Blue-White Practice Takeaways: A freshman shines amid rainy conditions

By Greg Pickel

Penn State put its first spring practice of the Matt Campbell era in the books on Saturday on a rainy, raw day at Beaver Stadium. Some fans braved the elements to watch the Lions go through drills, but not nearly as many as there would have been on a nice day. Regardless, the Lions did not feel like they wasted a day by trekking away from their football headquarters at the Lasch Building and Holuba Hall to work out, and that was the new head coach’s goal from the start.

“To be able to, in a downpour today, see this crowd and the amount of people that came out to support our football program, I just think every opportunity to show our young men in the program how special it is to play here at Penn State and what it means [is important],” Campbell said. “There are’t many places where you get to be able to be a part of something like this.”

Here are my top takeaways from the day

1. What was the day like?

I’m well aware that many Penn State fans were disappointed that there was no television coverage of this practice. That’s because the areas where the TV trucks set up and where the broadcasters announce from are part of the ongoing stadium construction. So, let’s start there.

The Nittany Lions disembarked from their familiar blue buses at the corner of Curtin and Porter roads at about 11:45 a.m. Unlike his predecessor, Campbell did not immediately take a lap around the field upon arrival. Instead, he, his staff, and their players made their way to the field over the ensuing 10 to 15 minutes. After some light warmup work in groups that were broken down by position, a typical pregame routine that you’ve seen Penn State do in the past took place: a team stretch, followed by position-specific drills, and finally some 11-on-11 action.

From there, the script went according to plan. After some individual skill work, seven-on-seven action began for skill players while the offensive and defensive lines engaged in one-on-one battles. Sophomore defensive end LaVar Arrington II, using a swim move to glide by redshirt freshman offensive lineman Owen Alciene, was one I had circled. In another noteworthy moment, new defensive tackle Siale Taupaki blew through a double team with an impressive bull rush. It was an impressive show of force by the super senior, who transferred to Penn State from UCLA in January.

From there, 11-on-11 work closed out the practice. The defense mostly got the better of the offense in those sessions. You can read more notes from the day in both our live blog and the live thread on the Lions Den message board.

2. A freshman stole the show

We put the spotlight on Penn State freshman safety Josiah Zayas back in our Friday Five, and he did not disappoint on Saturday. The New Jersey native picked off an ill-advised screen pass by true freshman quarterback Peyton Falzone and returned it to the end zone for six. He also had a sack and a key fourth-down stop on which he stacked up freshman running back D’Antae Sheffey.

Zayas’ work did not come against the first-team offense, but it illustrated why the coaching staff is excited about him.

3. The offense will look different come the fall

No offense to Division III transfer Connor Barry, who was thrust into the QB1 role shortly after arriving on campus because redshirt senior Rocco Becht and redshirt freshman Alex Manske are recovering from injuries, but it’s safe to say what we saw on this Saturday and what will see on the first Saturday in September will be two very different things. Barry did make some nice throws in seven-on-seven action, including splitting defenders to find redshirt freshman tight end Brian Kortovich for six. Becht took part in those drills, too, but Barry took all of the first-team 11-on-11 reps, which featured more handoffs than not.

Considering that receivers Chase Sowell and Brett Eskilsden join Becht, tight end Andrew Rappleyea, and offensive tackle Anthony Donkoh on the shelf this spring for live work, among others, it’s safe to say that things will look much different in September. Saturday only reinforced that.

4. Odds and ends from the Penn State Blue-White practice

—Ryan Barker continues to be Mr. Perfect. He made all of his kicks in the rain, including a 39-yard boot that split the uprights.

—James Peoples has some shiftiness and speed in his game. Offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser will certainly find a way to use the junior, who transferred from Ohio State in January.

—Ben Brahmer will be a matchup nightmare for some Big Ten teams. Part of the influx of Iowa State talent, the 6-foot-7, 252-pound senior has very sticky hands to go along with his towering frame.

–It’s easy to see why Penn State’s coaches think Iowa State defensive end transfer Ike Ezeogu is on an upward trajectory. The redshirt senior has great explosion off the edge and would have sacked Barry on one 11-on-11 rep if this were a real game.