The Blue-White Practice – not Game – was held on Saturday, April 25th, which means I’d normally discuss it the following Monday, but there was also this thing called the NFL Draft going on that same weekend. Which means that my much-anticipated review of the Blue-White Game had to be postponed for a week – I hope you all can forgive me.
But really, what did we learn from the Blue-White Practice? Any key takeaways? Things to feel optimistic – or pessimistic – about?
Koby Howard – WR1?
While many players higher on the
depth chart either didn’t play or only played sparingly, Koby Howard had himself a day. Howard caught two passes from Rocco Becht, and while potential starters Chase Sowell and Brent Eskildsen didn’t play, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s those two and Koby as your three starting receivers this fall.
Connor Barry – QB3?
Rocco Becht is very clearly QB1 this fall, and the most likely backup will be Alex Manske, who did not play. QB3 then appears to be Connor Barry, who made some nice passes including a touchdown pass to Brian Kortovich. However, he also threw an interception to Daryus Dixson – more on him later – showing there’s still work to do.
Running Game Strong
The run game continued to be the strength of the Penn State offense, as James Peoples showed out alongside Carson Hansen. I’d expect Hansen to be farther down the depth chart in the fall as Quinton Martin Jr. and Cam Wallace take up the top end of the rotation, but the Lions have to feel good with their running back group at this point in time.
Daryus Dixson – CB1
As was mentioned earlier, Daryus Dixson played quite well. On his opening series he picked off Connor Barry, and otherwise handled business on his side of the field. He’s just a sophomore, but appears to have picked up the CB1 moniker. The other side appears to be Audavion Collins, giving the Lions a very solid 1-2 punch on the outside of the secondary.
Defense Still Adjusting
While the majority of the offensive players are familiar with new (to Penn State) offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser, the defense across the board is adjusting to new defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn. While Iowa State chiefly ran a 3-3-5, Lynn has been a big proponent of a 3-4-4 setup. All this means is that many defenders are having to learn new techniques, and while defenses are typically ahead of offenses in spring ball, the opposite is true for Penn State right now. There’s still time to get everything in place, but as I’ve said before, I’m very much in a wait-and-see mode for the defense.
Team Jelling
With approximately a billion transfers and new coaches across the board, I was curious to see how well the team was coming together. Morale under James Franklin tanked when the team ran into its losing streak, and may have completely fallen apart were it not for Terry Smith. Campbell is known for building strong teams that play above their weight class, and it showed with how well the team supported each other. There will continue to be growth through the summer and into the fall, but the team did not look fragmented. Given that most of these players are brand new to Penn State and each other, that’s an encouraging sign.
