After Penn State fell to Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff Semifinal with no receptions for any of the wide receivers on its roster, it was clear that James Franklin and offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki had to overhaul the group for quarterback Drew Allar’s senior year.
Harrison Wallace III and Omari Evans, the Nittany Lions’ top two receivers from a season ago, swiftly jumped into the transfer portal after the loss, and Franklin had their replacements already in line: Troy transfer Devonte Ross and USC transfer Kyron Hudson. However, heading into the Blue-White Game on Saturday, Franklin’s wide receiver room reconstruction may not be complete.
Penn State recently hosted last season’s ACC receptions king, Trebor Pena, on a visit. The veteran receiver left Syracuse in the spring transfer portal window amid an NIL dispute and quickly found his way to Happy Valley, but now he could be slipping away.
Syracuse transfer WR Trebor Pena set to visit Miami, USC, and UCLA
An enticing NIL package has to be a priority in Pena’s recruitment, considering the circumstances of his departure from Syracuse, so while Penn State is clearly the most championship-caliber roster of Pena’s options, it’s far from a lock that he’ll join the Nittany Lions. Miami and USC typically have deep pockets and are enticing offenses for Pena to join, with the Hurricanes adding former Georgia quarterback Carson Beck and the Trojans being led by Lincoln Riley and having suffered a wide receiver exodus earlier this offseason.
UCLA is a wild-card, a program that was considered to be in a dire NIL situation before Chip Kelly’s departure and the hire of Deshaun Foster, a UCLA alum with impressive fundraiser chops. The Bruins have been a big player in the spring portal, landing Nico Iamaleava after his shocking departure from Tennessee, and his younger brother, Madden, who left Arkansas.
Still, Penn State is viewed as the current leader for Pena, and Franklin has to hope he made a strong impression because Pena is the one missing piece from his championship roster. Franklin is all-in to win a title in 2026, Allar’s final season of eligibility, and that would be tough without Pena in the slot.
Ross, as a vertical field stretcher, and Hudson, as a physical contested-catch threat, will both fill roles on the outside of Kotelnicki’s offense. And with so much talent at tight end between rising former five-star sophomore Luke Reynolds, Khalil Dinkins, and former four-star Andrew Rappleyea, Kotelnicki may lean heavily on 12 personnel with no slot receiver. Yet, when he has to trot one out there, the current options are unproven.
Even after an offseason of hype, Liam Clifford finished 2024 with just 18 catches for 286 yards. He’s yet to emerge as a reliable receiving threat, and there’s no reason to expect a leap in his redshirt senior season. Clifford simply lacks the requisite athleticism to separate from Big Ten defensive backs, even with so much space to work with in the slot.
If not Clifford, then it will be Tyseer Denmark in his redshirt freshman season, with just two career catches coming into the year. Pena caught 84 passes for 941 yards and nine touchdowns in Syracuse’s pass-happy offense last season, and while he may not quite as prolific under Kotelnicki with the offense built around Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen in the backfield, he could grab the reins as the No. 1 option in the passing game.
Penn State needs Pena, and with the pressure he’s facing in 2026, Franklin should have made him an offer that prevented him from testing the waters with his other visits. Pena may eventually circle back around to Happy Valley, but Nittany Lions fans will have to hold their breath the rest of this week as he heads out west.