Penn State Nittany Lions football: James Franklin provides Noah Cain update
INDIANAPOLIS -- Like any fan, head coach James Franklin filled with excitement when he watched the training videos of Penn State Nittany Lions running back Noah Cain posted to social media last week.
In the videos, Cain can be seen weaving in and out through obstancles, dodging exercise balls and generally looking like the kind of athlete that impressed Nittany Lions fans so much during his freshman season in 2019.
"You saw the video like I did," Franklin said. "He looked pretty good. I was excited watching it."
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Franklin has spent the last few weeks on vacation, so he hasn't been following Cain's progress that closely, but the Penn State head coach was encouraged by a phone call he had with Cain last week.
"He seems to be great," Franklin said. "I think the people who follow us closely know how our season started with losing our starting tailback [Journey Brown] before the season started and losing Noah Cain — who we viewed as a starter as well — in I think play three of the season.
"He seems to be in a great place from my conversations with him, my conversations with the training staff, but I'll know better after we get into a week of camp."
Cain's leg injury in Week 1 against Indiana last season left the Nittany Lions without their top two options at tailback, forcing the inexperienced trio of Devyn Ford, Keyvone Lee and Caziah Holmes to fill that gap.
Lee did so effectively, proving a revelation for the Nittany Lions as a true freshman and emerging to claim the largest portion of reps at that position down the stretch of the season.
Cain's introduction back into that room this spring reinvigorated it to some degree, Penn State running backs coach Ja'Juan Seider said during spring camp.
"With any kid, that's what football is — it's a mindset, it's a belief that I am the guy, and I am the best player on the field," Seider said. "We lost that when we lost [Brown and Cain] because the confidence in the room went out.
"You're a better team when the players lead, and I think we're back to that area."
The Nittany Lions landed three players on the Doak Walker Award watch list released earlier this week: Cain, Lee and Baylor transfer John Lovett. That award is handed out annually to the nation's top running back.
Penn State was the only school to place three candidates on that watch list, and Franklin hopes that's the indicator of a strong, deep running back room that can handle itself if its first option isn't available.
"I think Noah coming back, we've got a chance to have arguably one of the most talented and deepest running back rooms in the country" Franklin said. "And I think last year proved you better have that, right?"
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