Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1490816
2 6 F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 3 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M KEY LOSSES Sean Clifford Finished his six-year career as Penn State's all- time leader in passing yards (10,661), total yards (11,734) and victories by a starting quarterback (32). Christian Veilleux Transferred to Pitt after appearing in just three games as Penn State's third-team quarterback in 2022. KEY RETURNEES Drew Allar | So. Was named Clifford's backup at the end of pre- season camp and went on to see action in 10 games during his true freshman year, completing 35 of 60 passes (58.3 percent) for 344 yards, with 4 touch- downs and no interceptions. Beau Pribula | R-Fr. The former On3 Consensus three-star recruit from York, Pa., didn't see the field as a true fresh- man playing behind Clifford, Allar and Veilleux. NEWCOMER Jaxon Smolik | Fr. Enrolled at Penn State in January after throwing for 1,967 yards and 19 touchdowns as a senior at Dowling Catholic High in West Des Moines, Iowa. 2023 Outlook Penn State got some enormously helpful contributions this past season from its 2022 recruiting class, with running back Nicholas Singleton, line- backer Abdul Carter and defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton making ESPN's true freshman All-America team in January. By the time it's all said and done, though, the most impactful member of the Nittany Lions' fifth-ranked class might turn out to be Drew Allar. Now that Sean Clifford's four-season tenure as the team's starting quar- terback has drawn to a close, Allar is set to take the reins of Penn State's offense. Yes, he must still fend off a challenge from classmate Beau Pribula, but the 6-foot-5, 238-pounder from Medina, Ohio, is coming off a debut season in which he supplanted the more-experienced Christian Veilleux as the team's primary backup and showed off an impressive toolkit during his 10 game appearances. The coaching staff made Allar's acclimation a priority and often didn't wait until the score was entirely out of hand to get him on the field. His best afternoon of the year came against Ohio in the home opener, when he completed 6 of 8 attempts for 88 yards and threw touchdown passes to freshman wideout Omari Evans and redshirt freshman tight end Khalil Dinkins. Offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich said prior to the Rose Bowl that he was pleased with Allar's progress throughout the year, noting that he didn't have an interception in 60 passing attempts during his first collegiate sea- son. "I think he's got confidence," Yurcich said. "He's continuing to learn. It's like trade school. He's able to learn from a master craftsman in Sean. It's a damn good situation." Allar agreed with Yurcich's assessment and said he's unfazed by the sky- high expectations that he carries into his second offseason in the program. "Nobody has higher expectations for me than myself, just because I have a lot of goals and aspirations that I want to achieve throughout my life," he said. "I'm just super excited that I came here." No matter how good Allar turns out to be, depth is going to be an un- known heading into the 2023 season. Neither of the team's two freshman- eligible quarterbacks next fall — Pribula and January enrollee Jaxon Smolik — have ever seen action in a college game. The coaching staff would surely have liked to hold onto Veilleux, who showed potential as a true freshman in 2021 when he came on in relief of a flu-stricken Clifford and led the Lions past Rutgers, 28-0. But that's not how college football works anymore. When Allar passed him on the depth chart in August, it was all but inevitable that Veilleux would explore his options once the season ended. — Matt Herb Drew Allar Begins A New Era At Signal-Caller A year ago, Allar came to Penn State from Medina (Ohio) High as a five-star prospect in the On3 Consensus. He won the backup quarterback job in his first preseason camp and is the favorite to start as a sophomore next fall. PHOTO BY DANIEL ALTHOUSE 2023 LOOK AHEAD QUARTERBACKS