News and Notes: Spring practice set to open at Penn State

Spring is here. Officially, the vernal equinox is still one day away, but on Penn State’s campus 2018 spring football begins today.

A press conference from head coach James Franklin preceded the first practice of the season, which begins at 4:30 Monday afternoon, and here is a quick rundown of the news and notes to come from the 40-minute question-and-answer session.

POSITION CHANGES

Franklin announced four position changes in his opening statement. Three had already been publicized dating back to bowl practices, while the fourth is an offensive lineman who is switching to defense.

Walk-on Hunter Kelly, who spent his first two seasons with the Nittany Lions at mostly center, will practice this spring at defensive tackle. His position on the official roster is listed as OL/DL.

Additionally, redshirt freshman Damion Barber, who was recruited as a defensive end is now a DT. Redshirt sophomore Dae’Lun Darien, who previously played wide receiver is now practicing with the LBs and has been since the bowl game. At 6-foot-4 and 212 pounds, this winter Darien “ran better than he’s run since he’s been here,” Franklin said, but he’s “also bigger and stronger.”

Franklin also confirmed the move of Lamont Wade from cornerback to safety. Franklin said the move had to do with the depth at CB as well as the skill set of the former five-star recruit.

“A big part of it is we feel really good about the depth we have at corner and the guys who have played a lot football or us," Franklin said. "Amani (Oruwariye) and John Reid have played lot of football. A lot of the national (media) are talking bout how we've lost four secondary players and they're at the combine, but there are other guys. Nick Scott has played a lot football for us. John Reid was a multiple year starter until he got his injury. Amani was second-team Big Ten, so those guys have played a lot football for us so we feel really good about the depth that we have and are getting at the corner position. We have a little more question marks at safety and Lamont is a football player. Although he’s not the longest guy in terms of height, he’s put together. He'll hit you. We just felt like that played a little more to his strengths."

MID-YEAR ENROLLEES AHEAD OF SCHEDULE

When referencing the six early high school graduates who enrolled at Penn State in January, Franklin said they have been a pleasant surprise through their first three months of college.

“They’re doing a great job, probably a lot further ahead than I had anticipated them to be,” Franklin said. “Stronger, more aggressive, more competitive, more mature than I anticipated.”

To illustrate their progress, while also paying heed to the athletic department’s new nutritionist Kayla Matrunick, Franklin listed off the differences of body fat in the early enrollees since they’ve arrived.

- TE Zack Kuntz: was 10.4 percent body fat and is now at 9

- LB Micah Parsons: Stayed at 9.5 percent

- LB Nick Tarburton: was 18.7 percent and is no wat 14.2

- LB Jesse Luketa: was 18.3 percent is now at 14.9

- DB Isaiah Humphries: was 15.9 is now at 13.4

- CB Trent Gordon was at 13 percent and is now at 10.1.

“So those guys have worked really hard,” Franklin added. “The group has already changed their bodies already dramatically.”

Nick Scott is the most athletic on the team

The strength staff utilizes a measurement called a T-Score, which is a combination of power clean, squat, bench press, vertical jump, 40-yard dash and body weight.

After testing this winter, Franklin said senior safety and 2017 special teams captain Nick Scott is at the top of the entire program.

“So you can make the argument that Nick Scott is the best athlete on our team from a testing perspective,” Franklin said, “so excited about that.”

MLB AMONG THE MOST IMPORTANT POSITIONS FOR THIS SPRING

Franklin voluntarily listed three positions that are especially of priority this spring, as Penn State looks to fill out a lineup that took a hit by graduation. Those positions are middle linebacker, defensive tackle and kicker.

With three DTs gone and only two returning with experience, Franklin said they’re looking to see what they have from some of the younger guys this spring, including Antonio Shelton and Fred Hansard, to help form a group of five or six to contribute regularly to the DT rotation.

Also of need is identifying a place kicker and kickoff specialist. Carson Landis will have an opportunity this spring to try out for both before true freshman Jake Pinegar arrives on campus this summer. Franklin also mentioned again how punter Blake Gillikin has high school experience as a FG kicker at a high level but lamented for another time how he’d prefer to have them specialize in one role.

Of significant importance, however, is MLB. The move of Parsons, a five-star DE, to LB was made in part to create a larger number of options at the position, which Franklin described as “critical” question mark heading into the spring.

While veterans Jake Cooper and Jan Johnson are in the mix for playing time, Parsons has already been earning the attention of his teammates this spring.

“So far, so good,” Franklin said. “During the recruiting process there got to be a point where some players were like, ‘Coach. Why are we putting up with this?’ I don’t see anyone saying that anymore. In the morning workouts when they’re watching him work, now they see why. He committed, then de-committed and then committed back again. At some point there were some players and coaches questioning if we ought to go on this roller coaster. I haven’t had one person question the roller coaster since he’s shown up on campus. I'd also make the argument to you that he’s done really a good job from a maturity standpoint, from an accountability standpoint and from a teammate standpoint. He’s very respectful to the older guys and he’s working like crazy and competing like crazy, but he’s ben really good. But he has a lot of guys in front of him."

SPRING PRACTICE TIME TO BE CONTROLLED FOR PROVEN RETURNING PLAYERS

A year ago, Saquon Barkley received only a minimal amount of reps during spring practice. This year, it’s going to be guys like DeAndre Thompkins, Juwan Johnson and others who have already proven themselves on gamedays and won’t be asked to risk injury on a routine basis in practice. That, in turn, will allow for more practice time for some of the youngsters who are being relied upon to add depth.

"We'll have a number of guys identified on offense and a number of guys identified on defense that we won’t do any live work with," Franklin said. "They’ve already done enough of that. I think De'Andre Thompkins comes to min. Juwan Johnson comes to mind, guys like that who have played a lot of football for us. There are other guys. We'll have plan for guys who won’t do any live. There will be a list of guys who will do limited live and then there will be a list of guys who we have to figure out who they are and they’re going to get a bunch of reps. Depth will factor into that. Health will factor into that. Experience will factor into all of those decisions."