Penn State Sports Magazine
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3 6 A P R I L 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 athlete and very, very athletic," Losey said. "He's always got a smile on his face. He's the same guy every day. He's consis- tent. He's mature. I've been really happy with those guys." Penn State's other newcomers this off- season are freshmen. Eleven members of the team's 2023 recruiting class enrolled in January and have acclimated well by all accounts. Their transition has been aided by the fact that they held their own separate training sessions. The idea was to pre- vent them from becoming overwhelmed or discouraged by their first entry into a college-level lifting program. "The midyear enrollees, each year they get more and more comfortable," Losey said. "You're so familiar with these guys throughout the recruiting process that by the time they get here, you've been in communication with them and you know what they're doing from a training stand- point. "As far as fitting in and finding their place, they've all done a great job. There's not a whole lot of hesitancy. "It takes them about a week or two to figure out the balance of college life. But once they've got that figured out. Train- ing is training, and they're able to step in here with the way that we set up our program." ■ Drew Allar Builds Muscle And More During Winter Workouts Sophomore quarterback Drew Allar has been the talk of Penn State's offseason. That didn't change on the Nittany Lions' max-out day, even if the second-year signal-caller was not among the participants in the winter workout session that was open to reporters. Allar was one of many PSU players bouncing around the renovated Lasch Building weight room after completing their own work, stopping at various points to cheer on their teammates. Not all of those players made their presence known at squat rack after squat rack, but Allar certainly did. The Medina, Ohio, native was frequently standing nearby as a teammate attempted to max out in the squat lift. It was part of an effort to hone his leadership skills. After backing up sixth-year senior Sean Clif- ford last season, Allar has the inside track on the starting job this fall and has been working to be- come a more vocal presence. "He's done a good job in the sense that he's pushed outside of his comfort zone," said Chuck Losey, Penn State's assistant athletics director for performance enhancement. "By nature, Drew is probably not the loudest person you'll ever meet. He's loud on the field when he's commanding the of- fense, obviously, but just his dis- position, his nature — he's not an attention-seeking guy. "I've seen him during our workouts in the weight room. He's put himself in uncomfort- able situations where he's forced himself to speak up to other guys. In that sense, I'm re- ally proud of him." Losey is in his second season as the lead strength coach for James Franklin's program. How- ever, he's been at Penn State for 10 years and trained athletes at all positions under his predeces- sor and mentor Dwight Galt. He knows well that each player has different areas to focus on each offseason, and he understands precisely what Allar's areas are. "Drew, being at the quarter- back position, has got to have durability," Losey said. "That was one priority. With a tall, lean frame like Drew had when he first came in, one of his main objectives was to put muscle mass on. He's done a great job. … He looks great. He looks like a defensive end right now." On signing day for the 2022 recruiting class, Penn State listed Allar at 6-foot-5, 225 pounds. Head- ing into the team's 2023 spring practice sessions in March, he was at 242 pounds. It's right where the coaching staff wants him to be at this point. Losey has also been pleased with the development of Allar's classmate and challenger for the starting position, Beau Pribula. The York, Pa., native stands 6-2, 206 pounds, up 8 pounds from his listed weight last season. "Beau is an elite athlete when it comes to speed, strength and power," Losey said. "I think the combination of having Drew, who was probably behind the curve when he first got here, and some- body like Beau in the same room and in the same class, it's really benefited Drew." Now, the two are ready to compete for the right to lead the Nittany Lions this fall. — Greg Pickel Allar has packed nearly 20 pounds of muscle onto his 6-foot-5 frame since arriving at Penn State in January 2022. PHOTO BY RYAN SNYDER Tra n s f e r c o r n e r b a c k S t o r m D u c k i m p r e s s e d t h e strength staff during his first few months in Penn State's program. PHOTO BY GREG PICKEL