Penn State running back Saquon Barkley squats during winter workouts held in the Lasch Building on March 17, 2017. Joe Hermitt | jhermitt@pennlive.com

PSU Weight Room Superlatives

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Penn State has wrapped up its winter workouts ahead of the start of spring practice next week, and it was a productive couple of months for the Nittany Lions between then and now; the Lions took the 14 days after the Rose Bowl off, and then got right back to it with strength coach Dwight Galt and his team.

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"We just finished eight weeks," Galt said on Friday. "Normally we test before spring break, so we trained right up until spring break and got seven weeks in. It was a good decision; the guys are rested, and I think they've done a great job finishing up tests."

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Some impressive numbers came out from the winter, Galt said. Here's a look at some of them:

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A name to watch at LB and a name fighting back from injury, a note on Mike Gesicki, more Penn State weight room notes

Let's look at some other highlights:

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Overall results

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According to Galt, the average bench press for the team was 348 pounds, and 14 players benched more than 400 pounds, a number Galt said he hasn't seen since he was at Maryland in the 1990s. Fifteen of the team's 93 testers power cleaned over 350 pounds, which Galt called "ultra cleaners."

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The program splits its lifters into three tiers: One is aggressively focused on weight gains and is focused on big improvements and is called Tier I. Tier II is normal and focused on standard offseason gains, and Tier III is the top-level fitness wise on the team, and are able to do some more advanced training, per Galt.

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Galt added that there are 29 players in Tier I, 53 in Tier II, and 18 in Tier III, which is about par for the course with younger and older guys mixing into both groups. The 18 in Tier III is double from last year, which means Galt and his staff have some notable improvements in nine players. Galt said one of those guys is Harrisburg's own Andre Robinson, and fellow back Mark Allen is also in that group now, as well.

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Penn State continues winter weight room max outs, a four-star visitor on tap, more: weekend primer

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More on the January enrollees

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Two of Penn State's early enrollees were brought up on Friday: Corner Lamont Wade and offensive lineman Mike Miranda. Both squatted yesterday during that maxout and while Wade put up 325 pounds 20 times, Miranda lifted 365 pounds 18 times. Wade also has the second-highest bench among corners at 325 pounds, and he ran a 4.4-second 40-yard dash after running a 4.58-second 40 back in January.

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"“He came in and there was a lot of teaching," Galt said of Wade. "We're really pleased with where he is."

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Galt remarked that Miranda's numbers are really impressive considering he should still be in high school, adding that "he cleaned 300. We're keeping a close eye on him."

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Burning 40s

Saquon Barkley made headlines earlier this year when Penn State released a video of the junior tailback running a 4.33-second 40-yard dash, but he's not the only Lions player who ran in the 4.3s. Who else did according to Galt?

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CB Grant Haley - no specific time given

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WR DeAndre Thompkins - 4.35 seconds

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WR Saeed Blacknall - no time given, but in winter '16, he ran a 4.34 second 40

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WR Jabari Butler - no time given, but he is a new walk-on known for his speed at his last stop

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Odds and ends

Shane Simmons, the redshirt freshman defensive end, is expected to fight for a starting spot this year, and Galt said that he recorded a 34 inch vertical. His big focus will be to keep weight on throughout the season (he's in the 250s now) and Galt said Shaka Toney is a guy getting closer to looking like an end, which he is, and not a linebacker.

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Jarvis Miller will be a name to watch in the linebacker race, as he's up to 225 pounds but maintained the 4.4-speed that made him an interesting safety recruit. Miller is at a point in his career when it's time to make an impact, and linebacker might just be his spot.

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One name to watch heading into 2017 is Ellison Jordan. He had a knee injury last year per Galt that limited what he could do as a true freshman, but he's now squatting 405 pounds nine times and is working on getting more explosive. He could be an interesting depth piece.

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Kevin Givens is another name making waves on the defensive line, which is not hard to believe. He squatted 500 pounds seven times and Galt said he is "incredibly strong." PSU had to continue to build up his strength base last season, and it's getting close to where it needs to be for him to be a major impact player.

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