April 20, 2018
RELATED LINKS: Parking Information & Lot Closures I Blue Roster I White Roster I Spring Practice Central
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State football is set to cap its 2018 spring season with the annual Blue-White spring game Saturday afternoon. In the 15th and final spring practice of the season, the Nittany Lions will take to Beaver Stadium for a 3 p.m. outing with live coverage on the Big Ten Network.
In a different place than perhaps any spring season under the head coach of Penn State head coach James Franklin, the Nittany Lions have a mixture of depth and veteran experience, all responsible for driving yet another productive slate of practices.
On the heels of a second consecutive 11-win season though, what's next for Penn State following a series of departures that has more than 10 former Nittany Lions headed toward the upcoming NFL Draft is especially intriguing.
Among the intrigue of course is the addition of six early enrollees, a vital group who arrived in Happy Valley at just the right time to work their way into the mix at a variety of critical-need positions.
"I'd make the argument that this is where the mid-semester guys are so valuable because without them, it would obviously change the way we would run the game and the way we run spring practice," Franklin said earlier this week after breaking down the format of the spring game.
Released yesterday, Penn State's blue and white rosters feature mostly one's on the blue squad with two's and three's competing for spots assigned to the white team.
While Franklin described Saturday's Blue-White game as one final opportunity for total team evaluations, it's whole new game day experience for Penn State's newest Nittany Lions.
The Nittany Lions took spring practice 12 to Beaver Stadium last weekend, as all six early enrollees passed through the tunnel under a completely different circumstance.
"I went up to Coach Franklin and I said this is what I committed here for," linebacker Micah Parsons said. "Even with the fans not there, I just imagined them from when I was a recruit and it was just insane."
For tight end Zack Kuntz, it was special moment among the early enrollees as they gazed around before eventually finding each other on the field, this time for practice instead of a visit.
Ask any Nittany Lion early enrollee and they'll describe the process of transitioning from a high school senior to a college freshman as anything but easy.
"They've all done very well," Penn State defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Brent Pry said. "They work, they want to do right. They want to do everything they can to compete with the old guys. They want to play. That's why they enrolled early. They want to play in the fall, they don't want to redshirt."
The willingness from the group to compete at the highest level from winter workouts on through spring ball has been both obvious and impressive to staff members to teammates.
"About a week before I came here, Coach Pry said winter workouts are pretty tough but I was thinking it would be like a normal hard work out that I've been through," Parsons said. "That first one was probably one of the most intense workouts I've ever been through in my life."
Parsons can remember his first few winter workouts where he often finished last. Progressing through the winter, he worked his way toward the middle.
"I think I stayed right in the middle all the way until the last winter work out," Parsons said. "I came in and I didn't get any sleep the night before because I was thinking about the last winter work out. I said to Coach Pry, I'm going to come in top five in this 400 lap."
Fueled by his work ethic and a desire to earn his spot from the very beginning, Parsons finished in the top four.
A quick glance up at the record holders listed the wall inside the Lasch weight room already has Parsons on it. Listed under linebackers, a 4.52 in the 40-yard dash in winter 2018 - Parsons, M.
In the thick of spring practices, there were still wake-up call moments, learning to adjust to the speed and tempo of the collegiate game and of course, an experienced offensive line.
"I came in off a blitz and Chasz Wright, a fifth-year senior, 346 pounds, I was running across the middle a little high, but not too high, and I tried to come in and he just knocked my block right off," Parsons said.
In his transition from Mike to Will linebacker though, Parsons soaked in everything from his teammates, learning best by listening.
"As a young guy you just listen and learn," Parsons said.
For someone like Kuntz, he listened when his veteran teammates told him find time for the JUGS machine.
"I try to get 100 balls before practice, 100 balls during practice from reps and everything and 100 balls after practice," Kuntz said.
His only problem?
Being the only early enrollee on the offensive side of the ball doesn't always match his schedule with his fellow newcomers. So Kuntz opts to work alongside his lifting partner, junior tight end Danny Dalton.
Within the first week of arriving on campus Kuntz met with the quarterbacks to begin learning the offense, taking points from quarterback Trace McSorley before putting them into action on the field.
"Coming early I knew it was going to be a challenge but I knew it was going to be an advantage as well," Kuntz said. "Being able to get reps right away, I'm learning it by physically doing it. If I do something wrong, now I know if I'm in that situation again, this is what I do should do instead of what I did before."
Come Saturday, both Parsons and defensive end Nick Tarburton will represent the blue team. Kuntz, along with safety Isaiah Humphries, cornerback Trent Gordon and linebacker Jesse Luketa are all slotted on the white roster.
Blue-White Format
Penn State's Blue-White game features the Nittany Lion roster split into two teams (blue and white) with quarterbacks wearing the opposite jersey color of their team. With regular scoring, all four quarters will be 11 minutes in length with a running clock, and the final 2:00 of each half at game timing. Stoppages will occur for penalties and change of possession. Each team will have two timeouts per half at 45 seconds each, with an additional 1:30 timeout at the first change of possession after the 6-minute mark in each quarter. There will also be a 2:30 break at the end of the first and third quarters.
Autograph Session Returns
Penn State fans will have the opportunity to receive autographs from their favorite Nittany Lions Saturday from 12:15 - 1:05 p.m. outside five stadium gates at Beaver Stadium. Team posters will also be available while supplies last.