Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1518105
1 6 A P R I L 2 0 2 4 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M "Stop me if you have heard this before: A Penn State Nittany Lion dominated the combine. We knew heading into the event that Chop Robinson would dominate the athletic testing portion, and he did just that. … While he's still on the smaller side for an every-down edge rusher, Robinson's 9.68 [relative athletic score] proves how dynamic of an athlete he is when rushing the passer." — Connor Livesay, senior NFL Draft writer for The 33rd Team, on Robinson's performance at the league's scouting combine in February "Drew Shelton is someone I think of very highly. That's a guy that, honestly, if everything goes right, he should be a lot better than I ever was at Penn State." — NFL-bound offensive tackle Olumuyiwa Fashanu, weighing in on one of his potential successors at Penn State "Spending big on Barkley, with a large amount guaranteed, is telling. [The Eagles] believe in Bark- ley's talent and him being a star in their offense. A unit with Barkley, Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and others will be fun to watch. The offense took a hit with center Jason Kelce's retirement, but it will still be the best line Barkley has ever run behind. It also might be good for him to not be the entire focal point of every defensive game plan. "The Eagles have seen Barkley twice a year over his career. They were obviously impressed. Now the Giants, who couldn't reach a long-term deal with Barkley, have to stop him." — Frank Schwab, NFL writer for Yahoo Sports, on the Philadelphia Eagles' decision to sign for- mer Penn State running back Saquon Barkley to a three-year, $37.75-million contract that includes $26 million in guaranteed money "You're never out of it. You have to be tough. Not everybody can go for so long, but it's easy to be fearless." — Redshirt freshman wrestler Mitchell Mesen- brink after rallying from a 9-2 deficit to defeat Wisconsin's top-seeded Dean Hamiti, 13-11, in the 165-pound final at the Big Ten Tournament "You've got to re-recruit your roster all the time, because it is how it is. I'd be naive to say, 'Oh, it's not a concern,' or, 'I'm not worried about it until the end of the season.' That's not true. For every coach and every assistant coach, this is part of recruiting now. This is part of roster management. Like it or not, it's here. You've got to have aware- ness of all that. … Roster management in today's college athletics, it is what it is. And if you have your head in the sand, then you're not ready to do the next thing." — Penn State men's basketball coach Mike Rhoades on the transfer portal "Given the facts — a new roster, a new coaching staff, the willing dismissal of the team's leading scorer, all while playing in a challenging league — Penn State came out [of its 2023-24 regular sea- son] looking pretty good. Oftentimes, the measure of the program's success is its ceiling, but in truth it might be best judged by how far its basement has risen. If Penn State's worst years are doomed to be 'just a few winnable games away from the tournament,' then there is something to be said for that progress. "That's not to say Rhoades won't have to prove his mettle in the years to come, but he has given fans plenty of reason to hope for the future." — Ben Jones, StateCollege.com columnist, on the progress of the men's basketball program in Mike Rhoades' first season as head coach They Said It "Drew is as consistent as can be. He's been great. You talk about guys being raw when they first get on campus … Drew was super raw. But you see it in here today, he holds his own with everything. So, I'm really happy with Drew." — Strength coach Chuck Losey on the physical improvement that ju - nior quarterback DREW ALLAR has made since arriving at Penn State PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL