FOOTBALL

Penn State football quarterback room may be one of the best in the Big Ten

The 2023 Penn State football quarterback room looks a bit different than it did a season ago, but it is shaping up well thus far.

Published

5 months ago

May 8, 2023

Chris Mangum

Penn State football quarterback room, Drew Allar, Beau Pribula, Jaxon Smolik

Nov 19, 2022; Piscataway, New Jersey, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar (15) throws the ball in front of Rutgers Scarlet Knights defensive back Avery Young (2) during the second half at SHI Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

The Penn State football quarterback room is going through some major changes this fall with the loss of Sean Clifford and Christian Veilleux. However, despite the departure of the team’s starter and a former four-star depth piece, the room is still shaping up to be one of the best in the Big Ten, if not the nation, ahead of the 2023 season. With emerging talents like Drew Allar, Beau Pribula, and Jaxon Smolik, this year’s quarterback room has the potential to be one of the strongest in the conference.

Penn State football quarterback room could be one of the best in the Big Ten this year

The Penn State football quarterback room boasts plenty of talent but lacks one key component: experience. Nonetheless, I anticipate that both Drew Allar and Beau Pribula will have gained significant in-game experience by the time October arrives, which will prove valuable in matchups against top Big Ten contenders like Michigan and Ohio State. Apart from experience, few teams across the nation have a QB room that matches the caliber of talent present in Penn State’s.

The starter: Former 5-star Drew Allar

Although it has yet to be officially announced, the prevailing sentiment within the college football world is that Drew Allar will take the reins as the Penn State football starting quarterback this fall. In fact, should anyone other than Allar be named the Week 1 starter against West Virginia, Penn State fans may well call for James Franklin’s job regardless of the game’s outcome.

As a former five-star recruit (according to the 247 Sports composite rankings) and the No. 1 quarterback in the 2022 recruiting class, Allar is highly regarded. Despite not starting a game last season during the Lions’ 11-2 campaign, Allar displayed considerable promise and received significant playing time. This fall, Allar will finally have the opportunity to live up to the hype. He possesses the physical stature, skills, and intelligence necessary to excel at the position, and now it’s time for him to demonstrate these qualities on the field.

The backup: Former 4-star Beau Pribula

Right behind Drew Allar is another impressive sophomore quarterback, Beau Pribula, who hails from Pennsylvania. As a recruit, Pribula was a four-star quarterback, and even though Allar had committed first, Pribula still chose to play for Penn State football. As a lifelong Penn State fan, Pribula seems to have found the perfect role for himself. In fact, if he remains with the Nittany Lions during the Drew Allar era, he could potentially take over as soon as the 2025 season if Allar opts to enter the draft a season early.

Unlike Allar, Beau brings a unique dual-threat style to the Penn State football offense, as he is capable of running or passing the ball effectively. While his talent level may not be on par with Allar’s, he has more versatility and should see significant playing time this fall, despite serving as a backup.

3rd strong: True freshman Jaxon Smolik

Behind Allar and Pribula in the Penn State football quarterback room is the Nittany Lions’ new No. 14: former three-star Jaxon Smolik. Smolik is currently in his first year at Penn State University, and while he may not see significant playing time this year, he has shown promise during spring ball. Smolik was a consensus three-star quarterback in the class of 2023 and comes from Dowling Catholic High School in Iowa. While Jaxon Smolik may not have been the highest-ranked quarterback in his class, he was one of the top 40 quarterbacks and top 10 recruits in his state.

Thank you for reading Basic Blues Nation. Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter 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. It’s due to your support that we can become one of the market’s fastest-growing Penn State sports outlets!

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FOOTBALL

Penn State football defenders respond to statement performance

The Penn State football defense sent a statement to everyone in the country last night with their performance.

Published

42 mins ago

September 24, 2023

Morgan Chapman

Penn State football, Adisa Isaac, defensive unit, Manny Diaz

Penn State's Adisa Isaac celebrates after recovering a fumble during a White Out football game against Iowa Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, in State College, Pa. The Nittany Lions shut out the Hawkeyes, 31-0.

The Penn State football defense has been elite early on this season. Against Illinois, they forced five turnovers including four interceptions. Then, last night on the national stage the defensive unit shut out Iowa 31-0. They also caused another four turnovers last night, all came from forced fumbles. So, that’s 9 turnovers caused in the past two games, Manny Diaz has this group dialed in. After the game, we caught up with Adisa Isaac and others who shared their thoughts on this statement performance.

Penn State football defenders respond to statement performance

Defensively, Penn State allowed 76 total yards of offense, total domination from start to finish. Iowa finished the night averaging 1.2 yards per rushing attempt. This unit understood the assignment on Saturday night and they took care of business. We asked Adisa Isaac about his thoughts on this statement performance.

Isaac said, “We have a dominant defense. That shouldn’t be no secret but I feel like we just showed in a shutout against a ranked opponent that we have some stuff that’s flowing and it’s only going to get better.”

He wasn’t the only one. After the game star linebacker, Abdul Carter tweeted “BEST DEFENSE IN THE COUNTRY!!!! #WEARE.”

