Cur- tis Cothran and Givens/Tyrell Chavis. That brings us to the special teams units. Charles, Johnson, linebacker/safety Jarvis Miller, corner- back Garrett Taylor and strong safety Ayron Monroe have all played key roles on the punt and kicko; coverage teams, but the freshman who has made the biggest impact in this area has been punter Blake Gillikin. Gillikin is the Big Ten's third-leading punter, with an average of 42.1 yards. His longest punt covered 69 yards, and 21 of his punts have ended up inside the opponent's 20-yard line. Gillikin has 10 punts of 50 or more yards, but the most impressive aspect of his game has been his four-second-plus hang time. I believe Gillikin has been the key performer on Penn State's special teams. People keep asking me how many red- shirt freshmen and true freshmen will end up playing next fall. No one knows the answer to that question yet, but I will say this: With players such as tight end Danny Dalton, o;ensive linemen Will Fries, Alex Gellerstedt and Michal Menet, defensive backs Anthony John- son and Zechariah McPhearson and de- fensive linemen Ellison Jordan, Daniel Joseph and Shane Simmons all waiting and hoping to make an impact in 2017, I'm convinced that the number could be as high as 15 or even 20. As Franklin said a

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