Penn State football WR is reportedly ‘playing off the charts’ heading into 2024 season

After a season hampered by injury in 2023, Penn State football wide receiver Harrison Wallace III is ready for a reset this fall. Now, Wallace is hitting his stride as the Nittany Lions approach three weeks to the start of the 2024 season.

“He’s playing off the charts,” Penn State defensive back KJ Winston recently told reporters of the impression Wallace has made on his teammates coming out of the summer.

WR Harrison Wallace III has been making quite the impression this summer, per KJ Winston. “He’s playing off the charts.” pic.twitter.com/rcETTexCN3

— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) August 8, 2024

Harrison Wallace caught 19 passes for 228 yards and a touchdown over only eight games a year ago. A disappointing stat line for someone viewed as a top target by the Nittany Lions staff, the expectations are just as high for the Montgomery, Alabama, native going into this season.

“We thought he was going to have a big year last year, and that got limited [through] no fault of his own,” James Franklin said in June. “And we feel that way – and probably more so – this year. He’s a year older; he’s a year maturer; he’s been developed. And I think he’s very hungry because I think there’s frustration from last year [because it] got cut short. Because I think he felt the same way.

“He’s in a really good place. He’s had a great summer so far. He had a really good spring. And we’re expecting him to have a really big year for us. We need for him to have a really big year for us. He’s super athletic. Probably one of the most explosive guys we have in our program. And I think you guys saw flashes of that at times [last season].”

Franklin: Penn State football has “a good amount of confidence” in what the wide receiver can do in 2024

Mandatory Credit: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

As Penn State football nears the midway point of training camp, wide receiver remains a major unknown surrounding the Nittany Lions. With the departure of KeAndre Lambert-Smith to the transfer portal, the room lacks a player with over 600 career yards in a Blue and White uniform.

But internally, James Franklin expressed belief in the talent of his receivers heading into the season.

“Obviously, that’s been a big question mark for the media and some of the fans,” Franklin said of the receivers last week. “I think the coaching staff and I think the players have, I would say, a good amount of confidence in what that room has the ability to do and the amount of work that they have put in with Beau [Pribula] and Drew [Allar] all summer.”

Thank you for reading Basic Blues Nation! Please follow us on all of our social channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube) and subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news and insights on your favorite Penn State athletics. For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email us at [email protected] or direct message us on our social media.