Penn State Football: Week 1 studs and duds against Appalachian State

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STATE COLLEGE, PA – OCTOBER 21: Penn State students cheer against the Michigan Wolverines on October 21, 2017 at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

Wide Receiver KJ Hamler

Redshirt freshman KJ Hamler waited two years to hit the field. After injuring his ACL as a senior in high school and redshirting last year at Penn State, Hamler couldn’t wait to get on the field, and he made the most of it. He led the Nittany Lions in receiving with 68 yards, including a spectacular 46-yard fingertip grab that set up a score and later reeling in a McSorley dart to tie the game late in the fourth quarter.

It was Hamler who chose to bring out a deep Michael Rubino kickoff after a bit of indecision. “We’ve got a lot of belief in KJ and have for a long time,” Franklin noted. “On special teams he has the chance to change the game…One thing we tried to do with KJ around halftime, he hadn’t said a word, and I think you guys know the only thing faster than KJ’s feet is his mouth. I said, ‘You need to start talking and having fun because I’m not seeing that.’ He said, ‘Oh, I’m locked in.’ I said, ‘No, I want you to practice the same way you play in games and you don’t act like this in games, so start having some fun, start enjoying yourself,” Franklin bemoaned.

Turns out it was the right call. His 52-yard return gave the ball to the Nittany Lions at the App St 48 yard line and jump started a game-tying drive.

Hamler is still growing and learning, but with his game-changing ability on full display Saturday, he definitely is a weapon opponents will have to factor into their game planning.

Now let’s take a look at some Nittany Lions that didn’t exactly reach their projected expectations for the game.

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