Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1439730
3 0 J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 2 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M low receiver Parker Washington, and he has developed a good rapport with Veilleux, another Canadian expat. Their partnership has been dubbed "Air Canada" by teammates, and no matter who's slinging the passes, it's possible that Meiga's touchdown catch against Rutgers foreshadowed a much bigger role in 2022 and beyond. Coach James Franklin said he's long been impressed with Meiga's physical potential. The key for him now will be to stay healthy and continue to refine his technique. If all goes well, he could develop into the type of downfield re- ceiving threat that the Lions will need with Jahan Dotson leaving for the NFL. "You look at his body, and you're talking about one of the taller receiv- ers that we have at 6-3 plus," Franklin said. "He's one of the faster guys on our roster, a legitimate 4.3 guy. He's really worked hard on his route-running and his ball skills. "Him and Parker Washington are best friends, they're constantly together. What's great is that they both kind of complement each other. Parker has elite ball skills, and Malick has really improved in that area. He's smart. He works hard. It's very important to him. "I think he has a chance to develop into a real vertical threat, maybe more so than we've had really in a number of years. That, I think, is something we need. Obviously, Jahan has brought that. I think KeAndre [Lambert-Smith] can do that. Parker has shown some flashes, too. I think he has a chance to be a real vertical threat up the field at 6-3, 4.3 in the 40. He can make some big plays." LANDON TENGWALL | OL It's no secret where the Nittany Lions will need to get better if they're going to score more than the 26.3 points per game they averaged during the 2021 reg- ular season. They will need more push from their offensive line, and Tengwall figures to be a key part of that effort. The 6-6, 326-pound Tengwall, an early enrollee in the Nittany Lions' 2021 recruiting class, made his collegiate de- but at offensive tackle against Rutgers in Week 11. It was a difficult situation for the offensive line, with starting right tackle Caedan Wallace slowed by the flu and Scarlet Knights coach Greg Schiano determined to make sure that his de- fense put as much pressure as possible on the inexperienced Veilleux. With Tengwall seeing extensive ac- tion on a jerry-rigged offensive front, the Lions rose to the challenge. They surrendered just one sack on the after- noon, rushed for a respectable 149 yards and won handily, 28-0. "I thought they battled in there," Franklin said. "Greg is a really good de- fensive coach. They do a great job on the defensive side of the ball. They were pressuring us and going cover zero. I thought our guys battled." Franklin had said a few days before the game that he was eager to get Teng- wall and redshirt freshman lineman Olu Fashanu on the field late in the season. The Nittany Lions were able to do that, and the coach said he was impressed with how Tengwall performed in his PSU debut against Rutgers. "I thought Landon came in as a freshman and played really well," he said. "We were very, very pleased and very impressed with him. There were a lot of moving parts that magnified it against a team that I think plays good defense and is physical and tough. We were very pleased with Landon." Tengwall played 63 snaps against the Scarlet Knights, and he played 18 snaps a week later against Michigan State. There are certainly some changes in store on the offensive line. There's been speculation about Wallace moving inside to guard for his redshirt junior campaign next fall, and as of late De- cember it was unclear whether tackle Rasheed Walker was planning to re- turn for his senior season. It had been widely assumed that Walker, a three- year starter, was headed to the NFL. But after a disappointing season for PSU's offensive line, the conventional wisdom might not hold anymore. Either way, Tengwall, a former four- star prospect from Annapolis, Md., fig- ures to play a major role on Penn State's offensive line in the years to come. Hav- ing played in only two regular-season games in 2021, he will be a redshirt freshman next season. CHRISTIAN VEILLEUX | QB Veilleux enjoyed a breakout after- noon against Rutgers when he took over for an ailing Sean Clifford late in the first quarter. It had seemed like an ominous sign when Clifford, slowed by a bad case of the flu, remained on the sideline af- ter Penn State's offense took the field for its fifth possession in a scoreless game. After all, when the Nittany Li- ons were forced to turn to a backup at a similar juncture at Iowa, the result was a sudden and complete reversal of fortune. With redshirt sophomore Ta'Quan Roberson taking over for the injured Clifford, Penn State managed only a field goal in the game's final two and a half quarters and fell to the third- ranked Hawkeyes, 23-20. But Veilleux, a true freshman from Ottawa, Ontario, who was seeing the first action of his career, appeared steady and self-assured. He hit 15 of 24 passes for 235 yards and three touch- downs with no interceptions in the Nit- tany Lions' 28-0 victory. Veilleux's performance prompted an obvious question in Franklin's post- game news conference: Why hadn't he been the first quarterback off the bench in Iowa City? The coach's response was that the Christian Veilleux that fans saw in Week 11 was significantly improved over the Christian Veilleux that the coaches were seeing in practice head- ing into Week 6. "They're allowed to get better," Franklin said dryly. "You know, at that point, it was not obvious that he was going to be the backup quarterback. … Ta'Quan had been in the program longer, and really, it was pretty obvi- ous to everybody that he gave us the best chance at that stage to win. After the way Veilleux played today, I get the question. I understand it totally, but he's just gotten better. "You've got to remember, he didn't play football his senior year [as a trans-