What Penn State’s James Franklin has to say about the battle for QB and other positions

Penn State head coach James Franklin spoke to the media Thursday evening following a fall practice for the first time this season, along with a few players.

Let’s take a look at the main takeaways from the post-practice interviews.

Quarterback competition nearing a conclusion?

Franklin has said several times heading into fall camp that there would be competition at every position and that includes quarterback. While Franklin has mentioned the progress of both sophomores Drew Allar and Beau Pribula — and given credit to true freshman Jaxon Smolik for his progress — that competition could be nearing an end.

The Penn State head coach said the rep distribution has been leaning mostly in one direction during practice.

“I would say Drew is getting the predominant, the majority of the reps,” Franklin said. “But I think (Pribula) is getting a few, but I would say Drew is getting the majority of them.”

That doesn’t come as a surprise given the broad assumption from outside the program that Allar would start, but it is the first public indication from the inside that the Nittany Lions are leaning in that direction. Franklin did not name a starter and did not say that Allar’s reps even make him the likely starter. But with the season opener against West Virginia three weeks away it’s easy to infer that the highly touted sophomore will be the one to take the first snap if he’s the one who is mostly working with the first team.

Core of the offensive line

Franklin’s emphasis on competition extends to the trenches where the Nittany Lions have lost multiple starters and have two key contributors from last year fighting for the right tackle job in redshirt senior Caedan Wallace and sophomore Drew Shelton. There isn’t going to be anyone taking over at left tackle, however, where Olumuyiwa Fashanu is the best player in the country at the position. And it seems there might not be much at center either.

“We really look at (redshirt senior) Hunter (Nourzad) and Olu as kind of like the foundation of the O-line,” Franklin said.

The former Cornell lineman is in his second year at Penn State and is poised to take over for Juice Scruggs in the middle of the unit. He’s proven to be a quality addition after joining prior to the 2022 season from the Ivy League program and is going to help make the group up front one of the most study in the country.

Nourzad solidifying the center of the offensive line gives the team two key foundation pieces, but Franklin said a third and fourth are also establishing themselves — with one of those being at right tackle.

“I think (redshirt senior) Caedan (Wallace) is starting to work into (the foundation) category and so is (redshirt senior) Sal (Wormley),” Franklin said. “... I think we’ve all seen flashes of Caedan, maybe as good as any tackle in the country. He’s just got to do it more consistently.”

Chop Robinson honing in on the season

There has been a lot of buzz around defensive end Chop Robinson, who has been projected as a potential first round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. He’s one of the most dynamic pass rushers in the country and is likely to be at the center of opposing teams’ gameplans throughout the fall. Despite that, Robinson isn’t viewing this season any differently, even if it could potentially be his last as a Nittany Lion.

“I honestly just want to win with my brothers,” Robinson said. “... I just focus one day at a time trying to get better every day. So that’s my main focus.”

His progress from his first year at Penn State to his second will be important for a Nittany Lion defense that should be one of the five best in the country. He spent his first year at Maryland and after that adjusted to his new life with a new program for a second year in a row. There can be a comfort that comes with entering a second year with a program and Franklin said he’s noticing the progress.

“He’s just so much bigger, stronger and more explosive both in the run game and the pass game,” he said. “Playing really well. He’s confident. How we used him last year was different than how he’d been used before. He’s doing really well academically. He’s really thriving right now and I’m really proud of him. I think he’s gonna have a huge year.”