Tag: Mike Yurcich

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.

Where did Penn State rank in ESPN’s quarterback rankings?

ESPN ranked quarterbacks for each team. Here’s where Drew Allar and Penn State rank.

Each year ESPN ranks the future of the quarterback position for each team in college football, and, like most years, Penn State is ranked decently high in the grand scheme.

Last year it was ranked 11th with [autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag] at the helm backed up by [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] and [autotag]Christian Veilleux[/autotag]. With two of those three being elsewhere, it makes sense that Penn State may dip in the rankings and they did just that.

ESPN has the Nittany Lions ranked 15th in this year’s rankings. They discuss the drop coming from the departure of Clifford to the NFL and of Veilleux transferring to in-state rival Pittsburgh. The moves leave Drew Allar as the man to take over, and ESPN gives plenty of praise to him. They mention the expectations surrounding Allar are high; he is the highest-rated quarterback recruit they have had since Christian Hackenberg in 2013.

They also highlight that Allar will be in a familiar environment, stating the  “team has schematic continuity with coordinator Mike Yurcich” and it is that continuity that should help Allar in his first year as a starter.

The biggest flaw outside of the departure of the veteran presence on the depth chart is the people behind Allar. ESPN adds “redshirt freshman [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] and true freshman [autotag]Jaxon Smolik[/autotag] … there’s a lot riding on Allar here, but he has the skill set to take Penn State a long way.”

They aren’t wrong, if something goes sideways in State College with Allar, the Nittany Lions will be in dire straights at the quarterback position. Franklin couldn’t land any veterans within the transfer portal so for better or worse this is the best they can do at quarterback behind Allar.

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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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Every offensive recruit in 2024 who is warm on Penn State football

Here is an updated look at every recruit who is warm on Penn State in 2024.

Penn State has been acing the recruiting trails ever since [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] arrived on campus. It was easy to recruit good players before but coming off a Rose Bowl win is when you can capitalize and get elite talent on the recruiting trail.

Looking ahead to the 2024 recruiting class, Penn State has offers and has several players who are warm on the idea of becoming a Nittany Lion. The main difference between trending and warm is the latter refers to the recruiting thinking of having them be involved in their final choice of top schools.

Currently, Franklin and [autotag]Mike Yurcich[/autotag] have 14 recruits who are warm on Penn State in the 2024 class. Here is your chance to get to know them.

Texas Football: Alabama QB Jalen Milroe gets his shot at Texas

Week 2 could settle the debate between Quinn Ewers and Jalen Milroe.

Revenge is one of the greatest motivating factors in sports. Though it may not matter all that much given his 2022 struggles, Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe is set to get his opportunity against Texas.

Former Texas head coach Tom Herman once sold Milroe on a future with him leading the charge. Not long afterward, the Longhorns brought in Mike Yurcich and went all in on Quinn Ewers. We all know the rest of the story.

Despite that, the storyline shouldn’t matter. Texas has the better player at the position and should not lose the game even if it is on the road.

Steve Sarkisian has his quarterback, Quinn Ewers, who should break out this season after showing flashes last year. After last season’s performance against the Tide, Ewers is more than equipped to move the ball against Alabama. He’ll have two elite receiver additions this year barring injury.

While much has been made of Ewers’ struggles, Milroe allowed Texas A&M to nearly pull off a road upset last year in Tuscaloosa.

Shutting down the Alabama quarterback could be Texas’ ticket to a road win in 2023.

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Drew Allar mentioned in Heisman Trophy Discussion

Sports Illustrated listed some Heisman Trophy candidates for 2023, including a couple of Penn State players

The Heisman Trophy is the biggest prize in college football for an individual player. It is arguably the most recognizable award regardless of the sport and for Penn State, it hasn’t been in State College since 1973 when John Cappelletti become the first and only Heisman Trophy winner in school history.

That may change next year, or beyond, with [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] going under center for the team. Sports Illustrated released their early favorites for the award ranked 10th was the upcoming Penn State starting quarterback.

He currently sits ahead of Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy, which has to make Penn State fans happy after seeing McCarthy lead Michigan to the season they had. Other notable passers around him in terms of odds include LSU‘s Jayden Daniels and Tennessee‘s Joe Milton.

