The year of Olu, and a rare great offensive line

Note: This is the first installment of a series previewing Penn State's depth chart this season.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- No, hell has not frozen over, for all we know, anyway.

But yes, Penn State should have an excellent offensive line this year. Again, for all we know right now.

If you thought you'd never say the words -- Penn State's offensive line will be excellent! -- you're not alone. Because, by and large, we've entered pretty much every season for more than two decades with big questions about the big uglies up front.

It's basically been a rite of passage for a generation of Nittany Lion fans to complain about the O-line.

Not this year.

Before we get into the current personnel, let's play some trivia to see if you know your O-line history.

Question 1: How many Penn State offensive linemen have been selected in the top 10 of the NFL Draft?

Question 2: Who was the highest-drafted Penn State offensive lineman ever?

The answers are coming up in a bit.

Both of those questions are pertinent this year, because the answers to both very well could change thanks to a guy who came out of absolutely nowhere last year.

Now, that guy, Olu Fashanu, might be the best offensive lineman in the country in 2023. He could be a top-five draft pick, or dare we say even No. 1 overall depending on the needs of whoever gets that pick.

Fashanu, the left tackle, was only a 3-star recruit and the No. 45 offensive tackle prospect in the country when he came to Penn State in the class of 2020. His meteoric rise last year saw the 6-foot-6, 323-pounder earn enormous praise and even a second-team All-America honor, despite playing only eight games and having his season cut short by injury.

It seemed to be a foregone conclusion that Fashanu would leave for the NFL, where he was widely regarded to be a top-10 pick despite starting a grand total of nine games in college.

But then, Fashanu stunned everyone with this announcement on Nov. 28, less than two weeks before his 20th birthday.

"Although playing in the NFL is a goal of mine," he wrote, "there is still more that I want to achieve personally and collectively as a program."

I wrote recently, in a story about wide receiver Parker Washington, about how some guys just don't want to be in college anymore and therefore declare early for the NFL draft. The flip side is someone like Fashanu, who actually does still want to be in college and enjoy that experience for as long as possible.

Still, given the money he was going to make as a likely top-10 draft pick -- and we're talking more than $30 million had he gone in the top five -- it was stunning to hear that Fashanu was coming back to Penn State for another year.

He explained why not long ago during spring drills.

"There's a lot of different reasons why," he said in late March. "Obviously, I want to get my degree and start my master's.

"I know the way we ended the season last year with the Rose Bowl victory and that being in the New Year's Six bowl, I mean, that's awesome. But not only myself, but everyone here right now, we know we can go much farther than that. So just being on the team again, having another opportunity to go to that spot, it's a pretty big motivation for me to come back."

Fashanu said he "definitely" was ready for the NFL if he had made the decision to turn pro.

"I feel like I've put in the work, and the coaches have also put in the work developing me," he said. "So I definitely felt I would have been ready to leave if I wanted to last year."

Fashanu was basically an immovable force last season, giving up no sacks in 281 pass blocking snaps. His run blocking numbers weren't quite as good, according to Pro Football Focus, and there's clearly more he can learn about playing the position coming back for a second season as the starter.

A big part of the decision for Fashanu also was the education aspect. He's an exceptional student, and had this to say about what he'd like to do after his NFL career.

“Ideally, I’d want to get into the pharmaceutical sector. Maybe I can work for a company like Johnson & Johnson," he told Pro Football Focus.

"I'm in a position where I can graduate in the summer, then this fall I can get started on my master's," Fashanu said during spring ball.

TRIVIA ANSWERS

Fashanu can make Penn State history if he's drafted in the top five next year.

The highest-drafted offensive lineman in program history was left tackle Levi Brown, who went No. 5 overall to the Arizona Cardinals in 2007. Unfortunately, Brown turned out to be a huge draft bust, playing in 81 games (79 starts) but struggling for much of that time. He was named the Cardinals' biggest draft bust ever in a 2019 ranking, which had this to say about his career:

"Brown gave up 55 sacks and 302 pressures from his rookie season through 2013. He also racked up 37 penalties and became one of the least effective offensive linemen of his generation."

As for the other trivia question, the only other Penn State offensive linemen drafted in the top 10 were:

• Tackle Keith Dorney, who went 10th overall to the Lions in 1979

• Guard Mike Munchak, who went 8th overall to the Oilers in 1982

DEPTH CHART

We'll do a projected two deep for every position on the field during our depth chart series. Why only two? Because at this point, it would be little more than a wild guess about the third-teamer at many positions.

Why is there so much optimism for the line? Well, it starts with Fashanu, of course, but you'll also see Penn State has four returning starters at their position on the line. The fifth guy (Nourzad) also started most of last season but at a different position.

LEFT TACKLE

Starter: Olu Fashanu, who will be the talk of the college football world in the preseason and for as long as he plays well. He took a gamble coming back to college when he could have made tens of millions of dollars as a top-10 pick, so hopefully he can stay healthy and maintain his elite draft status.

Backup: Drew Shelton (6-5, 300), who stepped in and played well down the stretch last year when Fashanu got injured after playing eight games. Shelton appeared in seven games and started the final five, including the Rose Bowl.

LEFT GUARD

Starter: Landon Tengwall (6-6, 314), who was playing very well through five games last season before somehow suffering a leg injury during pregame warmups at Michigan. That caused him to miss the rest of the season. He's a former 4-star recruit who was the No. 10 offensive tackle in the country for the class of 2021.

Backup: JB Nelson (6-5, 330), who appeared in four games last season. He's a transfer from Lacakwanna Community College.

CENTER

Starter: Hunter Nourzad (6-3, 312), who appeared in 11 games last season between guard and center, starting eight. He took over as the starting left guard after Tengwall was injured and played very well. The transfer from Cornell now will slide over into the full-time center role with the departure of Juice Scruggs to the NFL.

Backup: Nick Dawkins (6-4, 319), who appeared in two games but redshirted last season. He also played 11 games on special teams as a true freshman in 2021.

RIGHT GUARD

Starter: Sal Wormley (6-3, 313), who was a very solid and consistent player last season, starting all 13 games at this position. He's not a star, and in most games you never even hear his name called. But that's a good thing for a guard, because usually the only time you'll hear one named is after he gets blown up on a play.

Backup: Vega Ioane (6-4, 352), who played four games but redshirted last year as a true freshman. He's a mountain of a man with a lot of potential.

RIGHT TACKLE

Starter: Caedan Wallace (6-5, 328), who was a major disappointment last season as he really struggled at times. Wallace has a ton of potential and has played a lot, starting all 13 games in 2021 and seven last year. The guess is his experience will help him win the starting job at the beginning of the season, but he may be on a short leash if he doesn't play well.

Backup: Drew Shelton (6-5, 300): He'll also backup Fashanu at left tackle, but this is the spot where he could end up making the biggest contribution. The coaches have to get the best players on the field, and if Wallace struggles, then Shelton should get an opportunity to take over the starting job.