As Penn State’s second bye week unfolds, there’s a lot James Franklin should be happy about. His team is ranked No. 3 nationally after a thrilling 33-30 overtime at USC on Saturday, appears to have a clear path to the College Football Playoff even with a regular-season loss and could be returning two players from injury at some point this year.
Franklin said on Tuesday that the Nittany Lions will “hopefully” get primary punt returner and reserve wide receiver Kaden Saunders “back at some point” this season. He said he’s
“hoping” for the return of linebacker Keon Wylie, who has missed the entirety of the season so far with an injury.
Saunders appeared in Penn State’s first four games of the year, handling primary punt-return duties. Franklin said last month that Saunders had battled a “lingering injury” since the preseason, which limited him from taking snaps at wide receiver, where he caught eight receptions for 77 yards and a touchdown across 12 games last season.
Saunders was last seen on the sidelines with a boot on his left foot during the Nittany Lions’ 27-11 win over UCLA on Oct. 5.
Zion Tracy, a cornerback, has taken over Saunders’ punt-return duties during his two-game absence. For the time being, Tracy will likely remain in that role until Saunders return.
“I do think as he gets more comfortable and more confident doing that, then he’ll have the ability to make some more plays for us,” Franklin said. “But as you know, we’ve been kind of working through that all year long, and we’ve been down this road before.”
Wylie enjoyed a breakout season as a redshirt freshman last year, when he tallied 17 tackles, five tackles for loss and three sacks, but has yet to appear in a game this season. His potential return could be a big boost for a linebacker corps in need of depth and a dynamic playmaker beside starters Kobe King and Tony Rojas.
In the instance of his return, Wylie would likely not only impact Penn State’s defense, but also its special teams. Wylie was commonly used on special teams last season, along with his defensive contributions.
“I think we’re doing a really good job on special teams,” Franklin said. “If you look at us, I don’t think anybody’s gotten a yard this year on punt returns — that’s based on coverage [and] that’s also based on how we’re punting the ball. So I think we’re doing a really good job of limiting explosive plays and game-changing plays on special teams. Now we got to start to make a few of our own.”
