Kobe King – Page 2 – Syndication Server

Penn State spring football: Linebacker preview

Penn State’s linebacker depth in 2023 could be the best it’s been in years.

There is potential that this will be one of the most exciting linebacker groups that Penn State has had in a while.

The group is headlined by true sophomore [autotag]Abdul Carter[/autotag] who really opened eyes last season. Coming in wearing the coveted number 11 jersey as a true freshman meant the spotlight would be on him all year. He more than delivered and has a promising collegiate career in front of him.

Another interesting nugget is there are no seniors in the linebacking corps for 2023-24. The most experienced players are two redshirt juniors. This is a good sign for the future as this group will be able to continue playing with each other for multiple years going forward.

There will be depth chart battles this spring to keep an eye on. The main one to watch is between [autotag]Kobe King[/autotag] and [autotag]Tyler Elsdon[/autotag] for the starting middle linebacker position. Elsdon won the battle last spring and summer, but the snap counts last season were pretty similar.

Abdul Carter

Measurables: 6’3″ / 233 lbs.

Year: Sophomore

Expected Role: Starting Weakside Linebacker

There is a real buzz around Abdul Carter about what he can do this season. Coming into Penn State, Carter was a four-star recruit in the 2022 class. He was excellent in his freshman season recording 56 total tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. His PFF grade was 76.2 ranking him 122nd out of 789 linebackers last season.

With another offseason in the college weight room and more time to get familiar with the defensive scheme, the sky is the limit for Carter. He could be the highlight of what’s expected to be a very good defense.

NEXT: Kobe King a rising redshirt sophomore

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4

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.

Previewing the Penn State linebackers in 2023

Let’s take an early look at what Penn State has going for it at the linebacker position in 2023.

Penn State and linebackers are two things that go hand in hand. Penn State has produced All-Americans, College Hall of Famers, and NFL Hall of Famers and the players on the 2023 roster have a chance at any of those accomplishments.

Players such as [autotag]Abdul Carter[/autotag] a prominent big-name linebacker for the team as we advance after a breakout freshman campaign but there is more to know. Between veterans of the team and incoming transfers and recruiting classes, teams constantly change any more.

Getting to know the playmakers on your Nittany Lions defense doesn’t have to be mandatory but it should be encouraged. We have taken care of that as the transfer window has closed for now and we head toward another national signing day for the team.

Watch these top plays from Penn State vs. Rutgers

Check out these top plays from Penn State’s win over Rutgers

Penn State wrapped up its road portion of the regular season with a banger in New Jersey. Penn State left the state with an easy 55-10 victory over Rutgers to improve to 9-2 on the season with a shot at playing in a New Years Six bowl game very much within reach with one regular season game left to play.

It wasn’t the prettiest effort from Penn State early on, but a game ending with 55 points certainly has no shortage of big plays to entertain the fans from start to finish. And this game had a little bit of everything from start to finish with a special teams touchdown, a pair of defensive scores, and plenty of opportunities by young stars in the making to shine.

Here is a look back at some of the top plays from Penn State’s big road win at Rutgers in Week 12.

Instant reaction: Penn State keeps New Years Six hopes alive by blasting Rutgers

Penn State scores on offense, defense, and special teams to blast Rutgers and keep NY6 hopes alive

It took some time to get things going in their favor, but Penn State once again demonstrated its pure dominance over Rutgers in a 55-10 victory that helps keep Penn State in the mix for a spot in a New Year’s Six bowl game this bowl season.

[autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag] rushed for 117 yards and a touchdown and [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] added 62 rushing yards to go along with his 100-yard kickoff return touchdown to help lead the way for the Nittany Lions. Penn State’s defense also turned things up with a pair of defensive scores by [autotag]Ji’Ayir Brown[/autotag] and [autotag]Kobe King[/autotag] on fumble recoveries. A third defensive score on a would-be-pick-six by [autotag]Johnnie Dixon[/autotag] was wave doff by a blocking penalty.

