Penn State finishes 'great' spring under the lights at Beaver Stadium

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State took to Beaver Stadium Friday night to put the finishing touches on spring football with a practice in front of the senior students slated to graduate next weekend.

The spring practice period is filled with development, competition and installation. and it's all to be done within the NCAA's limit of 15 practices. The Nittany Lions were able to do that and more this spring, which was desperately needed for a team that went 4-5 in 2020.

 "That was a great spring, it was really good having having the fans out there," head coach James Franklin said. "We got a lot installed on offense, defense and special teams."

The biggest thing for Penn State on the field was that the Nittany Lions have stayed relatively healthy, which allows more flexibility in depth, as well as gearing up for the coming season.

"We stayed for the most part, pretty healthy, which which is important and identified some strengths and weaknesses moving into the summer," Franklin said. 

Practicing under the lights with fans at Beaver Stadium Friday was something that had been in the works for some time, and could be a part of spring practice in the future in the right situation.

"It's something that we've talked about, possibly doing moving forward," Franklin said. "A Friday night practice with with some fan capacity, under normal circumstances would be great, in addition to our normal spring game." 

Now, with spring practice over, it's evaluation time for Franklin and his staff, as they prepare for what's ahead and to develop the depth chart for fall camp. That includes Franklin meeting with every player on the team and their position coach, and giving them feedback on what needs to be done between now and training camp.

Those evaluations have the potential to be harsh, and with some of the position battles that have played out this spring, it's no surprise as to why. One of those is the quarterback position, which features a third-year starter in Sean Clifford who is coming off a so-so season and doesn't have an established backup in case something goes awry. 

It seemed as thought neither Christian Veilleux nor Ta'Quan Roberson took a giant leap toward establishing himself as the backup. And with their lack of game reps, it's not a surprise.

"I don't think you're ever comfortable with the quarterback position until those guys have gotten game reps," Franklin said. "Obviously, the practice reps are critical, and very, very important. But you know, having guys that don't have game reps and haven't played critical game reps at significant moments ... You're never completely comfortable, because you never know how guys are going to react when they get in there."

Not the biggest vote of confidence from Franklin there, but a lot can change between now and August, when training camp begins. Until then, though, it wouldn't be a shock to see Penn State go after a quarterback in the transfer portal. 

"The work that those guys do between now and Game 1 is going to be really important. And we'd like for that gap to be closed, you know, between our ones and our twos," Franklin said.

The Nittany Lions boast one of the deeper defensive lineups they've had since Franklin arrived, which should bode well heading into summer. One of those positions with quality depth is middle linebacker, where Ellis Brooks and Jesse Luketa roam the field. 

Of course, they can't be at the same position at the same time, but Franklin will have them on the field quite a bit together in the fall.

"They will both be starters for us at linebacker position, whether it's Mike linebacker or one of the outside linebacker positions," he said.

Luketa seems to be in line to play not only middle linebacker, but several other positions.

"I think there's there's also some discussions that we've had with Jesse about playing some other positions, as well, that we think he has the ability to play, which I think is not only going to help our defense, but it's also going to help Jesse and his future at the next level," Franklin said. 

Brooks and Luketa will be big factors once the season begins, and Luketa not getting live reps this spring should not be a major concern.

MORE FROM PRACTICE

• Jahan Dotson proved once again why he's one of the best wide receivers in the Big Ten, with an excellent catch-and-run on the first set of plays for the first team. Clifford got him the ball and Dotson did the rest, eluding the rest of the Penn State defense.

Dotson also threw a touchdown pass. 

• Friday's scrimmage was the first time Baylor transfer John Lovett saw the field in front of Penn State fans, as he was unable to practice last week due to health issues. Since arriving on campus in January, Lovett has gotten nothing but rave reviews from his coaches and teammates.

"Early on, he was really flashing some things that we were excited about. It's obvious you've got a veteran guy he's been around. He's played a lot of football, was very respected at the place he came from," Franklin said. "So (he is) kind of what we thought: He can run, he's got the ability to make people miss. He's got that extra gear that we need. A guy that we think can can be a home run. 

"He's a mature guy. Our players really like him. The coaches really like him. He learns well, you know, so we think he's going to be right there in the hunt of this thing during training camp."

• Franklin and defensive coordinator Brent Pry will be heading to Cleveland for the NFL Draft to support Micah Parsons and the rest of their former players who've entered the draft. According to Franklin it'll be his competitiveness that helps Parsons set himself apart from the others in the draft.

"I think the thing that really jumps out with Micah is how well he's able to retain information, how deeply he thinks about subjects like his teammates, like the organization that drafts him," Franklin said. "Some of the messages and conversations I've had with Micah over the years, are really, really impressive, thoughtful, thoughtful conversations. And I think he's also a guy that, that loves to compete. I mean, loves to compete."

• KJ Hamler returned to Beaver Stadium and Penn State this week in what was most likely his first return since going pro following the 2019 season. Hamler will be entering his second season with the Denver Broncos.