Few schools love recruiting and developing linebackers the way Penn State does. And Linebacker U added quite the trio of linebackers in the Class of 2023 with the additions of [autotag]Tony Rojas[/autotag], [autotag]Kaveion Keys[/autotag], and [autotag]Ta’Mere Robinson[/autotag]. If there is one thing [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] likes about his three new linebacker recruits, it is the athleticism that allows for positional flexibility moving forward.
“[We] really like to recruit kind of three outside backers, then whoever makes sense at the end to move to Mike, do that,” Franklin said when asked about the new linebackers in the Class of 2023 in his early signing day press conference on Wednesday. “You really don’t want to play with an old school true Mike on the field. You’d rather have three outside linebackers that create position flexibility.”
Did Penn State accomplish that in the Class of 2023? Franklin seems to think so.
“We’ve got three guys that we think could really play all three positions,” Franklin said. Franklin went on to suggest Robinson would probably be the one most likely to be molded into the Mike position on the defense.
“If I had to kind of put it on the board right now, Ta’Mere probably at Mike. With his size, he’s a big, big, big young man, but has the athleticism and movement and leadership qualities,” Franklin explained.
“The good thing is we have flexibility with all three of those guys,” Franklin said, referring to Robinson, Rojas, and Keys. “All three have really good tape. All three of them are really good students. I know they’re excited about the opportunity of coming here, coming in and competing in what’s going to be one of the better linebacker rooms in the country, especially the way we’ve been able to get Abdul [Carter] to develop in his first year on campus.”
If nothing else, the future of the linebacker position appears to be pretty well-stocked for the Nittany Lions in the coming years. With Abdul Carter coming off a stellar freshman season and the addition of these three new potential options to work into the mix, Linebacker-U will be living up to its namesake.
“It’s going to be a fun position to watch over the next year,” Franklin said. Yes, it certainly should be.
[mm-video type=video id=01gmrbq442m5cz8z187z playlist_id=01ey902ehrs6e9bvhw player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gmrbq442m5cz8z187z/01gmrbq442m5cz8z187z-74ac5666fa9be6e5567352c8edc49be6.jpg]
[listicle id=27803]
[lawrence-related id=27811,27806,27794,27752,27757]
Follow Kevin McGuire on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.
Follow Nittany Lions Wire on Twitter and like us on Facebook for continuing Penn State coverage and discussion. Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.