Will Penn State Pursue Another Quarterback?
After the Rose Bowl, Penn State will find itself in a unique position at quarterback. The Lions return two scholarship quarterbacks, and a third will enroll in January. But that raises a question: Do they need to find another quarterback in the NCAA Transfer Portal?
Penn State coach James Franklin would say yes, but he understands how difficult that will be.
"You prefer to have more than three, there's no doubt about it," Franklin said. "I think if you look across the country, whenever you're in a situation where your starter is a sophomore or less, ... it really is a hard sell."
For all the excitement about Penn State's 2023 quarterback situation, the team enters next season low on scholarship arms — at least from Franklin's perspective. The head coach has said he prefers to have at least four, and perhaps, five scholarship quarterbacks on a single roster with varied levels of eligibility. That gives the room a diverse blend of experience and leadership voices.
However, in the NCAA Transfer Portal era, quarterback is the toughest position to maintain. Penn State recently lost redshirt freshman quarterback Christian Veilleux, who transferred to Pitt. Before him, then-backups Will Levis and Tommy Stevens transferred as well.
That leaves 2022 freshmen Drew Allar and Beau Pribula as the two returning scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. Penn State's coaching staff has made clear how it feels about Allar, elevating him to the backup role and playing him in 10 games this season.
Yet fellow freshman Beau Pribula isn't conceding the starting role in 2023.
"Beau is an unbelievable quarterback and person," Penn State offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich said. "And his inner drive, that competitiveness, is as good as I’ve ever been around. … With continued opportunities, he’s going to continue to impress us. He’s gonna seize the moment."
Still, it's a young group that will add true freshman Jaxon Smolik, who plans to enroll in January. However, quarterbacks in the portal might look at that room and see little opportunity. Perhaps one will be content transferring to Penn State as a role player.
As Franklin said, though, that's a tough sell. And does Penn State want to sign a portal quarterback content to be a backup anyway?
"Sometimes you can convince an older player that just wants to be a part of a big-time program and part of a special experience to come as more of a backup, a senior backup, a veteran backup. Sometimes you can find that," Franklin said. "More times than not, the guys that you're going to want [also] want to go somewhere to play and be the guy and compete.
"That's always a challenge when you're starting a true freshman, a redshirt freshman. You may start a true freshman and have five quarterbacks on your roster, but after the season ends your room is going to change dramatically."
Franklin is familiar with having just three scholarship quarterbacks, which happened in 2021, when Veilleux and Ta'Quan Roberson backed Clifford. The coach likely doesn't want to repeat that situation but might not have a choice.
The early signing period begins Wednesday, and Penn State seems unlikely to add another quarterback in this recruiting class. The team could add a preferred walk-on to take reps and expand the room, or it might be patient with the portal and see who's available after spring drills.
In the meantime, Allar and Pribula will take center stage.
Penn State meets Utah in the Rose Bowl, which kicks off at 5:10 p.m. EST on Jan. 2. ESPN will televise.
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