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<p>The huddle, James Franklin said, is where he learns a lot about his quarterbacks.</p><p>Penn State&#8217;s third-year coach will be giving a shot to both Trace McSorley and Tommy Stevens as the Nittany Lions open fall practice on Thursday. And leadership will go a long way to picking the new starter.</p><p>&#8220;Not only is it about production, but it&#8217;s also belief,&#8221; Franklin said. &#8220;It&#8217;s about the team and how they feel about that guy when that guy steps in the huddle. &#8230; A quarterback comes in and calls the play like it&#8217;s the best play ever called? Guys are gonna react one way.</p><p>&#8220;A quarterback comes in and his body language says that this play&#8217;s not gonna be successful? That&#8217;s gonna have an impact.&#8221;</p><p>One slight snag to that example. Penn State&#8217;s new offense under coordinator Joe Moorhead doesn&#8217;t figure to use a huddle, an irony that was not lost on Franklin.</p><p>&#8220;I know we&#8217;re talking about huddling and we&#8217;re never going to huddle again,&#8221; Franklin deadpanned. &#8220;But you understand the point I&#8217;m making.&#8221;</p><p>Indeed. Whether Penn State can take a step forward now that the program is back to a full complement of scholarship players will depend largely on how the new quarterback takes charge of the new scheme.</p><p>It&#8217;s one of a handful of storylines that will play out during camp as the Lions get ready for their opener against Kent State on Sept. 3.</p><p>Franklin has acknowledged that there was a gap between redshirt sophomore McSorley and redshirt freshman Stevens at the end of spring ball.</p><p>He also said he regretted not giving Stevens more than one drive with the first-team offense during the Blue-White Game, and he intends to make up for it early on in camp.</p><p>While McSorley seems likely to start the opener, the fact remains that the Lions will likely need both of them at some point during the season. With an offense that puts the quarterback on the run, chances of injury are higher &#8212; running a similar offense at Vanderbilt, Franklin had to start multiple quarterbacks in two of his three seasons there.</p><p>Regardless, both players are adept at both designed runs and scrambling.</p><p>&#8220;That&#8217;s going to have a big impact on the running backs,&#8221; Franklin said. &#8220;So if you&#8217;re handing the ball off on an inside zone from the (shotgun) to the running back &#8212; and that defensive end and that backside outside linebacker now have to respect (a QB run) &#8212; it slows them down. Because if the quarterback pulls the ball and goes out the backside, they&#8217;ve gotta be there to defend it.&#8221;</p><p>Both quarterbacks will have the benefit of having emerging star Saquon Barkley to rely on in the backfield, as well a receiving corps that was recently ranked No. 5 in the nation by FOX Sports.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s a great situation to break in a new quarterback,&#8221; Franklin said. &#8220;You&#8217;ve got a much more experienced offensive line. More depth than we&#8217;ve had at that position. You&#8217;ve got experience at wide receiver, which is gonna help our running back. You&#8217;ve got more experience at wide receiver, which is gonna help our quarterback.&#8221;</p><p>On defense, for once the biggest question mark is up front. The Lions must replace three extremely productive starting linemen as well as the top three tackles from a year ago.</p><p>Antoine White, Parker Cothren, Curtis Cothran and Kevin Givens are among the returning players who will figure in at tackle.</p><p>Penn State may have gotten some good news at the position as junior college transfer Tyrell Chavis has arrived on campus after academic issues had been holding things up earlier in the summer.</p><p>Franklin is expected to address Thursday whether Chavis is immediately eligible to participate in camp. Blue White Illustrated first reported Chavis&#8217; arrival.</p><p>Entering as a redshirt junior, he would give the defense another experienced body at a position of need. Franklin said he had been in contact with Chavis &#8220;on a daily basis.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s just daily reinforcement,&#8221; Franklin said. &#8220;It&#8217;s just daily motivation to keep working hard, keep preparing, keep doing all the things he possibly can do to give him the best opportunity to get to campus. And then also be successful when he gets to campus.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead will be in the training camp spotlight as he prepares Penn State&#8217;s new no-huddle offense for the 2016 season. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/web1_moorhead.jpg</photo0><caption0>Offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead will be in the training camp spotlight as he prepares Penn State&#8217;s new no-huddle offense for the 2016 season. </caption0><photoCredit0>Abby Drey file photo | AP photo, Centre Daily Times </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Derek Levarse</p><p>dlevarse@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Derek Levarse at 570-991-6396 or on Twitter @TLdlevarse</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Penn State’s 2016 season begins as training camp opens