ALTOONA, Pa. -- Stop me if you've heard this before: Penn State has a chance to field a great offense, but the wide receivers are a BIG concern.
For the second year in a row, the Lions will enter a season without a proven No. 1 wideout. It turned out to be a huge and costly issue in 2023, as the offense sputtered in the biggest games because it lacked downfield threats.
That guy pictured up above, Harrison Wallace III, has a good chance to become the No. 1 wideout, but he still has an awful lot to prove. Ohio State transfer Julian Fleming gets a lot of the attention, but there are major questions about whether he can be a No. 1, as he seems better suited as a No. 2.
So, just like last year, the big question is whether big-armed quarterback Drew Allar will have the kinds of weapons he needs in order to reach his potential. And thereby, the offense reaching its potential.
At this stage, nobody knows how things will play out. Penn State fans can wish for the best and hope things fall in line, but cautious optimism is really the better play right now.
New offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki is every bit as big of a wild card as the receiver situation. Kotelnicki did great things at Kansas and ran a complex, creative offense that allowed for a lot of schemes and movement to get the ball in playmakers' hands.
If all that can work at Penn State, the team should have a fun and exciting offense.
But there needs to be more of that cautious optimism with Kotelnicki, following the struggles of the past few years under previous coordinator Mike Yurcich, who also succeeded in the Big 12 but didn't have a reliable system for the Big Ten.
Here is a look at the current state of the Lions' offense:
• QUARTERBACK
Depth chart: Drew Allar (Jr.), Beau Pribula (R-So.), Jaxon Smolik (R-Fr.), Ethan Grunkemeyer (Fr.)
Allar has the arm, and with a year of starting experience under his belt, could be in position to take huge steps forward. He needs to, because despite protecting the ball last year (25 TDs, 2 INTs), he had issues with his footwork, with seeing the entire field and, frankly, just trusting things enough to throw the ball.
If Allar has a really good year, he'll probably be off to the NFL as a potential first-round pick. But again, in order to get there, he has to show a whole lot more than he did last year.
Pribula, who's a better athlete, actually is probably better suited to run Kotelnicki's offense than Allar. But Pribula doesn't have the arm to scare defenses.
Smolik is injured and out a while, so there's no telling if he'll be able to secure the third-string job over the talented freshman Grunkemeyer.
• RUNNING BACK
Depth chart: Nicholas Singleton (Jr.), Kaytron Allen (Jr.), Quinton Martin (Fr.), Cam Wallace (R-Fr.).
Singleton and Allen are likely to split carries again this season. Both are capable of putting up big production on their own, but splitting time prevents either from becoming a superstar.
It will be very interesting to see how Kotelnicki uses the two running backs. Look for a lot of packages with both on the field together, and possibly one or both lined up as a receiver. Oh, the possibilities are endless.
The guess here is that Martin will eventually work his way into the third-string role, but there's no way to know with a true freshman.
• WIDE RECEIVER
Depth chart: Harrison Wallace III (Jr.), Julian Fleming (Sr.), Kaden Saunders (So.), Omari Evans (So.), Liam Clifford (So.), Anthony Ivey (So.).
I could list more wide receivers, in the hope that somebody steps forward and beomes a consistent force. But it's gonna have to be one of those first three guys, and the roles need to be pretty well establihed early in the season.
Fleming is a good teammate, leader and blocker. Whether he can become a more prolfic pass catcher is the big question.
And the biggest question is probably whether Wallace can remain healthy. He missed half of last season with an injury, but most feel he is ready to become a standout if he can stay on the field.
Just about everyone is predicting Saunders to take a big step forward this season, which makes sense. But hey, whether it's him or someone else, SOMEBODY has got to become a reliable, consistent threat all over the field.
• TIGHT END
Depth chart: Tyler Warren (Sr.), Khalil Dinkins (R-Jr.), Adrew Rappleyea (R-Fr.), Luke Reynolds (Fr.).
Penn State has been blessed with a lot of good tight ends over the past decade or so. There might be a bit of a dropoff this year, although Warren and DInkins should be good and productive.
Warren fits into the all-around tight end mode that the Lions like to have, someone who can catch passes and block.
Look for Dinkins to take a big step forward.
James Franklin likes to get the best players on the field as much as possible, so if the wide receivers aren't good enough, he prefers going with multiple tight ends. We could see more of that again this year.
• OFFENSIVE LINE
Depth chart: LT Drew Shelton (Jr.), J'ven Williams (R-Fr.), Alex Birchmeier (R-Fr.); LG Vega Ioane (R-So.), JB Nelson (Sr.); C Nick Dawkins (Sr.), Cooper Cousins (Fr.); RG Sal Wormley (Sr.), JB Nelson (Sr.); RT Nolan Rucci (Sr.), J'ven Williams (R-Fr.), Anthony Donkoh (R-Fr.).
The Lions lose three starters up front, and I consider this a gigantic question mark entering the season. Not everyone agreess, as they believe the replacements will do just fine. Maybe they will, but it could take some time.
I've come to learn to never, ever be overconfident in a Penn State offensive line.
Shelton should be fine, but he won't be Olu Fashanu good. I expect Rucci, a Wisconsin transfer, to be the starting right tackle. Wormley also is entrenched at right guard.
There's a lot of guess work beyond those guys, however, particularly with the young backups such as Williams and Birchmeier. They came in highly touted, but we cannot fully know just yet how well they have developed.
We'll take a look at the defense next week.
