Running with Lions:
Freshman running back Noah Cain has earned his shot; can he help lift Penn State over Iowa?
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – The first five Penn State games, in part, were to figure out the best running back.
Who would have pegged the rookie from the Deep South to look every bit the winner?
Noah Cain provided glimpses of that possibility in the second half of the narrow Sept. 14 victory over Pittsburgh. He clearly showed as the best among four auditioning Nittany Lions in last weekend’s early knockout of Purdue. (The final score was 35-7.)
It will be telling how coach James Franklin handles this situation in the upcoming primetime meeting at Iowa on Oct. 12.
Second-year tailback Ricky Slade was the starter at the season’s beginning. But the former five-star recruit has shined only as an occasional pass-catcher.
Third-year tailback Journey Brown is the newest No. 1 and the fastest of the four. An 85yard breakaway has been his calling card so far.
True freshmen Cain and Devyn Ford were supposed to be intriguing backups and learners.
But production doesn’t lie. Cain is getting the most of every opportunity, hitting holes more quickly and decisively than his mates, always falling forward for extra ground. He’s lost only 2 yards on his 35 college carries.
He looked the most impressive late in the Pitt game and was the main mover against Purdue. No matter that he’s run third-string each time. Franklin has been married to his rotation, and its understandable, considering the youth at the position and the lack of opportunities in this big-play offense to decipher a true No. 1.
But a shift is coming at the right time.
Cain’s 12 carries against the Boilermakers were the most by any Penn State runner this season. He ground out 105 yards, scored a touchdown and added a 20-yard reception.
He even seemed to finally win over Franklin, to a point.
“He’s very decisive in how he runs. He sticks his foot in the ground, he gets north-south, he breaks tackles. He’s just very consistent.”
Franklin skirted the issue after the game, saying he would stick with all four going forward. Maybe, he conceded, at least a new starter would emerge.
From the Deep South to State College
Actually, Penn State is fortunate to have Cain running the ball at all. He did not pick the Lions until the signing day last December and admitted that he was leaning toward Texas before a last-minute phone call to the Penn State coaches.
Cain graduated from the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, but also lived and played football in Texas and Louisiana.
He is described as a quiet, humble learner.
Away from football, “he’s one of the most laid-back dudes,” said linebacker Micah Parsons. “He just lets everything come to him. He don’t really stress too much.
“(But) on the field you can see all that aggression of him wanting more, just turning him up even more. He just plays with so much anger and aggression. No fear, he’s ready. He’s always game-ready.”
Running the football will be one of the Lions’ biggest concerns against Iowa, which has been nearly as stingy on defense and is notoriously forbidding at home.
Penn State barely escaped their games with the Hawkeyes the past two years, even with star runners Saquon Barkley and Miles Sanders.
Now, the Lions will be entrusting that critical performance to relative unknowns. Brown and Cain are each averaging barely eight carries per game.
No doubt, though, Cain has earned a bigger run in this offense. He even seems built for the kind of hard-knocks night coming in Iowa City. He plays bigger than a 5-10, 206-pound freshman who’s just begun his college growth.
He’s certainly earned the confidence of his teammates.
“Noah, that’s my young boy. I talk to him all the time,” said safety Lamont Wade. “A guy from the South, it’s only right that he runs like he does.
“Noah is a tremendous downhill runner. He doesn’t stop his feet for anything.”
Maybe it’s fitting that one of Penn State’s youngest teams should rely on its youngest running back in its biggest game yet.