Nothing wakes a guy up like no longer being the biggest fish in the pond. Enter Kaden Saunders, baptized in the same sort of rude awakening that true freshman all across America get as they enter a major college football program. This is hard.
“I was just losing every drill I wasn’t used to losing,” Saunders said on Wednesday following practice. “So it kind of got to me a little bit.”
Fast forward to a year later and Saunders looks bigger, faster and more confident. As Penn State’s primary punt returner Saunders is finding his niche, but he might find it in Penn State’s receiving game as well, as the door of the No. 3 receiver spot continues to rotate. Saunders showed flashes against Illinois with two catches for 19 yards, and could show even more as the season rolls along.
At 5-foot-10, Saunders isn’t the biggest target, but as former Nittany Lion KJ Hamler showed at just 5-foot-9, you don’t need to be a big guy to get the job done, especially if you have strength and speed.
“I think he’s really starting to build the confidence and acquire the strength,” Penn State coach James Franklin said earlier in the week. “I think the big thing for him as a true freshman is he was an under-sized guy, but was also needed the time in the weight room to develop and get stronger. Now he’s an under-sized guy, which is fine, but he’s got the strength and the confidence to go out and play the way we need him to play. I think that will just continue to grow throughout his career. I think it’s a really good starting point to build on.
“Then on offense, he’s shown signs as well in games and in practice that that role will continue to grow. But we’re very pleased, we’re very pleased with Kaden. He’s been a really good teammate. He’s got a huge smile on his face. He’s taken a very important role and growing in it.”
Growing is perhaps a lost art in the narrative building of a football season. Saunders has plenty of time to turn into the player most people think the former four-star prospect can become. He has only been on campus for a year after all, but the more he plays the more you see what Saunders brings to the table. The more you get the sense that he won’t be watching from the sidelines for long.
“I feel like I’m in a way better spot mentally and physically than I was last year,” Saunders said. “Just getting that experience being able to be on special teams and find my way onto the field to help the offense is only gonna continue to increase my confidence.”
And the more Saunders’ confidence grows, so too will his impact.
