Penn State's Olu Fashanu named Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year
Penn State left tackle Olu Fashanu has been named the Big Ten Rimmington-Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year for his performance during the 2023 season. He becomes the second Nittany Lion to win the award, joining center A.Q. Shipley who won the award in 2008.
The potential top-10 draft pick in next year's NFL Draft was also Penn State's lone first-team All-Big Ten selection on the offensive side of the ball.
According to Pro Football Focus, Fashanu did not allow a single sack this season across 382 pass-blocking snaps. The Washington, D.C. native also graded out as one of the top-10 pass-blocking offensive linemen in the country including the best in the Big Ten.
This season, Fashanu was also named a William V. Campbell Trophy finalist, an award nicknamed the "Academic Heisman". He was also named a semifinalist for the Lombardi Award which is given to the best offensive lineman in the country. It's expected that Fashanu will be named an All-American by most outlets this postseason as well.
One of the best to ever suit up in the blue and white, Fashanu chose to return to the Nittany Lions last winter despite being a likely top-10 draft pick. The former four-star prospect remains among the country's top draft prospects including being ranked by as the No. 3 player who is expected to be available in the draft. According to the most recent mock drafts, Fashanu is expected to be drafted anywhere between No. 2 and No. 11 in this upcoming NFL Draft.
With Fashanu expected to head to the NFL this offseason, the Nittany Lions will need to replace the likely first-round pick on their starting offensive lineman. Potential options for replacing him include rising junior Drew Shelton and redshirt freshman J'ven Williams. It's also expected that the Nittany Lions could be active in the transfer portal including with offensive line transfers.
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