Tag: Dante Cephas

Updated uniform numbers for Penn State football’s summer arrivals

What jersey numbers will Penn State’s latest additions be wearing this season? Here are the updated football jersey numbers.

Penn State’s roster continued to be rounded out with the recent addition of more members of its latest recruiting class and transfer additions officially joining the program. Some of the new additions should be key players for the upcoming season, including wide receiver Dante Cephas and cornerback Audavion Collins, each coming from FBS programs with the ability to plug a hole in the roster instantly. Others, like freshmen running backs London Montgomery and Cam Wallace, will add to the depth on the roster while waiting a bit longer to see their moment in the spotlight.

Now those new members of the Penn State family have confirmed jersey numbers for the 2023 season.

Here is a look at the officially confirmed uniform numbers for Penn State’s newest members to the program according to the team’s official online roster;

  • 3 – Dante Cephas, WR
  • 8 – DaKaari Nelson, S
  •  9 – King Mack, S
  • 23 – Trey Potts, RB
  • 24 – London Montgomery, RB
  • 26 – Cam Wallace, RB
  • 29 – Audavion Collins, CB
  • 39 – Ty Blanding, DT
  • 48 – Kaveion Keys, LB
  • 50 – Alonzo Ford, DT
  • 56 – Joseph Mupoyi, DE
  • 79 – Addison Penn, OL
  • 87 – Andrew Rappleyea, TE

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3-star 2024 wide receiver has Penn State in top 10

Penn State in the running for this three-star wide receiver in 2024.

The question marks at the wide receiver position have surrounded Penn State since their spring game. James Franklin came out and said that he would like to add depth through the transfer portal before the season starts. In the early transfer portal window, they were able to add two transfers in [autotag]Dante Cephas[/autotag] and [autotag]Malik McClain[/autotag]. Franklin still doesn’t think that’s enough as they’re trying to add more at the position.

Even though receivers in the class of 2024 won’t impact this season, getting recruits in the program would ensure that they won’t be in this position going forward.

2024 wide receiver Jason Robinson has put Penn State in his top 10 list of schools. The three-star prospect from Texas is a former USC commit who decided to reopen his recruiting process on February 14th when he decommitted from the Trojans.

Other schools included in his list are USC, Notre Dame, BYU, California, Colorado, Florida State, Utah, Syracuse and Washington.

Robinson is a 5’10” 145 pound wide receiver who plays his high school football in California for Long Beach Poly. He had visited USC 10 times before committing and then decommitting to the program.

On3’s industry rankings have him ranked as the 78th wide receiver in the class of 2025. Their Recruiting Prediction Machine has Notre Dame as the favorites to land Robinson with a 52.3% chance. 247Sports has their Crystal Ball favoring Notre Dame to land him as well.

Despite these projections, Robinson told On3 that he plans to take his time saying, “I really don’t have a deadline that I need to be at. It’s just when I feel it, I feel it.”

He visited Penn State in mid-April, who are currently given a less than one percent chance to land the three-star prospect.

Right now, it looks bleak that Penn State will add their first wide receiver to their 2024 class, but since Robinson plans to take a while during his process, there is a chance the Nittany Lions could climb their way to the top of his list.

Follow Brad Wakai on Twitter and TikTok

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Penn State going after former four-star WR in transfer portal

Penn State is still looking for receiver help in the transfer portal. Here’s one potential target to watch.

[autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] was clear about what positions they needed to target in the transfer portal when it reopened on April 15th. He said their big focuses need to be adding defensive line depth and becoming more competitive at the wide receiver position. With [autotag]Parker Washington[/autotag] and [autotag]Mitchell Tinsley[/autotag] entering their names in the NFL draft, the depth chart was thin before they added former Kent State wide receiver [autotag]Dante Cephas[/autotag] through the portal on January 15th.

Now, it looks like they’re trying to add another receiver to the team.

Former TCU wide receiver Jordan Hudson entered his name into the transfer portal on April 18th and has received a ton of interest from teams around the country. Hudson is a former four-star prospect from the 2022 class who was ranked as the number 15 wide receiver and 92nd best player overall according to 247Sports.

In his freshman season, he caught 14 balls for 174 yards and three touchdowns.

In addition to Penn State, he’s also heard from Georgia, Mississippi State, Colorado, Oklahoma, Michigan State, Tennessee, Auburn, Arizona State, West Virginia, Utah and six others.

Many of the schools reaching back out to Hudson were originally recruiting him before he ultimately chose TCU. Penn State was not involved in his recruitment during high school.

