Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/847744
2 0 1 7 S E A S O N P R E V I E W supposed to, but he finds a way to get the ball downfield. BWI Do you anticipate that improve- ments on the offensive line this year will reduce the necessity of some of that? MOORHEAD I think, No. 1, the offensive line did a fantastic job last year. We played, I think, 10 different linemen and seven different starting combinations, and we were able to run the ball and we were able to protect. I think part of it is a little bit better protection, part of it is a little better awareness by the quarter- back, and part of it is a byproduct of us throwing the ball down the field so much that it's not a three-step rhythm hitch, it's not a three-and-one. Some of these are two-hitch throws where you have to wait to read the coverage and deliver the ball where it needs to go. We could be a little bit firmer in the protection, and the quarterback can make a little bit more decisive reads and throw on footwork, but we take a lot of shots down the field that take a lot of time to develop. The adage that Coach [Matt] Limegrover and I have when we talk about the O-line is that it's going to pro- tect for as long as it takes. So if it's one second, two seconds, it's five seconds, they're going to hold on until the ball is released. And I think they pride them- selves on that. They can protect as long as it takes us to throw balls down the field. With a lot of our throws that end up being pushed down the field, a lot of it is coverage-related. If we get a certain coverage, the ball goes to the deeper route and then Trace kind of works his way back down in the progression. Not just Trace, but with the quarterbacks, one [important] thing is discerning the line between aggressive and reckless. We want to continue to push the envelope. We don't want a game manager. We want a kid who is going to go out there and win the game for us, but at the same time not make decisions that are reck- less. Everything is coverage-related, everything is based on footwork, so if the route that you're throwing to is not open on the footwork that you're sup- posed to throw it on, you're supposed to exhaust your progressions quickly, and then it's run to throwaway. So the balls that are incomplete downfield, he's throwing them into coverage. He should be working down and finding the shorter route or the checkdown. BWI Is it fair to say, though, that he likes that? MOORHEAD I like it, so yeah. Ab- solutely. I can speak for him. The quar- terback room likes the fact that we push the ball down the field, and attitude re- flects leadership and that comes from me. So yeah, we certainly are in agree- ment in the quarterback room that throws down the field are pretty cool. BWI You have a pretty good running back. MOORHEAD Yeah, he's not bad. BWI How do you manage his expecta- tions and what everyone has for him against what inevitably teams are going to try to do against him? MOORHEAD Coach [Charles] Huff does a fantastic job with Saquon and with the running back room. He's very detail- oriented. They talk about goals, they talk about expectations and the process it takes to achieve them, but I'm not going to put a ceiling on Saquon Barkley. If he feels that he can rush for 2,500 yards in a season, then I want him to feel like he can do that. Now, he's not a kid that's ever men- tioned to me or I've ever heard him talk about individual goals. I think just like everyone else on the offense, his success will come within the construct of the scheme, and as long as we're scoring points and winning games, I think his numbers and his production will take care of themselves. I honestly, truly be- lieve that as long as we're winning games and the offense is performing well, he'll be as happy with 50 yards as he will be with 250. Obviously 250 is better. But his numbers and his produc- tion will take care of themselves based on his talent and our ability to put him in the position to be successful. BWI Is it unique to have superstar play- ers who seem to embrace that selfless approach as well as they do? MOORHEAD No. I think it stems from the culture of the team that Coach [James] Franklin has created. It doesn't matter how we get it done, as long as it gets done. I think the kids in the offen- sive room see that on any given day, it can be their day. In the Big Ten Champi- onship Game, it was Saeed [Blacknall]. In the Iowa game, it was Saquon and a couple others. Usually it's not just one. Usually it's two or more, but I think they kind of thrive on the fact that, go ahead, take away the receivers. Trace, Saquon and Michael Gesicki will be able to find ways to win the game, or vice versa. With team success comes individual recognition, so the better we do as a team, the better we do as an offense, the better everyone is going to be rewarded on an individual basis. BWI You said last summer that Mike would do well. What was it about him that led you to believe that everything would come to fruition? MOORHEAD Size, athletic ability, work ethic. Coach [Ricky] Rahne does a fan- tastic job with him, and I think [it also owes to] our ability to put him in the po- sition to be successful and his ability to make a play when his number was called. Just like with the rest of the guys on offense, when it started happening, the confidence started building. And in- stead of worrying if you could make the play, you were excited about when you were going to make your next one. The guy has a unique skill set. He runs routes and catches passes like a receiver, and he's improving his blocking like a tight end. So he's really been a guy who has combined all the traits that you're looking for. BWI You lost a key wideout, but the perception is that this group is still one of the better ones in the conference at least. Do you see it as a collectively strong group? MOORHEAD It's as deep and talented, on a relative scale, as any wideout group that I've been around. You just go through the names, and you have Saeed, DeAndre [Thompkins], DaeSean [Hamilton], [Brandon] Polk is a guy who SEE MOORHEAD PAGE 100