Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/797655
T here's still a lot of work to be done. That was one of James Franklin's messages when he addressed a meeting of the Penn State board of trustees in February. In addition to the program's academic accomplishments and its involvement in various commu- nity service initiatives, Franklin talked about its on-field ambitions. Those am- bitions are vast, and they are looking a lot more realistic in the aftermath of an 11-3 season and a No. 7 spot in the final Asso- ciated Press poll. But they won't come to fruition if the team doesn't continue to make strides. "We're a work in progress," Franklin cautioned. "Like any other program, we'll have ups and downs. We're determined to build on last year and continue to develop young men academically, athletically, so- cially and spiritually so that they become leaders in all their future endeavors." Noting that Penn State lost only one starter on offense to graduation, and only three on defense, Franklin said that Penn State was "headed in the right di- rection." "Now is the time for us to forge ahead," he said, "to take advantage of the mo- mentum, the opportunities that we have for our future." The Nittany Lions will be looking to take a step forward this spring. But even after a breathtaking return to form in 2016, a number of questions remain as the team gets set to open its off-season drills. Here's a look at five: 1 How much better can PSU's o+ense get in year two of Joe Moorhead's tenure? A lot, actually. The Nittany Lions may have enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2016, but they still finished 21st in the Football Bowl Subdivision in scoring (37.6 points per game) and 49th in total offense (432.6 yards per game). Offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead said last November, a few days after Penn State's 62-24 shellacking of Purdue, that he was "pleased but not satisfied" with the of- fense's performance to that point in the sea- son. He had a lot more to be pleased about in the team's final six games, as it averaged 42.8 points and 486.7 yards against Iowa, In- diana, Rutgers, Michi- gan State, Wisconsin and Southern California. But Moorhead's midseason appraisal is surely still opera- tive four months later. Heading into | S P R I N G P R A C T I C E P R E V I E W FIVE QUESTIONS As always, there's plenty of uncertainty as PSU's spring drills begin SCHOOL'S IN SESSION Moor- head's offense ranked 21st na- tionally in scor- ing last season with an average of 37.6 points per game. Photo by Nate Bauer