College football officially returns this month and the countdown to Penn State's season opener at West Virginia is down to 14 days, just two more weeks. Moving into today's spot on the countdown is another Penn State quarterback redshirt freshman Jaxon Smolik.
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The recruitment
Coming out of Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines, Iowa, Smolik originally committed to play for Tulane in June of 2022. However, after Penn State lost quarterback commit Marcus Stokes, which proved to not be a blow, the Nittany Lions brought Smolik in to camp for the staff. Following a strong showing, he earned an offer from the Nittany Lions and would flip his commitment in August.
Smolik had a strong sophomore and senior season in high school but missed his entire junior season due to a collarbone injury. This injury proved to have a big negative impact on his recruitment and likely prevented him from picking up additional offers and interest from bigger programs.
Looking ahead
Smolik redshirted last fall while appearing in one game. Unfortunately for Smolik, the injury bug has bitten once again. After suffering an injury this spring, he will most likely miss the entire 2024 season. While Smolik was going to be behind both Drew Allar and Beau Pribula on the depth chart, this is still a blow to Smolik who likely would have gotten more playing time in garbage time this fall.
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