Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1486024
1 6 D E C E M B E R 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 "That's kinda the goal, to hold an opponent to the least amount of points possible. You can't get better than zero." — Redshirt junior defensive end Adisa Isaac after Penn State defeated Maryland 30-0 on Nov. 12. "I did 15 pushups because everybody is held accountable around here. I was embarrassed by it. I did my pushups, and everybody is held ac- countable. I think they thought I was yelling at the officials, and I wasn't; I was yelling at our players. Either way, I got an unsportsmanlike conduct, my first one in 12 years." — PSU football coach James Franklin following the Maryland game, during which he performed a series of pushups on the sideline after being as- sessed a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty "I didn't [see Franklin's pushups]. I saw him yell- ing at me, though. I was the cause of that." — Sixth-year senior quarterback Sean Clifford "Penn State's prolonged offensive line issues were a major story entering the season. How could a program so steeped in producing strong linemen and running backs have such a hard time running the ball? PSU's front isn't dominant but better, and Fashanu might be the biggest reason why. The 6-foot-6, 308-pound redshirt sophomore has emerged as one of the top line prospects for the 2023 NFL draft. "He allowed zero pressures on 49 pass attempts in the season opener against Purdue and followed up with another zero-pressures-allowed performance against Ohio. … At just 19 years old, Fashanu has stood out by combining natural ability with con- sistency." — ESPN senior writer Adam Rittenberg, who included Olu Fashanu as one of the 25 most surpris- ing players in college football this season "Pat is very, very committed to all 31 sports here at Penn State. We as coaches talk about that. We believe it, and we're very, very grateful. We appre- ciate that, and our players appreciate it. He's very visible on the sideline. He's at practices. He always says to us, 'I've got your back. You go out there and compete, and I'm going to do everything I can so that you don't need to worry about anything else except playing the game and having a passion for your sport.'" — Field hockey coach Char Morett-Curtiss on the commitment to Penn State's Olympic sports teams that she's seen from new athletics director Patrick Kraft "Every possession, he tells me to throw a lob. He tells me literally every time on a ball screen. So, when I finally threw it to him, he was so pumped. He just brings a different joy to the team. I love it, man. I just can't wait to see where he's going, by the end of this year or down the road." — Jalen Pickett, Penn State senior guard, on the lob pass he threw to freshman forward Kebba Njie for a crowd-pleasing dunk in the Nittany Lions' 68- 62 victory over Butler on Nov. 14 They Said It "One of the most unique things about the Drew Allar situation is the fact that James Frank- lin and his staff aren't trying to hide the plan. For years — albeit due in large part to the longevity of Trace McSorley and Sean Clifford — there has been little in the way of real conversations about the so-called quarterback in waiting. If anything, the occasional questions about a po- tential quarterback competition have been re- duced to meaningless offseason platitudes. "But with Allar, there's really no disguising the plan. At some point, Franklin will say there is an "open competition" and that Allar will "have to earn the job," but if Allar isn't Penn State's starting quarterback in 2023, something seriously wrong will have happened. And everyone knows that, including backup quarterback Christian Veilleux. "That poses at least a partial problem for Frank - lin in regard to the challenges of roster man- agement. … [I]f Veilleux can read the room and believes in his abilities to play football at a high level, the transfer portal might come calling. That leaves Penn State in a bind, even if Allar is the guy." — Ben Jones, StateCollege.com columnist, on Penn State's future at the quarterback position True freshman Drew Allar has served as Penn State's primary backup at quarterback throughout the season and is the front-runner to replace four-year starter Sean Clifford in 2023. PHOTO BY DANIEL ALTHOUSE