Penn State Football has another media availability for Fall training camp today as they continue to prep for the season opener against West Virginia later this month.
With that being said, here's a look at everything that stood out in today's practice.
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QUARTERBACKS....
Is true freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer making a push for the no. 2 quarterback behind true junior Drew Allar? In passing drills, Grunkemeyer was seen taking first reps side-by-side with Allar, while the redshirt sophomore Beau Pribula looked on.
Usually, Allar and Pribula will go together, but not this time. Pribula should be the presumed backup given his overall playmaking ability and time spent in the program. However, with all of the praise around Grunkemeyer’s initial development, I would not put it past him to make things interesting in the future.
The quarterbacks worked on rollouts and throwing to their off side. True freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer continued to show positive development with clean throws working to his left. It was interesting to see him go side-by-side with returning starter Drew Allar during these passing drills. With Allar as the veteran, you compare the two in real time and see that the first year QB is not miles behind in terms of mechanics.
RUNNING BACKS....
There have been questions about redshirt freshman Cam Wallace’s availability heading into the season. Wallace looked to be a full participant today. He is the presumed no. 3 tailback behind juniors Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen. True freshman Quinton Martin offers insurance if Wallace is not 100% to begin the new campaign.
WIDE RECEIVERS....
I liked what I saw from redshirt sophomore Tyler Johnson. Johnson put on a good session from our brief viewing window. The route running looked solid and he made some nice catches.
Johnson has an opportunity to solidify himself as a rotational backup with the departures of KeAndre Lambert-Smith, Dante Cephas, and Malick Meiga.
TIGHT ENDS....
Penn State has five capable players at the tight end position. While Tyler Warren is the alpha, redshirt freshman Andrew Rappleyea, true freshman Luke Reynolds, redshirt freshman Joey Schlaffer, and redshirt sophomore Jerry Cross could all see playing time this season. I thought Reynolds and Warren stood out the most in this practice.
OFFENSIVE LINE....
There is growing buzz around junior tackle Drew Shelton, as he is presumed to be the starter at that left tackle spot replacing Jets rookie Olu Fashanu.
Personally I consider JB Nelson a possible threat to turn things into a competition. However, in the second consecutive viewing window, Shelton was at tackle and Nelson was at guard.
DEFENSIVE LINE....
True junior Abdul Carter, true junior Dani Dennis-Sutton, super senior Smith Vilbert, and true senior Amin Vanover took first reps on the sled. Expect this to be a look ahead to the true defensive end rotation. A duo of Carter and Dennis-Sutton followed by Vilbert and Vanover. I am eager to see what Vilbert can do on the edge weighing 292 pounds.
LINEBACKERS....
True sophomore Tony Rojas took reps first alongside veterans Kobe King and Dom DeLuca. In a 4-3 base defense, these would be Penn State’s presumed starters at LB.
Based on the team’s depth at safety, we should expect Tom Allen to run a lot of 4-2-5 formations, with two backers and five defensive backs. In that case, my prediction for the first two linebackers would be King and DeLuca with Rojas and Elsdon rotating in.
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