Penn State Football Early Position Preview 2017: Offensive Line
By Marty Leap
During the 2016 season there was no position group that improved more for the Penn State football team than the offensive line. So, what’s in store for ’17?
During the 2014 and 2015 seasons the Penn State football team’s offensive line was widely ridiculed. This was due to the Nittany Lions having one of the worst offensive line units in all of college football those two seasons. However, that began to change in 2016.
During the 2016 season there were multiple reasons for the improvement of the offensive line. An influx of young talented players, great coaching by Matt Limegrover, and Joe Moorhead’s offensive scheme all played a role. Despite all of the improvement, Penn State’s offensive line was still very mediocre in 2016.
Can Penn State fans expect even more improvement from the offensive line in 2017? The answer is that yes they can. Slowly but surely the offensive line is going from the weakest link on the Nittany Lions to becoming one of the team’s strengths.
First off, in 2017 the Nittany Lions will return six offensive linemen with starting experience. Ryan Bates, Steven Gonzalez, Andrew Nelson, Brendan Mahon, Connor McGovern, and Chasz Wright all started games last season. Center Brian Gaia is the lone starter from 2016 that must be replaced.
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A second reason will be the influx of new young, talented players. In 2016 Michal Menet and Will Fries were both redshirted by the Nittany Lions. However, the red shirt on Fries came very close to getting burnt late in the season due to injuries.
Menet was the second highest ranked player in Penn State’s 2016 recruiting class, in addition to being arguably the best high school offensive lineman in the country in the 2016 recruiting cycle. Personally, I see no way Menet is kept off the field in 2017. Do not be surprised if Menet is the starting center for the Nittany Lions in 2017.
Heading into the 2017 season there are three offensive linemen with starting jobs locked up. These three players are Ryan Bates, Brendan Mahon, and Connor McGovern.
Ryan Bates, who will most likely be a first-round pick in the NFL Draft in another two or three years, was a Freshman All-American in 2016. Prior to missing the final five games of the season, Brendan Mahon was having an all-conference type of season. And Connor McGovern appeared in all 14 games, starting 12, at right guard as a true freshman.
Those three players giving the Nittany Lions a great core on the offensive line in 2017. Penn State has plenty of talent to fill the other two offensive line spots. The only questions are who will fill them, and at what positions?
As I said above, do not be surprised if Menet ends up as the starting center. If this does not pan out, then McGovern will slide inside to center with either Menet or Steven Gonzalez at right guard.
Bates and Mahon will be the left side of the Nittany Lion offensive line. Each player has started games at both left tackle and left guard. Due to this, the staff can put whichever they believe is the better tackle at left tackle while the other starts at guard.
This leaves right tackle. While Andrew Nelson has by far the most experience of the three players vying for this job, due to his most recent knee injury, there are no guarantees he will be ready when the season begins. This opens the door for Chasz Wright and Will Fries.
While Fries has the much higher ceiling of the two players, Wright has the experience of having started four games last season. In the end, I would expect Will Fries to win out at right tackle.
Moving forward, Penn State’s offensive line is going to become a strength for the Nittany Lions. That transformation should begin in 2017. An offense with as much skilled position talent as the Nittany Lions having a strong offensive line should scare the hell out of the rest of the FBS.
Penn State Early Position Previews: