Phil Trautwein brings aggressive mindset, technical tweaks to PSU O-Line
Asked what would be different about Penn State's offensive line under new position coach Phil Trautwein, Rasheed Walker's response was succinct.
"There's gonna be a lot of bodies on the ground," he said.
According to Walker, simple aggression will be at the foundation of what Penn State's offensive line tries to do this season, but there will be practical changes made to help the Nittany Lions play that way.
Most notably, Penn State's offensive linemen will start in a three-point stance at the line of scrimmage more often, rather than the two-point stance they've been accustomed to under former offensive line coach Matt Limegrover.
"[Trautwein] changed us to three-point stances to allow us to just be more nasty and explosive off the ball and just really get at guys," Walker said.
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Walker said he didn't like the three-point stance at first, simply because he found it more difficult to get into. A three-point stance requires the lineman to position himself with one hand in the ground, while, in a two-point stance, the lineman is more upright, with his hands resting on his thighs.
But once Walker got comfortable with the three-point stance, its benefits became clear.
"I realized it helps a lot," he said. "It helped me play with my legs more. You're more explosive off the ball. I'll just speak for myself, I'm more explosive off the ball, and I'm more powerful and I have better pad level coming out of a three-point stance."
Walker said Trautwein — who won two national titles at Florida as a player and played four seasons in the NFL — excels at demonstrating the technical aspects of offensive line play, too. The first thing he noticed about his new position coach was how well Trautwein broke down the mechanics of effective blocking.
"When it comes down to it, playing O-line revolves around the same type of technique things," redshirt senior offensive lineman Michal Menet said. "Each coach has their own twist to it. I think coach Trautwein, playing off of his experience, he knows what works and what doesn't.
"I think the biggest thing for him is firing off the ball, getting off the ball really quick in the run game. All the way around, playing with your legs and having a good base is probably his biggest case to the run game and pass game."
From his position on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage, Shaka Toney has taken note of Trautwein's impact, too.
"He's given a lot of those guys confidence, and making them compete more than I've ever seen in my years here," Toney said. "He's real crisp on their technique. They're all doing things that's going to get them better every single day.
"I keep saying this, but the little details of being an offensive lineman — how to combo block, if you see this on the backside you let him go. He's giving them intellect, and he's giving them willpower. If you make it to college at all, you've got some kind of talent, and I think he's drawing out more and more of that talent, more and more of that intellect.
"I like him a lot. He's a really, really good coach and it shows. The national championships, the NFL, all that knowledge shows with him, just watching how the O-line is developing. He was a phenomenal addition."
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