UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Championships aren't won or lost in April, but the development and practices then are instrumental in reaching those goals. They give coaches, players and fans the opportunity to see what everybody has, and on Saturday at Beaver Stadium, Penn State made progress.
As for game plans, there were no surprises, as the Nittany Lions have yet to get to that stage of installing their offense. Plus, it's a mere practice with people from outside the program looking on, so nothing was going to be shown, anyway.
"Obviously, there's a lot of things that we've got to get cleaned up. But, uh, being back in the stadium, I thought was a real positive for us," James Franklin said. "We'll build on that. I would go out here and say this: Being in that stadium felt great."
Playing in front of 7,521 fans, a crowd comprised of first-year students as well as friends and family members of players and coaches, was the biggest victory, one that worked for players and fans.
"Just the energy today that number of fans provided was outstanding," defensive coordinator Brent Pry said. "Our guys feed on that stuff. That's a big reason a lot of our guys come to Penn State, the environment they get to play in."
Those in attendance were afforded the opportunity to see how the team has developed, but also to see what's to come for Penn State as the spring practice period ends. And this practice showed there's an awful lot to be excited about for the Nittany Lions on the defensive front, as they gear up for the fall, especially from some newcomers.
True freshman Kalen King's performance showed not only why he was one of the top targets in 2021 recruiting class, but why he will be knocking on the door of the starting lineup by September.
"He's got exceptional skills. He's very confident and mature for a freshman, and he's got great instincts," Pry said. "His instincts remind me of (Micah) Parsons a little bit. It just comes really easy to him. He's shown that from Practice One. I don't think there's been a practice go by that we haven't seen some highlights from him."
King added to those highlights against the Penn State offense, picking off passes by Ta'Quan Roberson and Sean Clifford. He returned his interception of Roberson for a touchdown early in the practice and later demonstrated some incredible ball skills in hauling in a Clifford pass in the end zone.
"He's got ball skills. He's made some great plays on the ball. But some guys like him, the ball just likes them," Franklin said. "Like, he's gotten a couple interceptions, where you just throw it to them. He's one of those guys, that part of it is he's always around the ball.
"And I think he's got a pretty good understanding of what we're asking him to do, from a scheme perspective. But you just continue to see that, what you guys saw today. Is it new? We've seen it all spring."
Only 12 practices into his Penn State career, King already has been a thorn in the side of the offense. Come September, he can be a thorn in the side of opposing quarterbacks, too.
"He just makes plays on the ball. And on that one, particularly like, that was my read, (I) stepped into the pocket, because we didn't pick up the blitz correctly," Clifford said of his interception by King. "I left a little short, and he had a play on the ball over our guy. So that's just one of those. He's got to make judgment calls every once in a while. You've got to figure out which one you want, which ones you don't. Great play by him."
Still, King is only a freshman so despite how impressive he's looked in practice, there's still a lot to be learned about playing cornerback at this level.
"He's still learning to position, as far as schematics and some, some techniques," Pry said. "He's got a really good skill set. Very mature, very confident. And great instincts."
While King starred Saturday, fellow newcomer Arnold Ebiketie also shined, as he demonstrated why Penn State sought him out in the transfer portal with his play at defensive end.
"He's got a lot of qualities. He's not as long as some of the guys we've had, but he's got a lot of those same qualities," Pry said. "He's got good athleticism. He can bend. He's got some things that remind me of Shaka (Toney) a little bit. Some things that remind me of some guys we've had. He's just a mature guy that is good student of the game and has a good skill set, as well."
While King came to Penn State right out of high school, Ebiketie took a longer route, first going to Temple before transferring this off-season. It's not an easy transition for transfers like Ebiketie, Johnny Dixon and John Lovett, but at the same time, it's not always easy for the program they are transferring to, either.
"Sometimes when you step outside your program and sign a guy, it's a transfer you just wonder, 'Why didn't it work out? Why is he leaving?' and all those things," Pry said. "These three guys have been great additions."
There's still a lot of football left for Ebiketie and King, but after their performances Saturday, neither could have asked for a better start.
• All four quarterbacks on the roster played, with Roberson and Clifford getting the bulk of the work. Their performances were so-so, in the grand scheme of things, so there's a lot of room for improvement.
Penn State went under center for the first time in what seems to be forever and of course it resulted in a fumbled snap. There's no indication the I-formation will make a return next season, but anything is possible.
Clifford didn't look great, even for a practice, often under-throwing receivers and just being off-kilter. Regardless, it's still the spring and Clifford has had to learn yet another new offense.
"There's a lot of new on his plate right now. And it's one of those things where you kind of don't know until you actually get thrown in there and have to feel it," offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich said. "He's just got to get his eyes where they need to be more consistently on every play, but that's going to happen with his work ethic and this determination. You know, he's a smart guy. It's just a matter of time. It's a matter of reps. And that's what that's what the spring's all about."
Will Clifford be able to rebound from last season? That won't be answered for quite a while, but he's at least got the right mindset.
"I've really started to focus and hone in this year on just taking it one day at a time, because that's all that I can control," Clifford said. "I can't control what happens, you know, game day against Wisconsin, right now. Like, that's out of my control. But at the same time, I can control what I do tomorrow."
• Up front, the offensive line was up against a tough defensive line, but its members proved they were up to the task and have built on their success of late last season. A position group desperate for spring practices, the offensive line looks to be light-years ahead of where it was last season and that will be huge moving forward.
"I think the offensive line has really done some some nice things overall this spring. We'll have to watch the tape from today," Franklin said. "I thought Brent, like he always does, did a pretty good job of overloading the box to make some of the run situations challenging, and that's where we're able to have some success getting the ball in the perimeter in some of the RPO-type type plays. ... (Offensive line coach Phil) Trautwein's got that group really headed in the right direction and Mike Miranda and Rasheed Walker have done a great job, from a leadership perspective."
• Saturday's practice was not final practice of the spring, in fact it was only the practice No. 12, which means the Nittany Lions still have three more available during the spring period.
"It's our normal schedule. So I think we'll go again on Monday, we'll go again on Wednesday, and then we're going to go on Friday," Franklin said. "That's how we had it normally. That's how we had it scheduled."
It all sets up for Friday night to be the final practice of the spring, which the university will allow senior students to attend.
"We'll go Friday night, because I always like to get some practices in the spring as well as in summer camp under the lights because I think that's another thing to get used to," Franklin said.
