Receiving jobs up for grabs at Penn State’s spring football game

April 25, 2009 at 12:00a.m.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — It’s time for a new set of receivers to catch on at Penn State.

Departed seniors Derrick Williams, Deon Butler and Jordan Norwood left Happy Valley as the most prolific trio of receivers in school history. In 2008 alone, they accounted for 132 catches and 17 of the team’s 24 passing touchdowns.

A tough act to follow for sure for their potential replacements. The first hint of how the lineup might look this fall will come today when the Nittany Lions wrap up spring practice with the annual Blue-White scrimmage.

“Every one of the wideouts has heard there might be a problem with a lack of experience,” quarterback Daryll Clark said this week. “We’re really excited to get going and prove people wrong.”

How quickly those understudies can step up come September may go a long way toward determining the success of the Nittany Lions’ Spread HD offense, which led the Big Ten in scoring (38.9 points per game) last season.

The leading candidates aren’t exactly wide-eyed rookies.

Juniors Graham Zug and Brett Brackett together started a handful of games and were the top two reserves. In limited time, the 6-foot-2 Zug showed good hands and route running; the 6-6 Brackett, a converted quarterback, provided a big target for Clark and came in at times for blocking.

Six-5 sophomore Derek Moye won a 200-meter dash title in high school. A converted safety, 6-1 sophomore Chaz Powell scored two rushing TDs and provided some highlights as a return man.

But together, the quartet combined for 29 receptions, with Brackett (13) and Zug (11) getting the bulk of the catches.

So this spring, Clark, the Ursuline High graduate, has been working with the holdovers on timing and familiarizing himself with their tendencies. Brackett, Zug and Moye might be the early leaders to take over for Williams, Butler and Norwood.

“People can compare us all they want. Their names will be forever remembered here,” said Zug, a one-time walk-on. “But we’re three different individuals, and we’re trying to do our best as those three did.”

One thing the holdovers have over the old receiving regime is height. At 6 feet, Williams was the tallest of the speedy but comparatively diminutive trio who were lovingly referred to by some fans as the “Smurfs.”

Zug said Clark has made progress this spring with adjusting to targets who may tend to be more big, possession receivers than speedy types. Clark, ever the confident cheerleader, believes the offense won’t miss a beat from last year.

“I don’t think anything is going to change,” he said. “The wideouts are going to be make big plays for us.”

To shake things up, coach Joe Paterno could also turn more to senior tight ends Andrew Quarless and Mickey Shuler in the passing game. They could be on the field more next season anyway to help with blocking.