Blue White Illustrated

of anyone on the team both on the prac- tice 8eld and with extra time in the weight room." Johnson said he learned to pay atten- tion to details this spring, and in the process began to understand his true potential. "It's just the little things and little details that I focus on now that I didn't before," he said. "A lot of times you would see me drop open passes, and there were a lot of reviews even in high school that I had inconsistent hands. I would always waver and say, 'That's not me.' But it was obviously true. I would make incredible catches, but I would drop easy catches. So I worked hard this o9-season to catch everything within my reach. I can be proud of what I ac- complished this spring, but I still have a lot to work on." Johnson will have a big hand in replac- ing Godwin at the X position, but it won't be his responsibility alone. As Franklin indicated, both Blacknall and Charles will be part of that process. "You need a guy who is a playmaker" to replace Godwin, Franklin said. "But there are a lot of ways to do it. We've had guys like Allen Robinson who have been able to high-point the ball and go get it in tra:c, but you can have other guys who can just blow the top o9 the cover- age or make people miss and do it that way and go 80 yards, or big, physical guys who can go get it." Replacing Godwin will be a job for more than one player. Hamilton and Thompkins will be part of the equation, but it will be Johnson, Blacknall and Charles who will do most of the heavy li;ing. All three stand at least 6-3, 215 pounds, and they all have 4.5 or better 40-yard speed. Together they have the ability to e9ectively replace Godwin. The key will be to let them use their in- dividual talents rather than trying to turn them into clones of Godwin. On defense, Farmer is my choice as the player who looks most ready for a breakout season. He had a fabulous o9- season, with a great deal of hard and in- tense work in the weight room during winter workouts and spring practice – work that added nearly 20 pounds to his frame. Now listed at 6-1, 231 pounds, he is still one of the faster players on Penn State's roster. Farmer, Bowen and Jarvis Miller should provide the Nittany Lions with the fastest two-deep outside line- backer corps in the program's history. All have at least 4.55-second 40-yard speed. "I think Koa Farmer was a real pleasant surprise for us this spring," Franklin said. "We knew he had it in him. It was just a question of when that light was going to go on for him." Farmer showed glimpses of his talent last fall, playing in all 14 games and starting two. He totaled 29 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. Perhaps the biggest surprise on de- fense this past spring was the play of Monroe at the strong safety position, where he battled Nick Scott and Troy Apke for the chance to replace Malik Golden. Monroe played in 10 games last year but was limited by some nagging injuries. When healthy, he was one of the top performers on the punt- and kicko9-coverage units, making 10 spe- cial teams tackles. Monroe was one of the stars of the Blue-White Game, with 8ve tackles, one pass breakup and an interception that he returned 40 yards. He has gotten bigger and stronger and now weighs 207 pounds. But next to Farmer, I believe Miller has the best opportunity to be the de- fense's breakout player of the year. He did a superb job as Sickels' backup at the defensive end position last fall, and he followed it up with a strong per- formance in the spring game, finishing as the leading tackler on the Blue team with seven stops, including three tack- les for loss and two sacks. He put pres- sure on the White team's quarterbacks throughout the first three quarters of the game. "He's becoming a leader in that room, running to the ball, doing things and working hard," Penn State defensive line coach Sean Spencer said. "He's a big ef- fort guy. He's always been that way since he's been here, and he has really taken his game to the next level." ■

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