Former Penn State quarterback [autotag]Will Levis[/autotag] continues to leave a good number of fans and media scratching their heads. Did Penn State absolutely blow it with Levis, who has gone on to draw plenty of praise with his success at Kentucky in the SEC while Penn State’s offense has struggled to a couple of mediocre seasons the past two years with an offense that has been led by [autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag]? While Clifford has been banged up and taken a beating while leading the Nittany Lions, Levis has been gaining respect from the NFL draft analysts. One analyst, in particular, is as high as you can get when it comes to the former Penn State backup quarterback.
Levis is the first overall pick in a mock draft published by CBS Sports draft analyst Chris Trapasso. Yes, that is correct. Levis sits atop the mock draft as the first overall pick of the 2023 NFL draft by the Houston Texans.
Here’s what Trapasso said about having Levis on top of his mock draft;
Levis feels like a quarterback who can eventually be the No. 1 overall pick. He’s big, chiseled, has a rocket for an arm and can scramble. The Texans will probably be in the quarterback market in a big way next offseason.
Levis left Penn State for Kentucky last offseason and quickly won over the Wildcats faithful by showcasing his arm in Lexington. Levis ended his first season as the starting quarterback of the Wildcats with 2,826 passing yards and 24 touchdowns with 13 interceptions. Levis added 376 rushing yards and nine more rushing touchdowns.
For the sake of comparison, Clifford passed for 3,107 passing yards with 21 touchdowns with only eight interceptions. Clifford added 163 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns as well. Levis had a higher completion percentage (66.0 for Levis, 61.0 for Clifford) and passer rating (148.3 for Levis, 134.4 for Clifford).
Next year’s quarterback class does appear to be much stronger in the 2023 NFL draft compared to the 2022 NFL draft pool. In addition to Levis and Clifford, the 2023 draft pool will also likely include C.J. stroud of Ohio State and Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young of Alabama.
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