Penn State is stacked and ready to make it a ‘real tough environment’ for West Virginia

In what will mark a decade of Penn State football under head coach James Franklin, the Nittany Lions enter 2023 with lofty goals and expectations.

Following a 2022 campaign that featured an 11-2 record and a Rose Bowl victory, there have been many offseason predictions that find Penn State in the Big Ten championship — and even one of the teams to receive a coveted College Football Playoff spot. Even more arguments suggest this could be Franklin’s best team since his arrival at Penn State.

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So when West Virginia enters Beaver Stadium in prime time Saturday night (NBC, 7:30) before a helmet-striped crowd, which Franklin deemed a “sneaky White Out,” Penn State’s coach has confidence that this year’s team is deeper than ever before.

“We have a three-deep at pretty much every position,” Franklin said earlier this week. “Having a three-deep across the board allows you to develop your entire roster when you feel like you have legitimate guys to put out there, both mentally and physically.”

West Virginia lands on the opposite end of the spectrum. The Mountaineers finished 5-7 in 2022 and have consistently found coach Neal Brown on the hot seat over the last couple of years. There is a lengthy history between the two programs, with Penn State holding a 48-9-2 all-time mark against West Virginia, although the last meeting came in 1992.

Penn State enters Saturday as a heavy favorite, and none of Franklin’s players were even born at the time of the last meeting, diluting any rivalry between the pair.

“We talk about the history of the game, and that’s what it is. It’s history,” Franklin said. “Although it would be nice to take some time and talk about the history of college football and the history of this region in some of these games, there’s just not a whole lot of value in that in terms of getting our guys ready to play this game and be successful.”

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Penn State and West Virginia are similar in the fact that neither Brown nor Franklin has publicly named a starting quarterback.

The answer seems clear in both situations, though.

All eyes await sophomore Drew Allar, the former five-star recruit from Medina High School in Ohio and seemingly the heir apparent to six-year starter Sean Clifford, to take the first snaps for the Nittany Lions. Franklin told reporters earlier this week he expects junior Garrett Greene, a dual-threat quarterback, to start for the Mountaineers.

Many believe Allar, whose arm strength and pocket presence flashed in a backup role to Clifford last season, will be the X factor in Penn State’s success. Franklin and others spent a good chunk of Tuesday’s game-week news conferences talking about Allar’s performance in training camp.

It wasn’t until practice 13 or 14 that Allar threw an interception, Franklin said, while cornerback Kalen King said there were only one or two turnovers total.

“Drew’s had, I would say, a good camp … that’s given himself and the coaches and his teammates a bunch of confidence,” Franklin said.

Allar has a strong supporting cast around him offensively. Sophomore running backs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen look to star again, while the tight end position and offensive line also are deep and talented.

Defensively, the cornerback, safety, end, and tackle positions roll at least four names deep with players Franklin has publicly expressed confidence in. The linebacker room also is filled with returning production.

The only true question marks remaining for Penn State are at wide receiver and special teams. KeAndre Lambert-Smith and Harrison Wallace will start at wide receiver, but the third spot will see significant rotation.

Penn State lost its starting kicker, punter, and long snapper from last season. Franklin has named a starter at long snapper in redshirt sophomore Tyler Duzansky, while punter and kicker are ongoing battles between younger players and veteran transfers brought in this offseason.

The Nittany Lions may not view West Virginia as a rivalry, but there are some familiar faces on the roster. Two former Penn State players are now Mountaineers, and many more were heavily recruited by Franklin and his staff.

In the end, however, Penn State players have said they’re just ready to hit someone in a different uniform.

“It’s going to be a real tough environment to play in for West Virginia,” said King, who enters as an AP preseason All-America selection. “The way our defense is, I feel like we’re going to set the tone. We’re going to keep the same hunger that we had previously and we’re just going to go out there and do what we’re supposed to do.”

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