When week one rolls around
on that opening Saturday against Kent State, the James Franklin era will finally begin.
What do I mean by that? I mean that this season is the season that Penn State
fans should have been looking forward to since Franklin stepped foot on campus.
Franklin is the type of coach who needs to have his team on the field. He needs to have every position filled with
players that will buy into what he’s selling in those living rooms. He’s
starting to get that and in an upcoming season that isn’t necessarily a make or
break, but this might be the biggest season since 2005. Here’s why.
The Movement. Since
2006 the SEC has won 8 National Titles. But their influence stretches far beyond
people’s hatred for the conference. In today’s college football world, you need
to have an SEC-like program. You need to have the speed and athletes on the
field. You need to have the facilities that when recruits step on campus their
reaction is speechless. Most importantly, you need to have the fans buy in. The
fan bases in college football are restless and ruthless and the slightest bit
of discomfort will cause them to let out a soul-crushing post on the message
boards. (I’ve seen that first hand from Penn State fans.) The two non-SEC teams
who’ve captured titles, Florida State and Ohio State, had one thing in common,
they were built like an SEC team. Let’s look at Ohio State; Urban Meyer, who
coached two championship teams at Florida, had essentially the same team in Columbus
as he did in Gainesville: an option attack, strong running game, speed on the
outside, and a strong defense littered with NFL talent. It’s a ‘keeping up with
the Jones’’ scenario where in order to compete with the best of the best you
need to have the best of the best and. Example A: Alabama
‘Tis the Season? This
is the third season under James Franklin and it could be the most important one
out of any season he coaches in Happy Valley. In the early 2000’s the Nittany
Lions went through a stretch of two seasons in 2003 and 2004 where the product
on the field was unbearable at times, much like it was the last two seasons.
But in 2005 that all changed and Penn State was back on the map and made it up
to 3rd in the rankings. This season has the feeling of the one that
could turn the program around. Franklin is starting to get his guys on the team and get them acclimated into what he is trying
to do and this season you could start to see glimpses of the direction the team
is going, and that’s back to the top.
Heisman Material. Every
so often a team has a player come around that for the 3 to 4 years they’re on
campus they have all eyes on them and are the focal point of the football
program. If that player comes on strong as a freshman they will certainly catch
the eyes of coaches, players, and fans across the country. Many believed that
former Penn State and now New York Jets quarterback Christian Hackenberg was
that player. Before, during, and after his freshman season the hype meter rose
to heights that few Penn State players have been at, but with coaching and
offensive changes he failed to meet those expectations which many believed
would end with Big Ten Championships and a potential Heisman Trophy. Enter
Saquon Barkley. The sophomore burst onto the scene as a true freshman last
season setting the Penn State freshman rushing record with 1,070 yards and 7
touchdowns. Although many people across the country know who Saquon Barkley is,
he will have to compete with the likes of Heisman favorites Leonard Fournette
of LSU and Christian McCaffrey of Stanford for the title of best running back
in the country. With the uncertainty at quarterback heading into the 2016
season Barkley will be called upon to lead the offense and while last season
was as much of a coming out party as you could ask for, this season can
ultimately put him on the Heisman map for good.
Outlook. James
Franklin is starting to get the pieces in place to compete with the likes of
the Ohio States, Michigan States, and now the Michigan’s of the Big Ten. Saquon
Barkley is the cornerstone of the football program now and will be called on to
be the man going forward. Something all Penn State fans should be excited
about.
