Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541276
D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 5 11 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M than anyone else on the roster. There haven't been too many freshman pass rushers who have been this exciting, so buckle in when the season ends. 3. ANTHONY DONKOH OL | R-So. | 6-5 | 323 Penn State will lose at least three start- ers along the offensive line after 2025, so the ability to return someone with Donkoh's experience level would be a nice plus. A move back out to tackle could benefit everyone and give him an opportunity to play at his more natu- ral position. There's still a ton of talent there, and a pro future as well. Penn State's offensive line could use an over- haul after this year, but retaining a steady player like Donkoh would give the Nit- tany Lions a head start on their rebuild. 4. XAVIER GILLIAM DT | R-Fr. | 6-2 | 300 Penn State's defensive tackles have been inconsistent this year, but Gilliam has flashed at times. With Durant and Ford both in their final year of eligibil- ity, the Nittany Lions are going to need Gilliam's experience and explosiveness along the interior. The former three-star prospect from Montgomery Village, Md., has 11 tackles this year, including 1.5 for loss, and he still has plenty of room to make a leap. 5. RYAN BARKER PK | R-So. | 6-2 | 200 Barker may be Penn State's most con- sistent player this season, and don't think for a second that there won't be a market for a reliable, experienced kicker in the portal. The Kennett (Pa.) High grad won the job last year from Sander Sahaydak and has made 12 of 13 kicks so far in 2025. His only miss was blocked due to a protection breakdown. He's 27 for 31 in his career and has been an abso- lute gem as a walk-on addition. ■ Nobody knows how the next few months will play out, but move- ment is inevitable. There are a few players on the current roster who might warrant spots on the "must retain" list, but there are also ques- tions that will come into play. How will stay-or-go decisions for guys like redshirt junior guard Olai- vavega Ioane, junior cornerback A.J. Harris or others be impacted by the coaching change? When Bill O'Brien was thinking about accepting an NFL head coaching job after the 2013 regular season, receiver Al- len Robinson was on the fence about leaving early. O'Brien's eventual exit made that an easy call for Robinson; he ended up being drafted in the second round in 2014. A number of juniors on this year's roster — cornerbacks Audavion Collins and Elliot Washington II, nickel Zion Tracy and linebacker Amare Campbell — will have to make the same type of decisions that Robinson faced. In the case of Ioane, Harris and Collins, there's not a strong geographical tie. That could certainly come into play, especially if the coaches who recruited them are no longer at Penn State. (Four of those listed are Terry Smith's recruits.) Before this year, Tracy men- tioned possibly going pro. While the tape doesn't necessarily back that up, it does tell you about his mindset. Campbell is a big one for the Nittany Lions. He's been a good addi- tion since arriving from North Carolina, and he came to PSU in part to play with junior Tony Rojas. If the Nittany Lions are able to convince one to stay, it could help with the other. Getting two starting lineback- ers back next season could go a long way. There are also big questions at quarterback. Redshirt freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer was under consideration for our must-retain list, but there's no way of knowing which direction the new head coach will want to go. Grunkemeyer could finish the season strong and establish his standing at Penn State, but he could also be in demand on the open market. The new coach will likely have to bring in more quarterbacks, whether it be his own guys or someone else in the portal. Penn State will have to replace most of its offensive line next year, if not all, so sophomores Cooper Cousins and TJ Shanahan Jr. were under consideration. Cousins hasn't been able to break through yet, however, and Shanahan is closely tied to offensive line coach Phil Trautwein. There are promising backups in redshirt freshmen Eagan Boyer and Garrett Sexton, but neither has gotten into the regular rotation, and both are out-of-region guys. When looking at the roster as a whole, there is stability in the older classes but a decent amount of inexperience in the middle group. Of course, the former influences the latter, but there are still a lot of unknowns in the sophomore- and junior-eligible classes. As for those players with freshman eligibility, offensive tackles Owen Aliciene, Michael Troutman and Malachi Goodman, wide receivers Koby Howard, Tyseer Denmark and Lyrick Samuel, defensive end Yvan Kemajou, linebackers Alex Tatsch and Cam Smith, and cornerbacks Daryus Dixson and Jahmir Joseph seem to be the cream of the crop. As a group, however, they've seen very little action to this point in their careers, so any evaluation is going to be based on potential, not performance. — Sean Fitz Ryan Barker has been one of the most reliable kickers in the Big Ten since winning the starting job last fall. He's hit 27 of 31 field goal attempts over the past two seasons. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS Who Is Absent From Our List … And Why?