Penn State Football: 5 Bold Predictions for Nittany Lions in 2018

1. Miles Sanders makes fans forget Saquon Barkley

Penn State had this guy named Saquon Barkley for the last three seasons. If you were not living under a rock, you know Barkley but fans are about to forget about him. Well not really, but Miles Sanders will be a fantastic featured back for the Lions this fall.

Sanders played sparingly his first two seasons because of the superstar Barkley. He has a combined 429 yards rushing and receiving along with four touchdowns. Sanders also returned kicks primarily during his freshman campaign but also was on the special teams unit some during last season as well.

It is time for the former five-star recruit to step into the spotlight as the number one guy in the backfield. Defenses game planned to stop Barkley and many times still could not. Now that he is gone, they will most likely game plan to stop Trace McSorley, allowing Sanders to shine.  Sanders will also benefit from a much improved offensive line, something Barkley did not have for most of his collegiate career. Sanders will benefit from more open running lanes and he is more of a straightforward runner compared to Barkley.

Prediction time. Sanders tops 1,000 yards this year and finds the end zone 14 times on the ground, chipping in another four touchdown receptions. While Penn State fans won’t literally forget about Barkley, Sanders will have a career season to ease the loss of Barkley.