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Penn State Football position grades after back to back wins

By Lawrence Santa Maria

Brandon Smith of Penn State sacks quarterback Johnny Lanngan of Rutgers in the first half during a Big Ten college football match up that saw Penn State defeat Rutgers 23-7 in Piscataway, NJ on December 5, 2020.Big Ten College Football Penn State At Rutgers In Piscataway Nj On December 5 2020
Brandon Smith of Penn State sacks quarterback Johnny Lanngan of Rutgers in the first half during a Big Ten college football match up that saw Penn State defeat Rutgers 23-7 in Piscataway, NJ on December 5, 2020.Big Ten College Football Penn State At Rutgers In Piscataway Nj On December 5 2020 /
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Michal Menet #62 of the Penn State Nittany Lions (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

Offensive Line

Grade: B

The offensive line has been one of the most criticized position groups on the team thus far, and rightfully so.

However, after making some positional and depth chart changes, this group seems to be coming into its own over the last few games.

Ahead of their Week 4 matchup with Nebraska, Penn State inserted redshirt freshman Caeden Wallace into the starting lineup at right tackle, moving senior Will Fries over to right guard in place of redshirt junior CJ Thorpe.

The offensive line has enjoyed their two best performances of the season over the last two games, keeping quarterback Sean Clifford up right and finally moving the defense off the ball and creating lanes for the running backs.

The Nittany Lions were utterly dominant up front against Rutgers Saturday, rushing for 248 yards and routinely having runners go four or five yards before even being touched. The week prior Penn State bullied the Wolverines, running the ball 50 times for 254 yards, allowing only one sack and two tackles for a loss.

Penn State’s offensive line has nothing but blue chip prospects across the board and should have been playing like this all year, but is a welcomed sight as they head into the stretch run of the season.

It is no coincidence that Clifford has also enjoyed two of his better performances the past two weeks as well. The new starting five is finding continuity and has significantly improved this grade over the past few games.

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