The early departure of Chris Godwin to the NFL may have solved one problem for Penn State.
“Managing playing time,” wide receiver coach Josh Gattis said a few days before the Rose Bowl, “is the hardest thing that I’ve had to deal with this year.”
But the loss of Godwin after three seasons certainly has created another:
How do Gattis and the Nittany Lion offense replace Godwin’s 153 receptions, 2,404 yards, 18 TDs and 27 starts over the past three seasons?
To put an even finer point on it: How do they replace the only wide receiver who was effective in the Rose Bowl?
Yes, Godwin had nine catches for 187 yards and two scores against USC – all Penn State bowl records. But otherwise, what had been a deep Penn State wide receiving corps all season long was anything but in Pasadena.
In the Rose Bowl, DaeSean Hamilton was shut out, DeAndre Thompkins had a pair of catches for only nine yards and Saaed Blacknall, suspended prior to the contest, never suited up. Juwan Johnson played just two snaps at receiver, according to Andrew Callahan of 247Sports. And the official Rose Bowl stat sheet indicates that Irv Charles did not play a down.
50/50 AND 42%
All told, in 2016 Godwin represented 26% of Penn State’s total receptions – and even more telling – 42% of the 141 catches made by Penn State’s wide receivers in 2016.
Beyond the numbers, Godwin’s role as the man who could continually and consistently make the tough, deep catches along the sidelines – and thereby take some of the pressure off of running back Saquon Barkley – will be tough to fill. To say nothing of Godwin’s status as the muscular master of the downfield 50/50 ball and Trace McSorley’s top target. No Joshing.
Seemingly, a cast of thousands remains at wide receiver. There’s Hamilton, a wily veteran who has 161 career catches for a 12.3-yard average and could come back for a fifth year (his fourth on the field). Blacknall is a big-play receiver in his fourth season and a true senior. Thompkins is a redshirt junior, while both Charles and Johnson are redshirt sophomores. So is Brandon Polk, who had played a great deal as a true freshman in 2015, then took a redshirt for 2016 after grabbing a pair of passes in the first three games of the past season.
Plus there’s incoming 2017 verbal commits Kahlee Hamler, Mac Hippenhammer and Cameron Sullivan-Brown.
Despite the departure of Godwin, all those bodies don’t make Gattis’ job any easier. He needs quality and quantity. Godwin, clearly and with the exception of Hamilton and Blacknall in the Big Ten championship game (a combined 14 receptions for 273 yards and two scores), was McSorley’s No. 1 option. Tight end Mike Gesicki, with 47 catches for 668 yards and four TDs, was No. 2.
“Sometimes I look back at games and regret not playing guys enough, but that’s always a challenge when you have six or seven guys who can contribute and could start at any moment,” Gattis said.
“It’s a luxury, but it’s also a pain because unfortunately there’s only one football. When you have the kind of play-makers we do on offense, not only with the receivers but with Saquon (Barkley) and Mike Gesicki, sometimes it’s hard to get that ball spread around. It’s the first time in my career I’ve had this many guys who can play at such a high level. So I’m still going through the process of learning how to manage it and get the guys the right amount of time.”
That Godwin declared early for the NFL did not surprise Gattis. The assistant coach said he talked all season long with both Godwin, a true junior who had a year’s worth of eligibility remaining, and Hamilton, who redshirted in 2013 due to a lingering wrist injury and thus, despite graduating in December, has another year of eligibility remaining.
“We’ve had a lot of discussions with those guys throughout the year,” Gattis said just three days before the Rose Bowl. “Those guys have played a lot of football. They’ve been here for three years, started just about every game and made a ton of catches. There are a lot of guys who leave school after four years that those guys have had in three seasons. They’ve been afforded with the opportunity and the blessing to be able to go through this process and try to make a decision. I’ve really just been a sounding board for those guys. Obviously, I’m biased because I love coaching those guys. I want those guys to be at Penn State. But I have to also provide leadership and mentorship, so I can help them throughout this process. At the end of the day, they’ll make the best decision for themselves, their future and their families.
“It’s not an easy process. When you’re a 20-, 21-year-old and people are pulling at you from all different directions, you can sometimes get misguided in terms of what information you receive. We sit down and tell them what we know, from people we know, with information that we gain and from what the NFL has to say.”
THE 2017 LINEUP
Hamilton’s decision is a tough one. A closer look reveals that his production has dropped each of the past three seasons, as depth at the position has risen. Despite playing injured in the latter stages of his first season, Hamilton caught 82 passes for 899 yards in 2014. He caught 45 passes for 580 yards in 2015 and 34 for 506 in 2016.