Rutgers came out swinging at Penn State and took a 10-7 lead in the first quarter, but the Nittany Lions scored the next 48 points to put the Scarlet Knights in the rearview mirror. Penn State did so without a number of key starters including wide receiver [autotag]Parker Washington[/autotag] and cornerback [autotag]Joey Porter Jr.[/autotag], neither of which traveled with the team.

[autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag] completed 17-of-26 pass attempts for 157 yards and for 35 yards and a touchdown before getting a rest for the remainder of the game in the third quarter. As has become the pattern, [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] took over with the game well in hand to get some real game experience.

Penn State will close out the 2022 regular season at home next week against Michigan State. The Spartans won last year’s game, so the Nittany Lions are looking for some revenge in addition to winning back the Land-Grant Trophy. Rutgers will visit Maryland.

[vertical-gallery id=26336]

[listicle id=26297]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01ey902ehrs6e9bvhw player_id=none image=https://nittanylionswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

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.

2022 Penn State football: Nittany Lions’ linebacker preview

Penn State position overview: Linebacker roster overview for 2022

Penn State is prepping for a season in which the program hopes to redeem itself on the national stage. After back-to-back seasons of mediocre results, Penn State is aiming to bounce back and prove themselves worthy of being in the Big Ten championship hunt, if not a little bit more.

Penn State kicks off the 2022 season with a Thursday night primetime matchup at Purdue on September 1. When that season begins, the Nittany Lions will begin to answer whether or not the linebacker depth is truly a concern for the upcoming year. After losing a pair of starters from last year’s team, Penn State has some big spots to fill at the program’s signature position.

Here is a look at what Penn State has on the roster at the linebacker position going into the 2022 season.

Blue-White Game Report Card: Grading Penn State’s spring football game

The grades are in for Penn State’s performance in the Blue-White Game.

Penn State’s spring game wasn’t exactly lighting up the scoreboard, even in a modified scoring system. And fans wanting to see drastic improvement from the program that has gone .500 over the past two seasons may be left wondering if Penn State is set up for another mediocre season in Happy Valley after watching the Blue-White Game. But Penn State’s final spring practice of the year had some positive developments and some reminders that help is on the way over the summer.

And now the grades are in for Penn State’s performance during the Blue-White Game. Here’s how each position group was graded for the spring game in Beaver Stadium on Saturday.

Quarterback: C

A recurring theme when it comes to the offensive grades following Penn State’s game is probably chalked up to a simple “Eh, it could have been better.” That was the basic takeaway from the performance of the quarterbacks overall, but any expectation of any passer just lighting up the spring game may have been unreasonable.

We were never likely to see a whole lot out of [autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag], the sixth-year senior who really has little more to prove at this point. We know pretty much exactly what Clifford is, and if given time to process the field, he can make plays. But he had some overthrown passes at times. He did, however, throw the game’s only touchdown of the game.

The backup competition behind Clifford is the real storyline here, and the future of [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] is what fans are eager to witness. But a rough spring debut for the true freshman shows there is still work to be done in the big picture. If based solely on one afternoon, [autotag]Christian Veilleux[/autotag] proved he should be the team’s primary backup option heading into the season, although Allar should improve quickly.

[lawrence-related id=18562]

Next: Grading the running backs

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8

Inside the Box Score: The key stats from Penn State’s Blue-White Game

Inside the box score with some key stats from Penn State’s Blue-White Game.

Penn State’s Blue-White Game showed the Nittany Lions are still a bit of a work in progress in some key areas, but there were still some players and developments worth being optimistic about moving into the summer. And the final box score from a spring scrimmage like Penn State’s can oftentimes be misleading or unnecessarily overanalyzed. Nonetheless, it is a starting point for evaluating just where the Nittany Lions are heading once the 2022 season begins.

