TRANSFER PORTAL: What are Penn State Football's needs?
The transfer portal is officially open as of Monday morning, kickstarting what will be a busy next few weeks and months in the college football world. Programs across the country will look to fulfill their needs with the portal with potential instant impact players.
For Penn State, the transfer portal has been extremely productive in the past. The Nittany Lions have found and landed prospects such as DE Arnold Ebiketie, DT Derrick Tangelo, DE Chop Robinson, WR Mithcell Tinsley, and OL Hunter Nourzad in the portal over the last two years. James Franklin and his staff will look to make it three years in a row of finding high-impact players in the portal this offseason.
Entering next season, Penn State's roster is looking pretty strong overall, one of the best in the Big Ten and one that has a foundation to compete for a Big Ten Championship and more. That being said, there are several areas of need for the NIttany Lions this offseason that will need to be addressed.
Below we take a look at each position group for Penn State, assign a level of need, and look at potential options if the positon is a need for the Nittany Lions.
Quarterback:
Level of Need: None
Entering next season, it seems very likely that Drew Allar will be the Nittany Lions starting quarterback. That being said, behind Allar is only Beau Pribula and 2023 commit Jaxon Smolik. Could the Nittany Lions explore adding a backup quarterback? Sure but Nittany Nation does not anticipate them doing so at this time. The Nittany Lions coaching staff is very high on Pribula and believes he could be a very good starting quarterback in his own right. All in all, Penn State will likely take their chances heading into next season.
Running back:
Level of Need: Medium
Penn State lost two scholarship running backs since August as Devyn Ford and Coziah Holmes both left the program. That leaves the Nittany Lions with the talented true freshman duo of Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen, as well as Keyvone Lee as scholarship running backs currently on the roster.
The Nittany Lions currently have one commitment in the 2023 class from Scranton Prep (PA) standout London Montgomery and are looking to add another running back to the class. Right now, running back isn't a need in the portal for the Nittany Lions, however, if Keyvone Lee would decide to transfer or would they fail to pick up another 2023 running back, or even both, the program looking to add another running back makes sense.
The Nittany Lions love to have a strong rotation of running backs to use throughout the season with that, it wouldn't be shocking to see them eventually target a running back. That being said, it may be one of the last areas of needs that are answered as it could take a while to find a running back willing to fulfill the role of a third or fourth running back. With that, it's quite hard to list potential options at this juncture.
Wide Receiver:
Level of Need: HIGH
The Nittany Lions will target the wide receiver position harder than any other position in the portal as we've reported here at Nittany Nation over the last few weeks. Chances are they'll look to get two transfer wide receivers as they look to strengthen a wide receiver room that will enter next spring without at least Mitchell Tinsley but could also be without Parker Washington, depending on what he decides to do in terms of his NFL future.
James Franklin and his staff are going to go big name hunting at the position and there are already plenty of portal wide receivers that have connections to the staff or Pennsylvania which are intriguing options. They simply need a high-impact player at the position heading into next season if they hope to make a run at a Big Ten Championship or possible College Football Playoff berth.
They're off to a good start in the portal, making the top four for USF transfer Jimmy Horn Jr. alongside the likes of Colorado, Houston, and Texas A&M. We'll see if they can finish off that recruitment but it will be tough to beat Deion Sanders and Colorado who already landed 2025 wide receiver Winston Watkins within hours of officially being the Buffs head coach.
Names to know:
Tight End:
Level of Need: Low/None
The Nittany Lions have one of the deepest tight end rooms in the country and even if they lose one of Brenton Strange or Theo Johnson, the Nittany Lions will return another deep tight end room in 2023.
Offensive Line:
Level of Need: Medium
The Nittany Lions' needs on the offensive line will be at offensive tackle. Olu Fashanu returns at left tackle but right tackle will be a question mark entering 2023. Right now, it's unclear what Caedan Wallace or Bryce Effner will choose to do. It's possible one stays, one leaves, both stay, or both leave.
That being said, the Nittany Lions are looking to fill their offensive tackle needs whether it's' through the portal or through the JUCO route as they're looking to land 2023 JUCO target Keyshawn Blackstock. If they don't land Blackstock, the portal becomes their next best option.
Additionally, the Nittany Lions' depth in the interior is pretty strong and shouldn't be a concern.
Names to know:
Defensive Line:
Level of Need: High at defensive tackle
The Nittany Lions don't really need much help at defensive end though that will likely be a case-by-case basis, at defensive tackle, however, the Nittany Lions could use a strong replacement for PJ Mustipher. While they are set to return names such as Coziah Izzard and Hakeem Beamon as well as Dvon Ellies and Jordan van den Berg among others, the Nittany Lions are still in big need of a Mustihper / Derrick Tangelo type of talent. An athletic defensive tackle who can be tough against the run but also be fast and athletic enough to be a presence in the pass rush.
