Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1507572
O C T O B E R 2 0 2 3 31 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Wide Receiver Franklin was clear when the season started that he felt as though the Lions had two top receivers in junior KeAndre Lambert-Smith and redshirt sophomore Harrison Wallace III, but the staff was not sure who the third starter would be. Through two weeks, redshirt sophomore Liam Clifford had filled that role, but the stat sheet indicated that Penn State was still trying to figure some things out. Lambert-Smith had 10 catches for 197 yards and 2 touchdowns. Wallace had 10 receptions for 98 yards but had yet to reach the end zone. First-year Nittany Lion Malik McClain did not turn heads as expected during spring practice, but the junior transfer from Florida State was impressive early in the season, catching 5 passes for 65 yards and a touchdown. Clifford had 4 grabs for 27 yards, while senior Kent State transfer Dante Cephas had 3 for 58 and sophomore Omari Evans made his season debut against Delaware with a touchdown catch. Time will tell whether Penn State is able to settle on a consistent third option or will continue to rotate players through that spot and also go with more 12-per- sonnel packages featuring two tight ends. First-year receivers coach Marques Hagans has his players performing well. Drops haven't been a problem, nor has blocking. But all the receivers would benefit if someone played so well that he couldn't be kept off the field behind Lambert-Smith and Wallace. Tight End The top two players at the position, juniors Theo Johnson and Tyler Warren, have been seeing plenty of action. They combined to make 9 catches for 60 yards and a touchdown in the first two games. It might be surprising that Warren accounts for 7 of those catches and 46 of the yards, as well as the lone touchdown, but the Li- ons will get Johnson going eventually. He is too talented not to end up being a more prominent part of the passing attack. "As an offense, just passing, growing our passing game from last week, and establishing that run this week is im- portant," Warren said after the Delaware game. "I think we did that." The Lions talked up redshirt sophomore Khalil Dinkins a good bit this offseason. He hadn't played a lot through two weeks, so it will be interesting to see if his rep count expands in the Big Ten season or if offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich and position coach Ty Howle continue to roll with the top two almost exclusively. Offensive Line Is this the best offensive line of the Franklin era? It's too early to say. But it's been good so far. The Nittany Lions lost redshirt sopho- more guard Landon Tengwall, who was fighting for a starting spot, to a medical retirement in August. Tengwall's exit led to redshirt junior JB Nelson sliding into the starting left guard role. Junior Olu- muyiwa Fashanu and redshirt senior Cae- dan Wallace are manning the left and right tackle spots, respectively. Nelson is beside Fashanu, and redshirt senior right guard Sal Wormley is beside Wallace. Super senior Hunter Nourzad has had some high snaps during his first season as the starting center, but that does not appear to be a long-term problem. This group has not given any reason to think it cannot live up to the lofty expectations set for it. But Big Ten play will tell us plenty. Wal- lace must be more consistent. Nourzad must fend off some early bumps and bruises. Collectively, they must keep Allar upright. The Lions did get a lot of young linemen playing time against Delaware. Will it matter moving forward? Maybe and maybe not. Redshirt freshman guard Olaivavega Ioane played plenty against the Blue Hens and may do so on a more consistent basis moving forward. "We were able to get Olu and Hunter out and were able to get [center Nick] Dawkins some reps, which we thought was really important," Franklin said. "[Ioane] played a ton today, which we thought was im- portant." ■