Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1496986
W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Leading Man One way he'll need to do so is by be- coming a team leader. Penn State loses all of its captains from a year ago and will need several players to step forward. The oldest player in his position group, Lambert-Smith is a logical candidate to assume one of those roles. He knows that's an expectation this year, and while he called the transition "a challenge," he's willing to be as vocal as necessary. "A lot of guys are looking at me to lead the room, and even be a leader on the team [as a whole]," he said. "I always felt like I was born to lead by example, but I've always been a talkative guy. I'm going to talk, but I'm also going to back it up and work every day. And I feel like the guys respect that. The guys in my room respect it." Lambert-Smith and fellow returnee Harrison "Tre" Wal- lace, a redshirt sophomore, will likely be the team's top receivers this fall. The Lions have also bolstered their wideout corps by landing junior Malik McClain from Florida State and senior Dante Ce- phas from Kent State. McClain has been on campus since January, while Cephas will arrive in the coming months after fin- ishing work on his undergraduate degree. After leaning heavily on the team's top three receivers last year, coach James Franklin wants the Nittany Lions to es- tablish more depth this fall. The first step in that process is to make sure the top spots on the three-deep are in good hands, and that will require a strong showing from Lambert- Smith. "We need him to be the guy," Frank- lin said, "like a true No. 1, not just at Penn State, but really in the conference, and a guy that people are talking about nationally." ■ M A Y 2 0 2 3 2 3 Lambert-Smith was Penn State's third-leading receiver with 389 yards on 24 catches last year. His average of 16.21 yards per catch was the best of any wideout and was second on the team behind the 16.4-yard average posted by tight end Theo Johnson. PHOTO BY DANIEL ALTHOUSE