Every year at this time I post my projected Penn State depth chart on offense and defense at the beginning of preseason practice. I'm always interested to see how that projected depth chart changes as preseason practice changes.
A feature I like to add at the end of each position area depth chart is a commentary about a point of discussion that is taking place with that position here in the Lions Den. With that being said let's get right into my projected position depth chart on both offense and defense.
Offense
QB
Sean Clifford [6-2, 216]
Will Levis [6-3, 229]
Ta"Quan Roberson [5-11, 192] OR
Michael Johnson Jr. [6-2, 199]
The biggest topic of discussion concerning the QB position here in the Lions Den during the first five days of preseason practice is if Sean Clifford has legitimate 4.5 40-yard speed and ran a faster 40-yard time than Trace McSorley when he was on Penn State's campus. Some Lions Den members think this is a slap in the face to McSorley and diminishes what he accomplished at Penn State. It is not.
Forty yard times are a measuring stick used by coaching staffs to evaluate the overall positional speed of a team on offense and defense. But as Penn State offensive coordinator, Ricky Rahne, told Nate in his interview with Rahne in BWI's Penn State 2019 Football Preview, there are athletic traits that are far more critical to the performance on the field by Penn State's QBs than his 40-yard speed.
"[40-yard speed] They mean everything and they mean nothing at the same time. Obviously, you would love for a guy to score when he does get into the open field, to make a big play and take it to the house. [But] one of the things that is more important to us, though, is their foot quickness and their ability to change direction.That is more important to us at the QB position than necessarily the 40. The 40 is a bonus and you would love to have it. But foot quickness is the more important one. Because you have to be able to change direction [in the pocket to function as a QB]. That helps not only the pocket movement, but also in the run game and all that sort of stuff."
And Sean has that? "Absolutely, he does. He's very good on that very good on change of direction, Absolutely."
RB
Ricky Slade [5-9, 198]
Journey Brown [5-11, 206]
Noah Cain [5-10, 206]
Devyn Ford [5-11, 194]
Ja'Juan Seider has been a running back coach at Marshall, West Virginia and Florida since 2011. During that time before last season when Miles Sanders ran the football 220 times for 1,274 yards [5.8YPC], only in 2013 and 2015 has he coached a running back that has run the football for 200 or more times in a season.
When Coach has the luxury of having three or four quality running backs in the backfield, like Penn State has for the upcoming 2019 season, his favorite option is having three or more running backs have 60 or more carries in that season. The average number of carries for the No. 1 running back is between 140 to 160 carries and in one season and once No. 3 running back totaled just over 80 carries.
Knowing that tendency I feel quite comfortable predicting you'll see a running back by committee philosophy being used this fall with Slade being the No. 1 back and with Brown, Cain and Ford all getting carries this fall.
Wide Receiver
X WR
Justin Shorter [6-4, 235]
Daniel George [6-2, 220]
Cameron Sullivan Brown [6-0, 194]
T.J. Jones [6-1, 196]
Z WR
Jahan Dotson [5-11, 175]
Weston Carr [6-2, 202]
Dan Chisena [6-3, 202]
John Dunmore [6-1, 180]
Slot-WR
K.J. Hamler [5-9, 176]
Mac Hippenhammer [5-11, 182]
Jahan Dotson [5-11, 175]
Isaac Lutz [5-11, 183]
Penn State's inexperienced WRs appear to be the No.1 question mark for Penn State by some Lions Den members. Not with me because all those receivers that dropped most of the passes are no longer on the team. We'll talk about my No.1 concern on offense later when I discuss the offensive line and depth at RT and LT.
My big surprise at WR is George. He's 6-2, 220 and physically reminds me of Chris Godwin. I like Penn State's inexperienced underclassmen WRs.
TE
Pat Freiermuth [6-5, 256]
Nick Bowers [6-4, 260]
Zack Kuntz [6-7, 243]
Brenton Strange [6-3, 233]
Freiermuth and Bowers are the best pair of TEs in the Big Ten and one of the best pair in the country. They are traditional TEs with excellent size and athletic enough to play as a flex-TE because they can stretch the field vertically with the passing game.
The fact Penn State labels its tight ends TE/H [short for H-back] illustrates the athleticism Penn State's TEs possess.