So, with the caution of not wanting to get too carried away with the official stats shared by Penn State from the Blue-White Game on Saturday afternoon, let’s dive headfirst into the key stats from the final spring practice of the season before Penn State moves to the next stage of its offseason.

And why not start with the quarterback position?

Quarterbacks

[autotag]Christian Veilleux[/autotag]: 5-of-14, 75 yards
[autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag]: 6-of-14, 61 yards, 2 interceptions, 1 sack
[autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag]: 4-of-7, 41 yards, 1 touchdown
[autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag]: 2-of-3, 7 yards, 2 sacks

Sean Clifford had some decent production in his time on the field, including the game’s only touchdown pass (to transfer addition Mitchell Tinsley. Clifford also had the best performance from passers in seven-on-seven drills, for whatever that is worth.

Christian Veilleux had the most complete performance among those vying for backup consideration to Clifford. This could have been expected given he already has some in-game experience from last season.

Don’t get too down when reviewing the stat line for five-star quarterback Drew Allar, because he was not given much help at times by his receivers dropping passes or having a ball bounce off their hands. But he did have a number of throws that seemed to be just a tad behind his intended targets. And Beau Pribula also had some freshman moments, which was to be expected.

NEXT: Who were the top running backs in the Blue-White Game?

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4

Manny Diaz settling in at Penn State, finding leaders on defense

Manny Diaz is getting more comfortable with the Penn State defense this spring.

Some thought that [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] would be an interesting pairing with head coach [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] but it seems he is fitting in perfectly so far.

247 Sports recently did an interview with the new Penn State defensive coordinator where he talked about how he is fitting in with his new team and also what he is expecting out of his defense. In the interview, he specifically discusses how the middle linebacker competition is going as well as a new emerging leader on the defense.

When discussing the middle linebacker battle between [autotag]Tyler Elsdon[/autotag] and [autotag]Kobe King[/autotag] he mentions how Elsdon continues to “grow (and) feel more comfortable…” and that as he continues to play he sees him becoming a better fit.

With King, Diaz seemed very excited when talking about him saying “I think Kobe King is getting better every day, and really, I anticipate this being a battle…”. It seems that no matter who earns the job though that the defense should be in good hands.

This position battle should have a clearer picture after the Blue and White Game this month.

When discussing the leaders on defense Manny Diaz mentioned several players but he was most eager to discuss [autotag]Ji’Ayir Brown[/autotag]. He gave a glowing review of what he has seen in his short time in State College saying of Brown as a leader that he is “not just vocally (a leader), but he certainly is a great vocal leader. If you want a guy that you’re honored to coach, it’s this guy. He just does everything the way you want him to do. If you had 11 of him, you wouldn’t need a coach”.

It appears that despite losing three notable starters to the NFL this year that the Penn State defense should still be firing on all cylinders this coming season. The Blue and White Game will be the most telling of it all at this point and that will also serve as everyone’s first exposure to what Manny Diaz can do with this roster.

[mm-video type=video id=01fzjtf02kr6n9jn9w13 playlist_id=01ey902ehrs6e9bvhw player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fzjtf02kr6n9jn9w13/01fzjtf02kr6n9jn9w13-ec699aaeb2c7180c135f5a971d458096.jpg]

[listicle id=18076]

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.

Everything James Franklin said in his spring press conference

Here is everything James Franklin had to say in his spring football press conference.

As Penn State hit the football practice fields for the first spring practice of the year, head coach James Franklin spent some time in front of a microphone to answer questions from reporters about the current state of the program for the 2022 season. After two mediocre seasons, a number of departures to the NFL, and some notable changes on the staff and roster, there was no shortage of topics to discuss with the head coach of the Nittany Lions on Monday afternoon.

Franklin covered a lot of ground, including key position battles and concerns, the future of the program under a new athletics director, and how the confidence level is for a program that has struggled the past two years. Franklin also discussed the impact some of the newest additions to the program are having in workouts, whether as an early enrollee or via the transfer portal.

The following quotes from Franklin were provided by Penn State.