Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1138762
2 0 1 9 S E A S O N P R E V I E W S T A F F P R E D I C T I O N S NATE BAUER WEBSITE EDITOR The successes or failures of Penn State's 2019 season will come down to a relatively simple propo- sition: Given that the team is now over- whelmingly composed of inexperienced underclassmen, will their outsized tal- ents be enough to overcome their collec- tive lack of playing time? The Nittany Lions will welcome new starters at left tackle, right guard, run- ning back, wide receiver, defensive tackle, defensive end, linebacker, safety and cornerback. And, of course, the off-season departure of Tommy Stevens ensures that the next starting Penn State quarterback will have, at most, seven pass attempts in his colle- giate career. Along with the influx of new starters, there's been an exodus of veteran players who were expected to provide depth in their final seasons of eligibility. That means the Nittany Lions will be handing the keys to Rivals.com's 12th-ranked re- cruiting class of 2017 and fifth-ranked class of 2018, ready or not. The promising news for this bunch is that Penn State will ease its way into the most challenging opponents on the schedule. The nonconference games, all of which will take place at Beaver Sta- dium, don't instill much fear, and a bye week separates the nonconference slate from the start of the Big Ten schedule. Games against Maryland, Purdue and Iowa are all winnable, leading into an Oct. 19 showdown with Michigan back at the Beav. How it goes from there, though, would seem to depend in large part on the out- come of the first six games. If an unex- pected setback goes down, how will Penn State respond? Where will the gritty leadership that Trace McSorley provided during the past three years now come from? My guess is that, mixed with flashes of dazzling performance, some growing pains will also take hold against the conference's best. PREDICTION 9-3 PHIL GROSZ PUBLISHER For the past three years, the Nittany Lions' College Foot- ball Playoff hopes have been tethered primarily to their offense. Trace Mc- Sorley set a Penn State record with more than 11,000 yards of total offense, while DaeSean Hamilton became the Nittany Lions' leader in career recep- tions and Mike Gesicki became their leader in career receptions by a tight end. Saquon Barkley didn't break the school's career rushing record, but only because he left early to enter the 2018 NFL Draft, where he was chosen second overall. His replacement, Miles Sanders, started only one season, but that was enough to turn him into a sec- ond-round draft pick. Suffice it to say, the Lions have been blessed with some very good offensive players the past three seasons. They still have some exceptional of- fensive players, even with everyone listed above having left for the NFL. Ricky Slade, Noah Cain and Devyn Ford were top-five-rated running backs in their respective recruiting classes. Sean Clifford, who appears to be the leader to replace McSorley, was a top-10 quarter- back in Penn State's Class of 2017. Justin Shorter, Jahan Dotson and Daniel George made up Rivals.com's third-rated wide receiver group in the Class of 2018. And two offensive players received Freshman All-America honors last year: receiver K.J. Hamler and tight end Pat Freier- muth. But even after stockpiling all that skill- position talent on offense, it's unrealis- tic to expect a group of largely inexperienced starters to duplicate what McSorley and company accomplished the past three years. If Penn State is to have a shot at win- ning the Big Ten East Division this fall, its defense will have to lead the way. Eight returning players made at least one start last season, and those re- turnees have the potential to give Penn State one of the top three defensive units in the Big Ten. The front seven, led by All-America candidate Yetur Gross- Matos at defensive end and standout sophomore outside linebacker Micah Parsons, could be the best that James Franklin has assembled since arriving at Penn State in 2014. Can the Lions finish the 2019 season with a 10-2 record and really challenge for the Big Ten East title? Considering its extreme youth on offense, maybe not. My prediction is for a nine-win season, setting up a run for the Big Ten champi- onship in 2020. PREDICTION 9-3 MATT HERB MAGAZINE EDITOR It's hard to know what to make of a Penn State team whose four-man scholarship quarter- back contingent goes into the season with a combined total of seven career passing attempts. The Nittany Lions haven't been this inexperienced at QB since 2013, when Christian Hackenberg won the starting job as a true freshman. Things worked out pretty well that year; Hackenberg threw for nearly 3,000 yards, and despite the debilitat- ing effects of the NCAA sanctions, Penn State won seven games, including a miraculous White Out victory over Michigan. But in 2013, Hackenberg benefitted from the presence of Allen Robinson, easily one of the top half-dozen players of the post-Paterno era. This year, the Lions are nearly as inexperienced at the other offensive skill positions as they are at quarterback. K.J. Hamler and Pat Freiermuth showed great potential as freshmen, and maybe there's someone (or a group of someones) who will be able to do for Penn State's young QBs what Robinson did for Hackenberg. But we don't know that yet. Elsewhere, the defense looks like it's poised for a big year, and that should help the Lions withstand the some of the potential growing pains on offense.