Roster management is a challenge no matter who you are in college football and that’s no different for Penn State and James Franklin heading into the 2021-22 offseason. With the bowl game on the horizon and the transfer portal always open for business, Penn State will see plenty of incoming and outgoing changes to its roster between now and a season-opening kick at Purdue.
But change can be exciting for fans looking towards the future, and with the 2022 recruiting class signed and delivered, here are five new faces that might just make an impact from Day 1 when they touch down in Happy Valley.
Nicholas Singleton: Running back
Penn State’s running back room isn’t short on names, which might mean some of them will be headed to the transfer portal following the season. That bit of speculation aside, Singleton could maybe be the breath of fresh air Penn State needs on the ground and could find himself making an impact right out of the gate. Time will tell how Singleton adjusts to all of the various aspects of the collegiate level, but it’s hard to deny what you see on film from him. Then again, Penn State needs to improve in the trenches or it might not matter who has the ball.
Dani Dennis-Sutton: Defensive end
In a recruiting class that saw Penn State win out on nearly ever major target that it wanted, Dennis-Sutton would have been the crown jewel of the bunch if not for Singleton and quarterback Drew Allar. He’s tall at 6-foot-5 and comes in at 250 pounds which effectively makes him an inch shorter and a few pounds lighter than the departing Arnold Ebiketie. Pair Dennis-Sutton with a healthy Adisa Isaac and Nick Tarburton and you’re left with two veteran players and one of the top defensive prospects in the nation. Penn State is still going to look to the transfer portal for depth at this position, but Dennis-Sutton might be too good to wait on.
JB Nelson: Offensive Tackle
The latest Lackawanna product to come to Penn State, JB Nelson gets a nod here simply because Lackawanna has had such success funneling players to Penn State in recent years. The offensive line is still an area that needs to be addressed and while Nelson is not the highlight player that some of his teammates are, he’s big and strong and simply put they don’t grow 6-foot-6, 310 pound football players on trees. Offensive tackle is a tall order but Nelson is a tall guy. Expect Penn State offensive front to be in flux for most of the offseason, but it’s hard to imagine Nelson coming in and not having a say it how that group unfolds.
Kaden Saunders: Receiver
Parker Washington showed two years ago that Penn State can have success with young receivers picking up big roles in the offense and Kaden Saunders could be the latest iteration of that in 2022. Penn State will lean on some combination of its returning players – led by Washington – but who fills out the No. 2 and No. 3 spots remains to be seen. KeAndre Lambert-Smith and Malick Meiga might get a slight nod here in the early running, but if Saunders adjusts well to college life and picks up Mike Yurcich’s offense early on, Saunders has too much athleticism to keep off the field for long. Coaches say the farther away from the ball you are the earlier you can usually play and not much is farther from the ball than receiver.
Cristian Driver: Safety
After having one of the better coverage units in the nation last season this group will have to reload at least a little bit in 2022 which puts Driver in a position to compete for time early in his career. Drive might have to put on a bit of weight, allegedly coming in about 15 pounds lighter than Jaquan Brisker, but aside from Keaton Ellis there aren’t a ton of guys who have any real playing time, especially if Ji’Ayir Brown and Joey Porter Jr opt not to return for another season.
Yes, Drew Allar: Quarterback
Drew Allar is going to make Penn State a better team, but it seems unlikely that the return of Sean Clifford is going to result in Allar seeing the field in 2022. Honestly this might not be the worst thing for Penn State in the long run with a daunting opening few weeks of the season and a chance to let Allar ease into the offense for a year. Will this result in everyone calling for Allar after Penn State’s first loss of the year? Yes. But that doesn’t mean James Franklin is going to – or should – listen.
