Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1518105
A P R I L 2 0 2 4 3 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Spring football continues at Penn State, and the Nittany Lions have a lot to accomplish before wrapping up their offseason drills with the Blue-White Game on April 13. Naturally, the offense has gotten most of the scrutiny. There's a lot that needs to be fixed from last year, and there's a new coach in charge of the unit, with Andy Kotelnicki looking to improve the Lions' explosiveness the way he did during his tenure at Kansas. If Kotelnicki is going to succeed, he's going to need significant contributions from players up and down the depth chart. Listed below are five Nittany Lions who are full of intrigue this season. Some are headliners, while others are battling for overlooked roles a little further down the depth chart. All have the potential to shape the 2024 season. DREW ALLAR: Year 1 is in the books, and the kid gloves are off. Allar had some nice moments in his first season as a starter, but there is plenty of room for improvement heading into his junior season. James Franklin seemed to in- dicate earlier this spring that he thought the criticism of Allar was a bit much, but with championship hopes come championship expectations. A lot of the physical stuff is there, which we expected to be the case. Some of the mental flashes last fall were promising as well, but Allar, like this pro- gram, will be judged against the Ohio States and Michigans of the world. This spring, it's about getting better everywhere. It's about adapting to Ko- telnicki's offense, which is probably slightly more suited to redshirt sophomore Beau Pribula's style. It's about decision-making and leadership. Yes, coaches have said Allar has found his voice, but that's not something we've seen come through on Saturdays. Allar still has a ton of potential to unlock. Right now, a lot of that revolves around parts of the game that don't include throwing the football (which, yes, also can get better). CAM WALLACE: Trey Potts' exit wasn't a huge surprise, but his decision to pursue an NFL career after one season in State College forces position coach Ja'Juan Seider to trust an inexperienced running back behind his two bell cows. Spring practice offers an opportunity for someone to step up, and Wallace seems to be the most likely option heading into his redshirt freshman season. The 5-foot-9, 199-pounder catches the ball well, and he's physically ahead of classmate London Montgomery and January enrollee Quinton Martin Jr. He could factor in as a kick returner, too. KeANDRE LAMBERT-SMITH: It's fascinating to look at the rise, fall and po- tential redemption arc for Lambert-Smith. Penn State's No. 1 wide receiver for most of the 2023 season, he fell off a cliff after the Michigan game and was a non-factor for the stretch run and in the Peach Bowl loss to Ole Miss. So how does the fifth-year senior respond in his final spring? It's going to be an interesting dynamic to watch. Penn State got an infusion of leadership from the portal in Ohio State senior transfer Julian Fleming. Does the former Buckeye's arrival remove a burden from Lambert-Smith's shoulders now that he doesn't have to be the leader of the receivers room? In Kotelnicki's offense, Penn State is expected to use Lambert-Smith primar- ily in the slot. If the Nittany Lions end up going with an 11-personnel look (one running back, one tight end, three receivers) more frequently than in the re- cent past, the alignment could provide more opportunities for Lambert-Smith. What will he do with them? That's one of the team's bigger unknowns looking ahead to the fall. ANDREW RAPPLEYEA: The tight ends room is deep, but last year's perfor- mance showed that the Nittany Lions were lacking something in the run game from the position. Could Rappleyea be the guy who changes that? The 6-4, 249-pound redshirt freshman will bring an element of toughness to the posi- tion. While that may not result in him formally taking over the No. 2 role from redshirt junior Khalil Dinkins, it could lead to more playing time than expected for the former four-star prospect. Rappleyea is a talented young player. He would have burned a redshirt last season if the Nittany Lions had needed help at the position. Instead, he jumped then-redshirt freshman Jerry Cross and spent most of the year with the travel squad at practice. Rappleyea should help balance out the depth chart this year as an all-around tight end. NOLAN RUCCI: There's a lot to watch on the offensive line this spring. Unfor- tunately, there won't be much finality to the lineup after just 15 practices. Junior Drew Shelton is on the shelf with an injury, which alters the situation at both tackle and guard. Versatile lineman JB Nelson is playing on the edge more often in spring practice after starting nine games at left guard last year. Redshirt freshmen J'ven Williams and Anthony Donkoh are getting plenty of reps, too. We'll also see what Rucci is made of following his transfer from Wisconsin. Physically and athletically, the 6-foot-8, 305-pound redshirt junior brings a lot to the table. Despite being a few years older than most of his competitors at tackle, he's pretty equal with most of them. He's come a long way in terms of training and weight in the past few months, which is a pleasant surprise for a guy who's been in a college program for three years. Rucci has ability; it just needs to be unlocked. It's still too early to know if position coach Phil Trautwein (or anyone) can get it out of him. Given how hard it is to find bona fide offensive tackles, that's a risk worth tak- ing. Rucci is battling Donkoh on the right side, but with Shelton out, it's logical to think that everyone will get turns on the left side as well. — Sean Fitz Five Offensive Players Under The Microscope This Spring KeAndre Lambert-Smith was Penn State's leading receiver last season with 53 catches for 673 yards, but his productivity declined sharply late in the year. He pulled in just 2 catches for 28 yards in the Lions' final four games. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL