Penn State Prepped to Roll Out Big Ten's Most Proven Receiving Core
During his historical run in Happy Valley, Jahan Dotson surmounted himself within Penn State allure by finishing his career with the second-most catches, touchdowns grabs, and the fourth-most yards among wide receivers in program history.
His senior campaign, consisting of 91 snags for 1,182 yards and 12 touchdowns, helped the Nazareth, Pennsylvania native surpass the likes of Allen Robinson, Chirs Godwin, and OJ McDuffie in every statistical category recorded at the receiver position.
The loss of a four-year staple on the outside of James Franklin’s offensive attack poses a threat of evident drop off for the overall on-field product at wide receiver. However, with the addition of Mitchell Tinsley, a second-team All-Conference USA product gained through the transfer portal by way of Western Kentucky, the Nittany Lions currently boast the highest returning receiver production in the Big Ten heading into 2022.
With Tinsely, Parker Washington, and KeAndre Lambert-Smith set to headline Taylor Stubblefield’s high-powered unit, the three esteemed route runners hold claim to 3,747 receiving yards through six seasons of combined experience. For reference, just four other Big Ten squads possess projected wide receiving cores with 3,000 or more yards entering next fall, with Rutgers having the second-highest returning production consisting of 3,595 yards.
Similarly to the Nittany Lions’ addition to Tinsley, the Scarlet Knights nabbed two burners in Taj Harris and Sean Ryan from Syracuse and West Virginia, respectively. For each of the four programs with over 3,000 returning receiving yards, all were able to land a transfer with at least 1,000 yards garnered at their previous landing spots. Although units such as Nebraska and Indiana both added pass catchers from previous Power Five destinations in LSU and North Carolina, no incoming transfer at wide receiver within the conference accumulated as many catches, touchdowns, and yards as Tinsley did for the Hilltoppers a year ago.
Behind the cadence of record-setting quarterback Bailey Zappe, Tinsley exploded for 1,402 yards on 87 receptions en route to Western Kentucky finishing second nationally in total offense, trailing only Ohio State. The Hilltoppers were one of three teams to average over seven yards per play, while also leading the nation with 76 touchdowns scored. In both categories, Tinsley’s production only bolstered Western Kentucky’s offensive success by averaging 16.1 yards per catch and finishing with nearly 20% of the squad’s touchdowns by securing 14 grabs in the endzone.
Aside from the marquee transfer pickup in Tinsley, Parker Washington proved his readiness to step up in Dotson’s absence during the Nittany Lions’ Outback Bowl loss to Arkansas on New Year’s Day. The former four-star product proved to be a lone bright spot for Mike Yurcich’s group against the Razorbacks by leading the receiving core with seven receptions for 98 yards. Additionally, Washington proved his worth as a two-way weapon, by converting two attempts on the ground into a 12-yard gain.
During his second year in Happy Valley, Washington used his smaller 5’10”, 212-pound frame to break 16 tackles on nearly 70 grabs, equaling the most among Penn State wide receivers during the 13-game span. Due to the nature of Dotson’s first-team All-Big Ten run, Washington’s overall production proved to be severely overlooked at the year’s end. His 64-catch mark now stands as the sixth-most single-season receptions in school history, surpassing Bobby Engram’s clip of 63 during his Biletnikoff Award-winning season in 1995.
In addition to Washington, KeAndre Lambert-Smith also cemented himself as a viable home run threat by setting a team-leading 15.3 yards per reception tally a season ago. Despite securing just 34 grabs in 13 starts, Lambert-Smith’s reliability proved to be crucial in several early-season affairs, including the Nittany Lions’ upset victory over Wisconsin, where he caught four passes for nearly 18 yards per snag.
Although Lambert-Smith became a sure-fire pick to deliver offense in explosive spurts, the redshirt freshman failed to shine the brightest in some of the Nittany Lions’ most pivotal matchups. In action against Ohio State, Michigan, and Michigan State, the speedy weapon was shut down for a total of 70 yards on only seven catches.
Despite housing KJ Hamler and Jahan Dotson within the last five seasons, Penn State hasn’t held a true triple-threat at wide receiver since 2016, where DaeSean Hamilton, Chris Godwin, and Saeed Blacknall helped Trace McSorley eclipse over 3,600 yards through the air. In many ways, the Nittany Lions’ current group of pass catchers is eerily similar to the one that guided the program to its first Big Ten Championship under Franklin nearly six years ago.
Entering 2020, Washington and Lambert-Smith became the first pair of true freshmen receivers to start for Penn State since Godwin and Blacknall accomplished the feat against Michigan in 2014. Now, with both set to enter their third seasons with the Nittany Lions beginning in September, the two will attempt to duplicate the success of Godwin and Blacknall, who combined for 1,329 yards and 14 touchdowns during their third campaigns with the program.
While Penn State certainly holds a well-balanced assembly of weapons at Sean Clifford’s disposal, the Nittany Lions still have a flurry of question marks littered across an offense that finished 82nd in total production in 2021. However, if Yurcich can capitalize on the skillsets of Tinsely, Washington, and Lambert-Smith, the Nittany Lions may be able to catch lightning in a bottle through its passing attack, similar to the program’s ascension from 2015 into 2016.
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