Last season, Beau Pribula and Tyler Warren both provided Penn State with a rushing element at the quarterback position, spelling Drew Allar to give the defense a different look. Heading into 2025, Penn State has one of the most loaded rosters in the country and national championship expectations, but both those players are gone, Pribula at Missouri and Warren in the NFL.
Despite those two significant losses, James Franklin doesn’t expect to sacrifice that element from his team’s offense, and at Big Ten Media Days on Wednesday, in an interview with Colin Cowherd, the 12th-year head coach of the Nittany Lions revealed why.
"The old days of the pro-style QB that's just gonna stand there and sling it around, that doesn't exist anymore."@colincowherd and @PennStateFball HC @coachjfranklin talk about what makes Drew Allar a special talent pic.twitter.com/PPSbIGIpH2
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) July 23, 2025
Drew Allar down 10 pounds heading into his senior season at Penn State
As a second-year starter last season, Allar improved as a passer with new offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki, upping his completion percentage from 59.9 percent to 66.5 percent and throwing for 700 more yards. And, despite the rushing production from both Pribula and Warren, Allar had his best season on the ground, adding 302 yards and six touchdowns, but Franlin apparently expects even more.
Franklin told Cowherd that the biggest improvement in Allar’s game from last season has been “his athleticism and his movements. He’s 6-foot-5, he was 242 pounds, he’s now about 232 pounds.”
Franklin tempered expectations somewhat, admitting that Allar, who has been a traditional pocket-passer over the course of his career, doesn’t have to be like two-time NFL MVP and former Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson, the best rushing quarterback in the history of the sport, but that he justs needs to be able to pick up a few first downs a game on the ground.
Allar did that more last season, scrambling a career-high 43 times, compared to just 16 designed runs across 16 games. Of those 59 total carries, 36 went for first downs, which is exactly the type of production that Franklin was alluding to. If Allar is capable of even more now that he’s shed 10 pounds from his playing weight a year ago, that will be a boon for Penn State’s offense, keeping the unit on the field longer and giving the playmakers around Allar more time to create an explosive play.
It’ll be important for Allar to use his legs, but ideally, he won’t need to often because he’s able to get the ball out of his hands quicker in 2025. With the additions of Trebor Pena from Syracuse, Devonte Ross from Troy, and Kyron Hudson from USC this offseason, Allar will be playing with the most talented group of wide receivers since he arrived in Happy Valley. So, his legs will be important, but his arm is still the star of the show.