Penn State Football: Way too early offensive position group rankings

4. Offensive Line

The offensive line being ranked fourth on this list is more of a testament to the strength of the other position groups as opposed to the weaknesses this unit possesses.

With that being said, it seems every season there is a renewed optimism that ‘this year’ will in fact be the season Penn State Football gets great offensive line play, and year after year the fanbase is at least mildly disappointed with the product.

The offensive line loses two key cogs in center Michael Menet and right guard Will Fries to the NFL, however retaining left tackle Rasheed Walker for one more season was a huge win for offensive line coach Phil Trautwein.

After being inserted into the starting lineup at right tackle in week 4, Redshirt freshman Caedan Wallace has seemingly found a home along the line and should be in position to hold down that spot next fall. The line took a leap forward when Fries was moved inside to make room for Wallace at tackle as he is a better pass protector then Fries was.

The feel good story along the line is guard Juice Scruggs who was back last season after rehabbing from a car accident and ended the season getting a lot of reps at left guard, and really showed why Franklin and his staff have been so high on him the past few seasons. He figures to have an inside track at left guard in 2021 while Mike Miranda moves over to center.

Right guard should have strong competition between transfer Eric Wilson from Harvard, Des Holmes and potentially even freshman Landon Tengwell who Franklin said just the other day looks more like a junior in college instead of an early enrollee freshman.

it is easy to be bullish on this group headed into next season, however they will have to prove it instead of talk about it. Offensive line play has held the Nittany Lions back from having elite offenses in the past.