Thompkins’ production jumped way up in 2016, from three catches for 33 yards in 2015 to 27 for 440 in 2016. But over the final eight games of this past season, including one he missed due to injury, he had just eight receptions and basically never made an impact against USC, despite lining up for every offensive snap.
Blacknall was a huge impact player in 2016, averaging 231 yards on 15 catches, with a big Big Ten title game – making six receptions for 155 yards with TD receptions of 40 and 70 yards. Hard to believe, but the 2017 season will be Blacknall’s final one for Penn State. Though he’s averaged almost 21 yards per catch in three seasons, he’ll need to play a much bigger role next season – and that means grabbing a lot more passes, in situations both big and ordinary. His annual output has been just 11, 8 and 15 receptions. That’s about one catch per game played. He could, however, match his career production so far – 34 for 707 yards, with five TDs – in his final year. He may need to.
After redshirting in 2015, Charles and Johnson saw steady playing time in 2016, but only had two catches each to show for it. Charles’ 80-yard TD against Minnesota may have saved the season for Penn State, while Johnson had grabs for 27 and 43 yards. James Franklin said great things about Charles’ potential late in 2016; Godwin’s departure opens the door for that to come to fruition.
Meanwhile, the return of Polk and his speed will mean the return of another dimension to the Nittany Lion offense – the threat of the run from the wideout position, especially (in 2015) on jet sweeps. As a freshman in 2015, Polk rushed 18 times for 159 yards and a TD – an 8.8-yard average, while grabbing six passes for 57 yards.
MORE COMPETITION AND JOE MOORHEAD
Gattis expects great things from his group again in 2017 – for two main reasons. One is the competition within the receiving corps, and the other has to do with the man calling the plays.
“We have created an environment where in practice each week that every rep is important,” said Gattis, “because those reps determine how much you’re going to play that week. I’m a big believer in how you practice dictates how much you’re going to play that week. There are no game-day players in our program. You earn everything you get. We have had the luxury of some older guys who have played a lot of football, plus a mix of young guys who are just as talented who are going to have as big of an impact as the older guys.”
Gattis, who was with Franklin at Vanderbilt in 2012-13, is headed into his sixth season working under the Nittany Lion head coach. In addition to Godwin, he has coached consensus All-American Jordan White at Western Michigan; two-time All-American and future Eagles star Jordan Matthews at Vandy; and second-round NFL Draft pick Greg Little as a grad assistant at North Carolina.
A former two-time All-ACC safety at Wake Forest, Gattis spent two years playing with the Chicago Bears in the NFL. So, despite being the youngest member of the PSU full-time coaching staff, he’s been around. And he’s not quite seen an offense like the one coordinator Joe Moorhead brought to Penn State in 2016.
“It starts at the top, with our leadership, especially on the offensive side with Coach Moorhead,” Gattis said. “It is very rare for an offensive coordinator to come in and have the immediate success he’s had. He came in without an ego. Right away in the spring, he got together with us as a staff and he wanted feedback, he wanted input, he wanted things that could possibly be changed to make the offense better. That’s hard to find. A lot of times a guy comes in and he’s had success and says we’re going to do this way because that’s the way he’s always done it and it’s worked. That’s not who Joe is. He’s constantly about getting better and that’s what totally led to our success this year.
“His leadership is phenomenal. He has a great offensive mind. But we have a great offensive staff. We get together each week to put together our game plan. On Mondays, we’re working on the offense from 7 (a.m.) to literally 1 or 2 a.m. We take our time putting together that game plan. We do a really good job as an offensive staff — coach (Ricky) Rahne, with coordinating the passing game, plus coach (Matt) Limegrover and coach (Charles) Huff. We work together to make sure we put our kids in the best position to be successful. And it’s worked.”
MAKING THE GRADE
The trick will be making it work again in 2017.
For Gattis, though, that’s only half the equation.
“Our ultimate goal is that our kids graduate,” said Gattis, who has a degree in sociology to go along with his 12 career picks as a Demon Deacon. “That’s our main focus and our main accomplishment – to help with life after football. If they are afforded the opportunity to play professional football, that’s great. I want my guys to play in the NFL. But at the same time I want them to leave with a degree.”
Gattis is serious about that last line. And proud of it, too.
Of the 19 Nittany Lion football players who won Big Ten academic honors in 2016, six worked directly under Gattis – Gordon Bentley, Blacknall, Godwin, Hamilton, Johnson and Gregg Garrity Jr.
