Blue White Illustrated

O F F - S E A S O N R E P O R T show off those improvements in the Blue-White Game. He played sparingly in Penn State's spring practice finale, fin- ishing with just three carries for 6 yards. The other scholarship running backs saw limited action, too, as Mark Allen, Brown and Thomas combined for 66 yards on 17 carries. The leading ball-carriers in the game were both quarterbacks, with Trace McSorley gaining 41 yards on six carries for the Blue and Jake Zembiec finishing with 36 yards on his six carries for the White. But even though Sanders and his fellow running backs all had quiet afternoons in the spring game, head coach James Franklin said he was pleased with what he's seen lately from his prospective starter. "He's been really good in his role. He's been patient, but there's also a part where he's been impatient at times, which is how I would want it. I want him to be hungry in getting on the field. He's han- dled things the right way and grown dra- matically," Franklin said. "He could have played a lot of places the past two years, but I think [because of] the combination of how he did play, how he did prepare and who he was behind, training and learning and watching all those champi- onship habits and behaviors, he's pretty far along right now." Sanders said he's been "get- ting really good" at serving as a receiver thanks to all the passes he's caught from both Trace McSorley and the JUGS machine. That could mean the Lions have another great running back coming up through their ranks. Although admittedly spoiled by the routine nature with which Barkley reeled off impressive performances, Franklin isn't putting limits on the possibilities for his next feature tailback. "I know our defensive coaches and our team think really highly of him with what he's done in the weight room his off-sea- son and what he's done on the field so far," Franklin said. "The challenge is, he'll make four people miss and go 80 and we're all like [ho-hum], next play, because we've been a little spoiled with Saquon Barkley the past couple of years. But I do think Miles is in that con- versation, in terms of what he's been able to show and what he's been able to do so far." ■ THE EARLY SHOW Sanders only played briefly in the spring game, carrying just three times for 6 yards before heading to the sideline for the rest of the after- noon. Photo by Patrick Mansell

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