Hudson is a 6’1″ 190 pound prospect who is ready to play immediately. For a school like Penn State who is concerned about their wide receiver depth, he could provide a major boost.

Since he put his name in the portal mid-April, this should be a fast commitment process so he can get acclimated to his new program before the upcoming season starts. Hudson currently doesn’t have a date set for when he will choose his next school.

Follow Brad Wakai on Twitter and TikTok

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James Franklin’s post Blue-White Game thoughts on Penn State’s search for a third wide receiver

James Franklin updates his thoughts on Penn State’s search for a third receiver after the Blue-White Game

After losing two leading wide receivers to the NFL draft and graduation, the search for passing options was officially on this spring for Penn State. The return of [autotag]Keandre Lambert-Smith[/autotag], who is coming off a solid performance in the Rose Bowl helped keep one receiving spot stabilized for the Nittany Lions, but [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] knew it was important to find the other options as soon as possible for the offense to keep firing in the fall.

Penn State attacked the transfer portal in the offseason to bring in two options for the receiving game. One of the most likely replacements for a starting receiver position, [autotag]Dante Cephas[/autotag] from Kent State, is joining the program after the spring and will start getting to work with quarterback [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] this summer. Cephas is widely expected to lock down one of the starting jobs upon his arrival, leaving Franklin and offensive coordinator [autotag]Mike Yurcich[/autotag] hoping someone else would step up and be that coveted third receiver.

[autotag]Malik McClain[/autotag] from Florida State joined the program in time for spring practices and was able to participate in the Blue-White Game. That was beneficial as McClain had some good moments in his spring debut for the Nittany Lions. But the rising star coming out of Penn State’s Blue-White Game this spring may have been sophomore [autotag]Omari Evans[/autotag].

Evans scored the only touchdown of the spring game for the Nittany Lions when he found some rare open space against a tight defensive pass coverage, hauled in a pass from Allar after he scanned his progressions, and stretched into the endzone for the score (and was promptly penalized for excessive celebration).

After the game, Franklin commented on the performance of Evans and the overall search for a third passing option.

“I thought Omari (Evans) really stepped up and we need a third wideout to step up,” Franklin said in his postgame press conference. “So that was exciting to see him make some plays out there.”

“He’s strong and he’s physical, and he’s getting more and more confident day by day,” Franklin later added. “We need somebody to step up in that third wide receiver role. For the last week and a half, we moved him into that spot and obviously today was something to build on. There’s no doubt about it. He’s got all the tools.”

It is easy to overreact to a performance in a spring game, but Omari Evans certainly picked a good day to turn in the performance he did. We’ll see if that leads to a more meaningful role in the fall.

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5 Things to watch in Penn State’s spring game

Penn State’s Blue-White Game is this week. Here are five things to watch.

Football is in the air in State College in the month of April, and it is that time of year once again for the annual Blue and White Game.

Penn State’s spring game has taken it up a notch in previous years under [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and this Penn State team is coming off one of its best years in program history. With that comes expectations being raised and more eyeballs on them.

It all starts in the spring game as mentioned but it can all be boiled down to five things that need to be looked at in the Blue and White Game.

5 questions to answer during Penn State spring Football

Penn State continues spring football practices looking to address these key questions about the team.

Penn State is coming off its best season under [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and now expectations are higher than ever.

Penn State has as many new faces on the team as returning faces. They are rotating out several playmakers on both sides of the ball while priming others to take the next step by replacing them. It is a cycle that James Franklin and his staff are accustomed to and for the most part, have mastered.

One benefit of his staff is that nearly all of it has returned including key coordinators in [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] and [autotag]Mike Yurcich[/autotag]. Both had chances to leave for head coaching jobs before ultimately deciding to stay. Now they have to help Franklin solve some questions that are lingering heading into Spring practice.

Mike Yurcich comments on offensive position battles

Penn State offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich sheds light on key offensive position battles this spring.

Last week, James Franklin created a tiny stir when discussing the quarterback “battle” that will be ongoing. Offensive coordinator [autotag]Mike Yurcich[/autotag] spoke to the media on Tuesday and gave further comments regarding the competitions ongoing at several positions on offense.

Yurcich was asked about the wide receiver position with the departure of [autotag]Parker Washington[/autotag] and he responded by stating “We’d like to think that there’s a competition everywhere…but it’s a spot where we’re definitely looking for guys to step up and contribute in a major way.”

They hit the transfer portal hard in adding depth at the position by getting both Malik McClain and Dante Cephas. Those two paired with KeAndre Lambert-Smith will be competing for the attention of the new quarterback this year. Lambert-Smith is a veteran so he could be expected to lead the way but both McClain and Cephas are expected to produce decent numbers as well.

