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Penn State’s offensive line features plenty of depth, including three starters at guard

Fifth-year senior Steven Gonzalez has 29 career starts but is still competing for one of the two starting guard spots with redshirt juniors Mike Miranda and C.J. Thorpe.

Penn State offensive linemen Des Holmes (75), Steven Gonzalez (74) and Juice Scruggs (70) during the program's annual Media Day on Aug. 3.
Penn State offensive linemen Des Holmes (75), Steven Gonzalez (74) and Juice Scruggs (70) during the program's annual Media Day on Aug. 3.Read moreCRAIG HOUTZ / For the Inquirer

Penn State offensive line coach Matt Limegrover remembers a time when he would work only with the five starters along the front to promote continuity and chemistry, and move a reserve lineman into the unit only in the event of injury.

However, those days are gone. The Nittany Lions this season have developed enough depth on their offensive line where they could slot a number of players in certain spots and not lose much. Limegrover has three players able to start at guard, and he has a third tackle he wouldn’t be reluctant to put in a game.

“The old model was, we’re going to play five and that’s the five that are going to be together and they’re going to practice together and they’re going to play together,” he said Thursday in a conference call with reporters. “Then all of a sudden something comes up and it kind of upsets the chemistry because it’s been so tightly knit that way.

“I think that’s changed and I like the way we’re able to go about that. With the way we’re able to do team periods and things, I’m able to do a little bit more mixing and matching. So I don’t think it’s nearly as big a deal right now as it was maybe 10 years ago.”

The Lions, who open their season Saturday at Beaver Stadium against Idaho, had to find two replacements on their offensive line given the departures after last season of tackle Ryan Bates and guard Connor McGovern, both to the NFL.

Limegrover found three – redshirt freshman tackle Rasheed Walker and redshirt junior guards Mike Miranda and C.J. Thorpe. The two starting guards will come from the group consisting of Miranda, Thorpe and fifth-year senior Steven Gonzalez, who has 29 career starts.

“It’s really not a knock on Steve as much as it’s a tip of the cap and a compliment to both C.J. and Mike,” Limegrover said. “Honestly, we all agree we have three guards that we can go and win a lot of football games with.

“As much as you like the idea of ‘OK, here are my five guys, we’re not going to change out, we’re going to keep these five,’ the biggest challenge was we have three guys who all deserve to play and they all have done a really nice job. They have done well enough that they all deserve to be there."

Depending on who starts at guard, the average weight of the Penn State offensive line on opening day would range from 313.4 to 322.6 pounds per man with an average height of 6-foot-4 1/2.

Walker impressed the coaches last year upon his arrival on campus from Waldorf, Md., and played in four games, the maximum allowed by the NCAA for a player to keep his redshirt. He and Will Fries will be the tackles with Michal Menet at center.

“Rasheed is very unique in the way that he can bend and the way he can generate movement and power in a football position with the knees bent and the ankles flexed and the hips down,” Limegrover said. “For a guy his size, you don’t see that very often.”

Limegrover also praised the work of tackle Des Holmes, a 6-5, 315-pound redshirt junior from Norristown and Cardinal O’Hara High School, who has had some work with the first team line.

“He gets himself where he needs to be and he gets the job done,” he said. “It’s kind of unique, I guess would be the best way to put it, or unorthodox.

“I think one of the biggest things with Des that’s really allowed him from going to just being a (backup) … to a guy that we’re looking at as, ‘Hey, where are some situations we can get him in and play him,’ is that the game has slowed down for him a little bit.”