Names to know:
Linebacker
Level of Need: Low-Medium
The need of a linebacker will solely come down to the decision of Curtis Jacobs. If Jacobs returns, linebacker won't be a major need for the Nittany Lions. If Jacobs decides to go pro, the Nittany Lions will need to quickly move in the transfer portal to find a linebacker. The door isn't shut at the position if Jacobs returns but it won't be a priority most likely but it would be taken on a case-by-case basis.
Cornerback:
Level of Need: Medium
This is more so a position where I think you look to get greedy. You can never have too much talent at the cornerback position. If Penn State entered next season with the group that is expected already to be on campus, they'll be just fine. That being said, if you can find another top-tier cornerback to put alongside Kalen King, the Nittany Lions without a doubt will have arguably the best cornerback room in the Big Ten and one of the best in the country overall. With the quarterback and wide receiver talent at Michigan and Ohio State, you can never have too much talent at the cornerback position. The portal so far is a little light at the cornerback position but that will surely change over the upcoming days and weeks.
Names to know:
Safties:
Level of Need: Low
Safety isn't an area of need for Penn State entering next season. While Ja'yir Brown moves onto the NFL, the Nittany Lions are still set to return names such as Keaton Ellis, Zakee Wheatley, Jayleen Read, and Kevin Winston Jr among others. If someone enters the portal that you can't turn down and has an interest in the program, perhaps you then take a look. But all signs point to the Nittany Lions coaching staff having a lot of confidence in the group they have going into next season.
Kicker:
Level of Need: Low-to-medium
The kicker position remains to be determined, if Jake Pinegar returns, Penn State may still look to bring another punter in but if Pinegar decides to move on, it will become a major need for the Nittany Lions. Redshirt freshman Sander Sahaydak development is still ongoing and it's unclear what the Nittany Lions have in the Bethlehem (PA) native.
Punter:
Level of Need: Low
The Nittany Lions brought in one of the nation's top prep punters in their 2022 recruiting class in Alex Bacchetta and with Barney Amor exhausting his eligibility, Bacchetta will likely fill the starting role next season.
Ranking Penn State's needs:
1. Wide Receiver - The Nittany Lions need a game-changer at the wide receiver position to go along with Drew Allar's arm talent. That type of wide receiver is the only thing this offense is missing.
2. Defensive Tackle - Losing PJ Mustipher here is big and in today's Big Ten where there is a ridiculous amount of running back talent, especially at Ohio State and Michigan, you need a big athletic defensive tackle in the middle of your defensive line. Penn State has good depth at the position but can they find a PJ Mustipher or Derrik Tangelo-type player in the portal this year?
3. Offensive Line - Offensive tackle is a big need here, Olu Fashanu is returning on the left side but the right side is a major question as the Nittany Lions don't have a bonafide starter at the position and it's unclear if Caedan Wallace or Bryce Effner will return for the 2023 season.
4. Cornerback - You could probably put this lower just based on the pure depth and talent that James Franklin and his staff have assembled at the position. That being said, the Nittany Lions will likely look to add a high-impact player at the cornerback position to potentially start opposite Kalen King next season. They would be just fine as is but adding another high-level cornerback would make the Nittany Lions' defense that much more menacing and will likely be needed when looking at the quarterback and wide receiver talents at Ohio State and Michigan.
5. Linebacker - Linebacker is a bit of a to-be-determined as much of it will rely on Curtis Jacobs and his decision to go pro or not. If Jacobs returns, linebacker isn't a major concern for Penn State entering 2023.
6. Running back - Penn State should add another running back but it will likely be a while till they do, it will be tough to find a back whose willing to be at least the No.3 back if not No.4 back in the rotation entering next season.
7. Kicker - Dependent on Jake Pinegar's future, the kicker position would become a bigger area of need if he decides to leave as redshirt freshman Sander Sahaydak is still a question mark.
8. Safety - Losing Ji'Ayir Brown at safety is big but the Nittany Lions have done a great job at safety over the years on the recruiting trail and should be going forward.
9. Defensive End - Penn State is just fine at the defensive end, they right now at least have three All-Big Ten potential defensive ends and if Nick Tarburton returns, that number rises to four. The depth at the position is very strong as well.
10. Punter - With Alex Bacchetta likely stepping into the starting spot, the Nittany Lions should be fine at punter going forward.
11. Quarterback - No one would turn down another backup quarterback (probably) but it seems unlikely the NIttany Lions add to the position. It's the Drew Allar show anyways.
12. Tight End- Penn State continues to have one of the country's best tight end rooms, even if they lose a tight end this season, there's plenty of depth at the position going forward.
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