Penn State football icon: Abdul Carter looks like ‘best player on the field’ after position change

Penn State football hits the Beaver Stadium turf to close out spring practice in the annual Blue-White Game Saturday afternoon. There are plenty of new faces on this 2024 Nittany Lions squad, but one of the more notable storylines this spring comes from star linebacker Abdul Carter, who will now move to the defensive front for this fall. The junior standout has earned rave reviews inside and outside of Lasch this offseason, most recently from Nittany Lion legend and Penn State Board of Trustees member Brandon Short, who thinks we’ll be impressed with what Carter has to show this weekend.

Brandon Short: Abdul Carter already looks like “the best player on the field” after switching to defensive end

It was mid-February when Penn State football officially announced that Abdul Carter was switching from linebacker to defensive end. Fast forward two months, and the former “Linebacker U” star is adjusting nicely to life with his hand in the dirt.

The move was natural for Carter’s 6-3, 250-pound frame. The junior from Philadelphia is already familiar with the backfield, having recorded 16 tackles for loss and 11 sacks in two seasons as a Nittany Lion. 

There’s already plenty of hype around Abdul Carter and his abilities as an edge rusher in 2024. That hype is warranted, says Penn State football legend Brandon Short. Joining the Penn State Roar Room this week to discuss everything from the Blue-White Game to his re-election campaign for the Penn State Board of Trustees, the All-American linebacker told us Carter is living up to expectations.

“I was at a practice a few weeks ago and saw Abdul Carter at defensive end, and he looked like he was the best player on the field. He was working with the second team. I mean his quickness, his agility; he was disruptive to practice,” said Short, who has been a member of Penn State’s Board of Trustees since 2018. “And it was really heartening to see how well he was doing at that new position.”

“He’s definitely the type of athlete that can do that [make the switch]. And from the little glimpse that I’ve seen in practice, I think the Penn State community is going to be happy with what they see.”

You can listen to our entire conversation with Brandon Short here.

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Tom Allen sees new edge rusher’s confidence growing each day

Brandon Short isn’t the only one who has been impressed. From Chuck Losey to James Franklin, Abdul Carter has earned high marks across the Penn State football staff this offseason.

For defensive coordinator Tom Allen, the transition is becoming easier for his new edge rusher each day.

“It’s been good. I would say, first of all, you can see each day he grows in confidence in playing that position,” Allen said recently. “And I think that position flexibility, he kind of magnifies that. I think that’s going to be big for us and the situational football opportunities for it, as well: third downs and certainly in places on the field, and what he can do as both a rush defender as well as a guy that can play in space and be a linebacker, those kinds of things.

“So, I think he has a special skill set. He obviously has a ton of talent, and he’s practicing really hard right now.”

Penn State football kicks off the Blue-White Game Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. inside Beaver Stadium.

Voting in the 2024 Penn State Board of Trustees election opened on April 10, and will close on May 2. Alumni can vote at pennstatevotes.com.

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