Payton Thorne has Ex-Penn State wide receiver regretting his parting shots at Drew Allar

After four years in Happy Valley, KeAndre Lambert-Smith began to fall out of favor with Penn State’s coaching staff ahead of the 2023 Peach Bowl. Lambert-Smith led the Nittany Lions in receiving yards last season but played just 21 snaps and didn’t catch a pass in the loss to Ole Miss. 

Then, after the season, Lambert-Smith left for the SEC, fleeing James Franklin’s program for Hugh Freeze’s Auburn Tigers. Down on The Plains, Lambert-Smith is catching passes from former Michigan State quarterback Payton Thorne who this summer, the former Nittany Lions praised for his leadership. 

“Just being around Payton, No. 1, Payton came from the Big Ten; he beat me at Penn State already,” Lambert-Smith told Everything Auburn in an offseason interview. “So just being around him, how he controls the team at the end of a workout, the leadership, I think that gives the offense a sense of confidence right there.” 

Then, Lambert-Smith said a few words that he may be regretting after Auburn’s 21-14 Week 2 loss to Cal and Penn State’s 2-0 start. 

“That was kind of lacking where I came from. I know just the difference in how that can make an offense feel. I felt different when I heard him talking. Then, just how he hits me up, ‘Let’s go work out, let’s get these routes, let’s hit the field.”

It’s not a stretch to perceive those comments as a shot at Penn State quarterback Drew Allar. As a sophomore, Allar struggled in former offensive coordinator Mike Yurich’s system and the Nittany Lions failed to generate explosive plays. However, the former five-star quarterback only threw two interceptions all season, which is two fewer than Thorne threw to Cal in Auburn’s upset loss at home. 

Through two games with his new quarterback, Lambert-Smith has caught five passes for 110 yards and three touchdowns, but just two of those grabs came in Week 2 when the leader of Auburn’s offense went 14/27 for 165 yards with one touchdown, four picks, and three sacks. 

Meanwhile, in Happy Valley, Penn State’s defense struggled early against Bowling Green, but the No. 8 Nittany Lions have a much-improved offense under new OC Andy Kotelnicki. In Week 2, Allar went 13/20 for 204 yards and one interception. Allar’s numbers would have been much better had Omari Evans not dropped a pass on 3rd-and-17 in the first quarter and committed blatant offensive pass interference on a sure touchdown toss. 

This season, Penn State has only had three wide receivers caught passes and the lack of depth is a huge concern. Yet, the Nittany Lions are still favored to make the 12-team College Football Playoff behind Allar’s resurgence and don’t miss Lambert-Smith nearly as bad as he’s likely missing Happy Valley right now.