The 3 most important players on the Penn State roster for 2024

The expectations are clear for James Franklin in his 11th year at Penn State, it’s College Football Playoff or bust. With the expansion to a 12-team playoff, Penn State is favored to play for a shot at the national title at the end of the season, and without Michigan or Oregon on the schedule this season, even a loss to Ohio State would not keep the Nittany Lions out of contention. 

While the blame for Penn State’s lack of big wins primarily falls at the feet of Franklin, his players share in that criticism. In last season’s loss to the Buckeyes, Kalen King couldn’t hold his own against Marvin Harrison Jr. and Olu Fashanu and the offensive line allowed a staggering 23 pressures on sophomore quarterback Drew Allar. 

Now, with those two former stars at key positions in the NFL, let’s try to discern which players will be, not the best, but the most critical pieces of this year’s roster. 

Penn State has a deep group of cornerbacks, but not many standouts amongst it. This offseason, Franklin added two SEC transfers, Jalen Kimber from Florida and Harris from Georgia. Those two joined Cam Miller, Audavion Collins, a 2023 transfer from Mississippi State, Zion Tracy, and Elliott Washington II. 

Collins has reportedly stood out amongst that group, but Harris has the pedigree to be CB1 for Penn State and has a lot of pressure on him in that role. He played 89 snaps for the Bulldogs across five games last season, so he’ll be thrown into the fire against some of the top wide receivers in the Big Ten, should he win the job. 

Harris is the current best bet to be the top cornerback on the depth chart, but with a lack of certainty in the secondary, besides the excellent group of safeties, whoever is in that role will be crucial to Penn State having a top-five defense under Tom Allen. 

Penn State’s offense is going to look a lot different under Andy Kotelnicki this year, and it should lead to a better version of Drew Allar. However, even if he’s much improved, Allar is primarily a pocket passer who needs playmakers on the outside to create a dynamic offensive unit. While Julian Fleming was brought in to be a reliable receiver threat for the Nittany Lions, Wallace still has untapped potential which he flashed before an injury last season. 

To start his second year in Happy Valley, Wallace caught seven passes for 72 yards in Penn State’s Week 1 win over West Virginia. His production tailed off from there before an injury against Indiana derailed his year at just 15 catches across four games. 

Wallace was not used as a deep threat, just two targets over 20 yards downfield last year, but he did catch of his 10 targets between 10-19 yards downfield for 116 yards. 

Fleming never developed into much more than a run-blocker at Ohio State, so Penn State needs Wallace to be its best receiver if Allar is going to become one of the best quarterbacks in the country. 

Speaking of Drew Allar, he’s the obvious answer as the most important player on this team. There were plenty of signs that Allar has more talent to tap into with his stout 6-foot-5 frame and impressive arm strength, but in a lot of ways last year, his surroundings held him back. 

Now, entering his second season as the starter, Allar has a more proven and innovative play-caller, but even if the wide receivers and offensive line aren’t improved, he and Kotelnicki will need to find ways for this offense to compete with the top team in the Big Ten. 

If Penn State finally becomes a real national championship contender under Franklin, it’ll be because his former five-star quarterback plays like it.