Camp Notebook: What We've LearnedCamp Notebook: What We've Learned

Camp Notebook: What We've Learned

It's that time of year when college football makes its triumphant return from a long-awaited off-season. Talking season is approaching comes to an end, preseason awards have been handed out and every Division I FBS program has their eyes on the College Football Playoff.
 
Travel over 1,000 miles northeast from this year's National Championship site and you'll find a culture built on championship habits. A culture head coach James Franklin and his staff have instilled within the Penn State program for the upcoming season. 
 
With the season three weeks away, here's what stood out from the first full week of camp. 
 
Headline of the Week: Battle in the Trenches
If there's one thing to take away from this week, don't focus your questions on a specific position room, instead, understand the physicality of this program. While every coach around the country will praise their teams "tough side" this time of year, the overall competition and physicality is on another level. 
 
One area that has continued to play at a consistently high physical level is the big men up front. Coach Matt Limegroverand coach Sean Spencer have seen their units go toe-to-toe throughout the week. We've seen one-on-one matchups between young talent and experienced veterans continue to go back and forth. When you watch this team in less than a month, don't be surprised if the defensive front starts fast and contributes key plays early. 
 
Quote of the Week: James Franklin
"Our boy Darkwa[Joseph AppiahDarkwa] literally steps off the plane, we hand him equipment and throw him on the field," head coach James Franklin said with a smile on his face. "He's been impressive, but what I've tried to remind my staff about is we can't take anything for granted with him. We found out this week that he's never practiced more than two days in a row on a game week. We want to be there every step of the way for him because we're aware it's a huge transition."
 
Standout Player of the Week: PJ Mustipher
Entering his second season with the NittanyLions, PJ Mustipherhas continued to make himself a presence up front. The McDonoghSchool product has shown numerous flashes of dominance during the first week of camp. Earlier in the week, Mustipherpowered through the offensive line during a one-on-one position drill that left his coaches and teammates uttering the word "wow." While the defensive line has plenty of depth this season, expect Mustipherto see an increased role from a year ago.

Content of the Week: @PennStateFball