Penn State opened spring football practices last week with a good handful of questions worth addressing if the team is going to succeed in 2022. One of the questions at the top of the list for offensive coordinator [autotag]Mike Yurcich[/autotag] is focused squarely on how to improve the run game after a dismal 2021 campaign.
Following a spring practice on Wednesday evening, Yurcich was asked about head coach [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag]’s previous comments about being committed to running the football better in 2022. Not surprisingly, Yurcich echoed the sentiment and reinforced the idea the whole approach to running the ball has to improve.
“I think it’s very accurate,” Yurcich said when asked about Franklin’s stance on the running game, according to Lions247. “We have to run the football better. We’re committed to it, and we will.”
Penn State failed to have a single game with a 100-yard rusher during the 2021 season despite having three players appear on the watch list for the Doak Walker Award before the season started. [autotag]Noah Cain[/autotag] battled injury concerns and has since left Penn State for LSU. [autotag]Keyvone Lee[/autotag] returns and is expected to be a key piece of the offensive game plan. And Penn State just added open of the top running backs and high school players in the country with [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] and [autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag]. The talent at the running back position does not appear to be the biggest culprit of the lack of success running the ball. Instead, the problems could be with the offensive line, which is a position group that is under a bit of a microscope this spring and is a clear area of emphasis in the recruiting for the Class of 2023.
No matter what it takes, Yurcich is committed to figuring out the problem and showing improvement on the ground in 2022.
“That’s our goal, and that’s what we’re gonna do this spring,” Yurcich said. “We’re gonna execute better. We’re gonna coach it better. We’re gonna play better.”
Helmet sticker to Lions247.
[mm-video type=video id=01fsdjmvkbqtq16mf3bv playlist_id=01ey902ehrs6e9bvhw player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fsdjmvkbqtq16mf3bv/01fsdjmvkbqtq16mf3bv-5a1f8cf3679d7ec39d53a0890364af04.jpg]
[vertical-gallery id=2823]
[listicle id=16485]
[lawrence-related id=17967,17962,17954,17919,17921]
Follow Nittany Lions Wire on Twitter and like us on Facebook for continuing Penn State coverage and discussion.
Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.