Fellow Nittany Lion and freshman star [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] also found himself being mentioned to win the award. Ironically he was mentioned alongside Michigan running back Donovan Edwards.

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The 2022 recruiting class was one of the more notable ones in college football last year in terms of skill players and making an immediate impact. Singleton and Allar are the stars but other freshmen such as [autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag] and [autotag]Abdul Carter[/autotag] had fantastic freshman seasons for the Nittany Lions.

All in all, Penn State is looking to be in contention for being a top-ten team once again after a surprising 2022 campaign. They went from being unranked before the year to finish in the top ten and while that is great, it leaves expectations that a now rather young team will have to answer for starting in September when they open the season against West Virginia.

Perhaps [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich can continue to show they have cards up their sleeves and maybe they add a College Football Playoff appearance and Heisman Trophy to their growing trophy case.

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Nick Singleton named Big Ten Freshman of the Year

Nick Singleton is the fourth player in Penn State history to be named Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

Penn State had the sixth-ranked recruiting class according to 247 Sports in 2022 and a major player in that class was [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag]. Singleton came in and immediately changed the course of the 2022 season for the Nittany Lions and has now been named the Big Ten  Freshman of the Year.

Singleton had 149 rushing attempts for 941 yards and 10 touchdowns, and he added 11 catches for 85 yards and a touchdown. This performance also earned him All-Big Ten third-team honors on offense as well from both the media and coaches of the conference.

While he wasn’t used in the passing game as much as some may have liked, he did produce as a kick returner.  He averaged 25.8 yards per kickoff return and returned one 100 yards for a touchdown against Rutgers several weeks ago. As a result, Singleton also earned second-team recognition from the Big Ten media as a return specialist.

There were questions about this Penn State offense before Singleton though. Sean Clifford was returning for his fifth year and people didn’t know how the offense would handle losing wide receiver Jahan Dotson as well.

Singleton came in to immediately become a presence on offense and allowed for Penn State to control time of possession in nearly every game they played this season. There were some fumbling issues in spots but that is what young players do, make mistakes.

Now expectations will be sky-high for both Penn State and Singleton heading into 2023 and beyond. The running back from Reading, PA appears to be up for the task though.

Singleton is the third Penn State player in program history to be named the Big Ten’s freshman of the year. He joins quarterback Christian Hackenberg (2013) and defensive end Deion Barnes (2012). Running back Curtis Enis was the media’s pick for freshman of the year in the Big Ten in 1995 (the Big Ten coaches chose defensive back Charles Woodson from Michigan).

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Offensive keys to victory against Ohio State

What can Penn State’s offense do to keep pressure on Ohio State this weekend?

Penn State is facing an uphill battle when it comes to Ohio State this weekend and to be honest, the defense won’t play much of a factor. The offense is going to make or break this game for the Nittany Lions as they are going to have to take the lead in the dance.

The Buckeyes offense is going to be way to much of an issue for the Penn State defense to handle. If they couldn’t handle Michigan, they won’t be able to handle Ohio State with there much more developed passing attack.

What they can do however is try to stay step to step with the Buckeyes or they can try and control the time of possession. The latter is what I would personally vote for but let’s explore every offensive option shall we?

Twitter reacts to crushing hit on Sean Clifford and fourth down decision

Twitter reacts to rough start by Penn State at Auburn.

Penn State is deep in the heart of SEC country today against Auburn at Jordan-Hare Stadium. The crowd was lively at kickoff with Penn State receiving. An opening drive score would have gone a long way to silent things and even up momentum but quite the opposite ended up happening.

Coaches James Franklin and Mike Yurcich are familiar with tough crowds. Franklin especially knows how tough the SEC can be for opponents making a visit from his days at Vanderbilt as head coach. That being said two plays doomed Penn State to give Auburn more momentum.

First Sean Clifford went to make a run on a long third down. He nearly made it to the line but instead got leveled worse than one could imagine in today’s football rule set. The clean hit then setup a fourth and one call and instead of checking out Clifford and punting the Penn State staff decided to go for it and get stopped.

Needless to say things did not start the way they should have and social media is a buzz.