Speaking of whoever the quarterback will be, Yurcich also spoke about the two quarterbacks competing for the starting job. He added, “I think all the quarterbacks, especially Drew [Allar] and Beau [Pribula], have done a very good job of leading by example.”

[autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] has one extra year on campus compared to [autotag]Drew Allar [/autotag]but the now Sophomore in Allar is expected to be the starter. Yurcich and Franklin have done a decent job of entertaining the idea of competition but Allar being used as much as he was last year while finding success, indicates how they feel about him.

Look for Allar to be the starter post-blue-white game and for all the receivers mentioned above to be used in a diverse way to help him find success in his first year as the starter.

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Penn State spring football preview: Wide receivers and tight ends

Who will be the wide receivers and tight ends to watch in Penn State spring football practices this year?

As Penn State gets ready to embark on the 2023 season, the offense will be expected to be the big storyline this fall. With a new starting quarterback taking the spotlight, it should not go without mentioning that the wide receiver position will be instrumental to Penn State’s success this season. And with its top two wide receivers and leading tight end from last season departing the program for the NFL, there is more to figure out on offense than whether or not its new quarterback is ready to take flight.

Penn State loses Parker Washington and Mitchell Tinsley at wide receiver and Brenton Strange at tight end. Together, that accounts for 1,550 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns to replace in the passing offense from a year ago. Fortunately, Penn State has some players ready to step up and make up for the lost production, including some young players that will continue to develop this spring.

Here is a look at what Penn State has to offer at wide receiver and tight end this spring when spring football practices open on March 14.

Keandre Lambert-Smith

Michael Hickey/Getty Images

Measurables: 6’1″, 184 lb

Year: Junior

Expected role: Starting wide receiver

KeAndre Lambert-Smith is Penn State’s top returning wide receiver from a season ago. Following the departures of Parker Washington and Mitchell Tinsley, Lambert-Smith has the most Penn State experience at the position, and he should remain a fixture in the offense for new starting quarterback Drew Allar to rely on stretching the field.

[autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag]

Harrison Wallace III

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Measurables: 6’1″, 196 lb

Year: Redshirt sophomore

Expected role: Possible starting wide receiver, solid contributor

Competing for a possible starting job could be Harrison Wallace III, who had 19 catches for 273 yards and a touchdown last season as a reserve option. Wallace finished sixth on the team in receiving yards in 2022 and is the third-leading receiver coming back from last year’s roster, although a pair of transfer additions to the roster means Wallace will look to make a statement this spring for consideration for an increased role in the fall.

NEXT: Key transfer additions

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Former Penn State football assistant lands at Air Force

One of James Franklin’s former assistant coaches is taking a job with a service academy

After Penn State and [autotag]Taylor Stubblefield[/autotag] parted ways back in January, his job as wide receivers coach was filled quickly. Two months later, the former Penn State assistant has now found his new home with a new coaching job.

Stubblefield is heading to Air Force for the exact position of Wide Receivers coach, according to The Athletic.

This will be his second stint at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs where he previously coached alongside their head coach Troy Calhoun. He had been there for the 2017 and 2018 seasons before heading to Miami (FL) and landing at Penn State.

Stubblefield left under murky circumstances back in January. At the time, [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] would only comment stating “as you guys know, I try to share as much as I possibly can with the media that I think is appropriate. I don’t necessarily think that is appropriate in this setting.”

Stubblefield did leave with a nice statement however stating “I’m proud of the kids whose names are etched in the Penn State record books. And finally, I am elated to have been part of a team that went 11-2, culminating in a Rose Bowl victory.”

His replacement was hired just days after Stubblefield’s departure and came in the form of Virginia wide receivers coach [autotag]Marques Hagans[/autotag]. Since his arrival, Franklin and Penn State have landed transfer wide receivers [autotag]Dante Cephas[/autotag] and [autotag]Malik McClain[/autotag] which will further his expectations.

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Top 5 position battles heading into Penn State’s spring practices

These position battles will be heating up when Penn State opens spring football practices.

Penn State football is in a very good position overall with the way that James Franklin has this team constructed. Of course, there are a few positions that need to be sorted out still.

The position battles going on this spring will be what solidify the starting lineup. The team is very deep and whoever loses these battles shouldn’t be seen as someone not of the quality you expect from Penn State. Rather, it will speak volumes as to what the starters should be seen as which is top-level quality players.

Here are the top five position battles to monitor this spring.