It shows the energy and the confidence that this unit is starting to play with. It’s at the perfect point in the season for Manny Diaz to have this defensive unit firing on all cylinders. As for Iowa offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz, he will have to pick up the pace on his lofty goal of scoring 25 points per game. After the Penn State loss, Iowa is only averaging 21.25 points per game.

The pass rush got home

One of the questions James Franklin was asked earlier this week surrounded the topic of lack of stats from star defenders. One of those players was potential 2024 first-round pick Chop Robinson who picked up his first sack of the season. This was also a strip sack where Robinson caused a turnover. Amin Vanover and Adisa Isaac also collected sacks against Iowa last night.

Thank you for reading Basic Blues Nation. Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter 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. Also, be sure to check out our new site shop. It’s due to your support that we can become one of the market’s fastest-growing Penn State sports outlets!

FB RECRUITING

BREAKING: Penn State football lands 4-star LB, top 100 player nationally

Penn State lands top 100 nationally ranked linebacker DJ McClary after the whiteout weekend.

Published

4 hours ago

September 24, 2023

Morgan Chapman

Penn State football, DJ McClary, 2025 recruiting

Sep 23, 2023; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin shakes the hands of invited recruits upon the team’s arrival prior to the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Beaver Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-USA TODAY Sports

The whiteout is one of the biggest weekends for the Penn State football team. Not only because of the game that was played. But arguably more importantly, it allows Penn State to showcase its greatness to recruits. The atmosphere, the fans, the community, all of these elements factor into a player’s decision to commit to Penn State. James Franklin made sure that he thanked each player and parent after the game as well for making it to State College. Now, DJ McClary has made his decision to join the 2025 recruiting class for the Nittany Lions.

Penn State football lands 4-star LB, top 100 player nationally

Earlier this week, a crystal ball was placed by 247sports Brian Dohn for DJ McClary to land at Penn State. Now, McClary has made his decision to play his college football at Linebacker U. McClary is a four-star recruit and he is a top-100 recruit in the 2025 recruiting class according to 247sports composite rankings. He is from Jersey City, New Jersey, and chose Penn State over Ohio State, USC, Tennesee, Michigan, and several other schools.

DJ McClary is currently the 3rd highest-rated player in New Jersey and is a massive addition to the 2025 recruiting class at Penn State. James Franklin is hopeful that this is one of many commitments that will result from the 31-0 victory over Iowa. After watching the defense last night, how would you not want to play linebacker at Penn State?

Re-racking the 2025 recruiting class

After recently losing Jaelyne Matthews to a de-commitment this is how the 2025 recruiting class is shaping up for Penn State. Four-star RB KiAndrea Barker, three-star S Omari Gaines, and now DJ McClary.

The Nittany Lions are optimistic that they can land four-star running back Tiqwai Hayes who will make his decision tomorrow.

FOOTBALL

JUST IN: Penn State football moves up in the latest AP Poll

The Penn State football team has received its next set of rankings in the latest AP Poll.

Published

5 hours ago

September 24, 2023

Morgan Chapman

Penn State foootball, AP Poll, James Franklin,

Penn State quarterback Drew Allar prepares to throw a 3-yard touchdown pass to KeAndre Lambert-Smith during a White Out football game against Iowa Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, in State College, Pa. The Nittany Lions shut out the Hawkeyes, 31-0.

The Penn State football team is coming off one of its more dominating performances in recent history. Defeating the No.24 ranked Iowa Hawkeyes 31-0. Not only did Penn State shut out Iowa, but they also controlled the entire game in all three phases. James Franklin and his coaching staff had this team prepared to go to battle last night and they did just that. Now, that the game is past us, it’s time for the next set of rankings in the AP Poll to be released.

Penn State football moves up in the latest AP Poll

Penn State entered the matchup against Iowa as the No. 7 team in the AP Poll. Obviously, the Nittany Lions took care of business and have shown that they can be one of the best teams in the country. But around the country, many teams held their own.

Ohio State went into South Bend as the No. 6 ranked team. The Buckeyes defeated No. 9 Notre Dame 17-14 on a last-second rushing touchdown. This has boosted their ranking as the Buckeyes are now the No. 4 ranked team. Penn State will get their chance to defeat the Buckeyes on October 21st when they travel to Columbus, Ohio.

This week, Penn State received the No. 6 ranking in the AP Poll. It’s challenging to move up the AP Poll when no chaos occurs ahead of your team. That’s the position that Penn State has found themselves up to this point. But now, with Ohio State and Penn State taking care of business they were able to move up. The Washington Huskies are closely trailing Penn State and they’re certainly another team that we need to keep an eye on moving forward.

Nittany Lions next challenge

Penn State hits the road again next weekend. They will face a hungry Northwestern team. This will be another 11 a.m. central time kickoff for the Penn State football team. James Franklin will need to get his team motivated to play in this next conference challenge. The Wildcats are coming off of an overtime upset victory over Minnesota. The matchup will appear on Big Ten Network (BTN) next Saturday.