Ex-Penn State football WR target with Tom Allen ties hits transfer portal

Penn State football has suffered minimal losses through the first week and a half of the spring transfer portal window. However, when the portal has struck, it has come for the wide receiver room, already viewed as a position of need coming out of the Blue-White Game. In a position to potentially add depth to the unit heading into the summer, the Nittany Lions could consider turning to Derrick Bohler, a one-time recruiting target who originally committed to new Penn State assistant Tom Allen at Indiana.

Indiana wide receiver, ex-Nittany Lions recruit Derrick Bohler enters transfer portal

Derrick Bohler was a three-star wide receiver in the class of 2023, according to 247Sports. The 6-1 pass catcher was ranked as the No. 161 overall wide receiver in the class. Bohler, a Miami native, received offers from Indiana, Penn State, Boston College, Arizona, Michigan, Pitt, Tennessee, Utah, among others.

Bohler officially visited Penn State football in June 2022, around the same time the Nittany Lions were pursuing prospects like Tony Rojas and Anthony Donkoh. Ultimately, Bohler chose Tom Allen and the Indiana Hoosiers.

Derrick Bohler did not see any playing time in his redshirt freshman season last fall. Bohler decided to stick around Indiana this winter following the staff turnover that helped bring Tom Allen to Happy Valley. But on April 16, the young wide receiver entered the transfer portal with four years of eligibility.

Only way is up! #blessed pic.twitter.com/ZG1IyeeMVG

— derrickbohler_5 (@derrickbohler_5) April 16, 2024

Bohler has received a handful of portal offers so far, primarily from FCS-level programs. While a receiver like Derrick Bohler likely wouldn’t be an instant impact player for Penn State, he could add another layer of young depth in a room that has struggled to have anyone pull away from the pack.

Resetting the Penn State football wide receiver depth chart

Regardless of what happens in the spring transfer portal window, wide receiver will be under the microscope again for Penn State football in 2024. KeAndre Lambert-Smith and Malick Meiga both entered the portal in the first days of the spring window. Lambert-Smith committed to Auburn on Wednesday evening.

Now, the most experienced receiver in the room is Ohio State transfer Julian Fleming. Outside the former Buckeye, Harrison Wallace, Liam Clifford, Omari Evans, and Kaden Saunders have shown flashes but haven’t produced with any consistency.

“I think the whole group, from what I’ve seen, is improved,” James Franklin said in March. “…I still would like to see a group of guys really kind of separate themselves from the pack. I think the whole group has improved. But, I’d like to see a couple guys kind of kind of separate themselves and make it clearly obvious to everybody. I think we need a little bit more of that.”

With four months between now and kickoff in Morgantown, the pressure will only grow on the Nittany Lion wide receivers to produce in 2024.

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