Penn State Football 2021: 5 reasons for optimism, 4 reasons to worry

Reason for Optimism #1 – Great Wide Receivers

As was mentioned earlier, Penn State will have an excellent ground attack in 2021. What better way to keep a defense guessing than to throw in a great group of wide receivers as well?

Even though Clifford has to take a big step forward in 2021, it will certainly be a huge help to him having such an excellent group to throw to. Having a star wide receiver can really help elevate the play of a quarterback, and Clifford has that in Jahan Dotson.

Parker Washington also exceeded expectations and turned the heads of Penn State football fans last season as a true freshman. He had six touchdowns in nine games, and showed he can be tough to bring down once he gets the ball in his hands. He will be joined by another second year wide receiver in KeAndre Lambert-Smith, who has reportedly been making great strides in the right direction at camp.

There are two solid veterans who will be in the mix as well in Daniel George and Cam Sullivan-Brown. Finally, Malick Meiga and Liam Clifford are two very talented young players who will provide even more depth to this already impressive wide receiver room.

This is a highly talented group that includes a lot of veteran leadership, and the depth is great too. With so much speed and athleticism in this group, and a lot of attention possibly focused on Penn State’s running game, this group of receivers can make some big splash plays downfield. Couple that with Sean Clifford’s strong arm, and we might see some flashes of that 2016 “home run offense” with Chris Godwin, DaeSean Hamilton, and Saeed Blacknall.