Blue White Illustrated

F A S T F O R W A R D >> A N E A R L Y L O O K only able to reach the warning track. His underthrown pass was intercepted by Leon McQuay III, setting up USC's win- ning field goal. The Lions hadn't needed 30 yards at that moment; they had only needed 9 to keep the chains moving, and even that was more of a want than a need. But coach James Franklin didn't second-guess the call afterward. "There was a discussion on the headset [whether] to run the ball and play for overtime," he said. "But that's not really who we've been all year long." No, they most definitely weren't. The Nittany Lions were the kind of team that just kept coming at you, regardless of the score or the weather or the down- and-distance situation. They tested you no matter what the conventional wis- dom said to do. Consider that McSor- ley's late interception in the Rose Bowl was thrown to the same spot on the field as his previous pass, which was nearly intercepted by McQuay. That's fearless play-calling. But what do you expect? This is an offense that operates out of the shotgun even when it's in the victory formation. Will their Rose Bowl experience make the Lions more timid next season? Seems unlikely. As of this writing, they were set to lose only two starters: wide- out Chris Godwin and center Brian Gaia. McSorley and Barkley will be back for their junior seasons, as will six linemen with at least three games of starting ex- perience and 12 of the 13 players who caught a pass in 2016. Yes, someone will have to step into Godwin's shoes. No, that won't be an easy task, as no receiver in school history has ever had a game like the one the junior wideout enjoyed in Pasadena. But the Lions do have a couple of former four-star prospects in rising sophomores Irvin Charles and Juwan Johnson. As DaeSean Hamilton said of Johnson, "He's a freak. I wish I had the body, the build, the speed that he has as a receiver. He's probably the most talented guy in our room. The sky's really the limit for him." Moorhead will be back, too, and that may be the best news of all. When he was head coach at Fordham, he made drastic improvements to the Rams' of- fense during the 2012 season, more than doubling their scoring average in his first year with the program. But there was still plenty of room for improvement, and the Rams did improve. Their scoring average went from 31.2 points per game in 2012 to 37.6 the following year. Their total offensive output went from 435.7 yards per game to 515.3. The Lions averaged 37.6 points and 432.6 yards this past season, ranking third in the Big Ten in the former cate- gory and second in the latter. Moorhead has now shown that his approach can Penn State coach James Franklin was named the winner in January of the Woody Hayes Award, which is presented to the college football coach of the year by the Touchdown Club of Columbus, Ohio. Franklin is the second Nittany Lion mentor to win the award, joining Joe Paterno, who was a four-time win- ner (1978, 1982, 1986, 2005). In addition, kicker Tyler Davis will be presented with the Vlade Award, which goes to the nation's most accurate kicker. Early enrollee Mike Miranda will be recognized as a Buckeye Blue Chip, an honor that goes to the top high school players in Ohio. Previously, Franklin was named the Sporting News National Coach of the Year. He is the second Penn State head coach to win the honor, joining Paterno, who claimed the award in 2005. He was also selected as the College Sports Mad- ness National Coach of the Year. Addi- tionally, he was a finalist for the 2016 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year award as presented by the Football Writers As- sociation of America, the AP National Coach of the Year and the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award. Franklin guided the Nittany Lions to their first Big Ten championship since 2008 and fourth overall (1994, 2005, 2008, 2016). Penn State also made its fourth appearance in the Rose Bowl (1923, 1995, 2009, 2017). The third-year head coach has earned Big Ten Coach of the Year honors from The Associated Press and the confer- ence's media. Franklin's Dave McLain Big Ten Coach of the Year honor marks the fifth time a Penn State head coach has won the award, as he joined Paterno (1994, 2005, 2008) and Bill O'Brien (2012). BATES LAUDED Offensive lineman Ryan Bates was selected to the Football Writers Association of America All- Freshman team. He was also named a Freshman All-American by USA Today and claimed spots on the All-Big Ten freshman teams from BTN.com and ESPN.com. Bates was a stalwart on the Lions' of- fensive front, finishing his debut season as one of two linemen to start every game. (Senior center Brian Gaia was the other.) He opened the season at left guard before sliding over to left tackle for the final four-plus games due to in- juries to his fellow linemen. PSU FINISHES 7TH It's official. Penn State was one of the 10 best teams in the country in 2016. The Nittany Lions were rated No. 7 in the final Associated Press poll, which was released Jan. 10 follow- ing Clemson's 35-31 victory over Ala- bama in the national championship game. In addition to Penn State, which fin- ished 11-3, three teams from the Big Ten concluded the season ranked among the nation's top 10. Ohio State finished just above the Lions at No. 6 in the final poll, while Wisconsin and Michigan were Nos. 9 and 10, respectively. ■ Franklin wins Touchdown Club's Woody Hayes Award

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