Offensive Line
LT
Rasheem Walker [6-6, 324]
Desmond Holmes [6-5, 315]
Caedan Wallace [6-5, 333]
LG
Steven Gonzalez [6-4,341]
C.J. Thorpe [6-3, 322]
Bryce Effner [6-5, 297]
Saleem Wormley [6-3, 319]
Center
Michal Menet [6-4, 313]
Hunter Kelly [6-2, 309]
Michael Miranda [6-3, 295]
Juice Scruggs [6-4, 289]
RG
C.J. Thorpe [6-3, 322]
Michael Miranda [6-3, 295]
Bryce Effner [6-5, 297]
Saleem Wormley [6-3, 319]
RT
Will Fries [6-6, 313]
Anthony Whigan [6-4, 301]
Caedan Wallace [6-5, 333]
Here is where my No. 1 concern on offense lies. If Penn State has a bad injury at one of its two offensive tackle positions it could be a big problem. Experience depth at OT is at a premium. If Fries or Walker gets hurt that means Desmond Holmes [6-5, 315], Anthony Whigan [6-4, 301] and /or Caedan Wallace [6-5, 333] need to emerge as a viable option coming out of preseason practice.
Also Coach Limegrover if that happens might have to think of moving Bryce Effner [6-5, 297] to tackle.
Defense
DE
Yetur Gross-Matos [6-5, 263]
Daniel Joseph [6-3, 260]
Nick Tarburton [6-3, 263]
DT
Robert Windsor [6-4, 289]
P.J. Mustipher [6-4, 311]
Damion Barber [6-3, 290]
Judge Culpepper 6-4, 285]
DT
Antonio Shelton [6-2, 311]
Fred Hansard [6-3, 316]
P.J. Mustipher [6-4, 311]
DE
Shaka Toney [6-3, 243]
Shane Simmons [6-3, 259]
Jayson Oweh [6-5, 255]
Adisa Isaac [6-4,241]
I don't think it is an unrealistic goal for this starting defensive line to total close to 30 sacks and over 50 tackles for loss. But the best news here is what Antonio Shelton told Nate of our staff on Media day. "All of our DTs are interchangeable except Hansard." That means Mustipher is big enough at 6-4, 311 to play at the 1-technique DT spot and athletic enough to play at the 3-technique DT spot. Depth at DT much better than was expected.
Linebacker
Will OLB
Micah Parsons [6-3, 245]
Jesse Luketa [6-3, 247]
Brandon Smith [6-3, 240]
MLB
Jan Johnson [6-2, 232]
Ellis Brooks [6-1, 234]
Jesse Luketa [6-3, 247]
Sam OLB
Cameron Brown [6-5, 235]
Charlie Katshir [6-3, 229]
Lance Dixon [6-2, 213]
This will be the area on defense that will be the most improved for the upcoming 2019 season. Katshir is the real surprise here at the Sam OLB position. He's added 15 pounds to his frame since spring practice. Penn State's group of underclassmen linebackers is the best in the Big Ten. Brandon Smith [6-3, 240] is a good enough athlete to practice at all three LB positions. Lance Dixon [6-2, 213] will be a terror on the punt and kickoff coverage teams this fall.
Jack Ham believes that Sam OLB Cameron Brown [6-5, 235] will be the most improved LB on Penn State's roster this fall and will become one of the defense's biggest leaders. he also believes Will OLB Micah Parsons [6-3, 245] will be right there with his improvement with Brown and that he has AA potential.
Secondary
Boundary CB
Tariq Castro-Fields [6-0, 197]
Keaton Ellis [6-0, 190]
Trent Gordon [5-11, 188]
Joey Porter Jr. [6-2, 180]
Field CB
John Reid [5-10, 181]
Donovan Johnson [5-9, 185]
D.J. Brown [5-10, 183]
Marquis Wilson [5-11, 174]
Boundary Safety
Garrett Taylor [6-0, 198]
Jonathan Sutherland [5-11, 201]
Tyler Rudolph [6-0, 204]
Field Safety
Lamont Wade [5-9, 199]
Jaquan Brisker [6-1, 213]
Jonathan Sutherland [5-11, 201]
Even with the loss of CB Amani Oruwariye and Field Safety Nick Scott I'm predicting the secondary will be better this year. Watch for CB Donovan Johnson [5-9, 185] he's healthy and he wants the starting nickel-back job back and the No. 1 position battle between Wade, Brisker and Sutherland at the field safety position will be the best position battle on defense in preseason practice.
A feature I like to add at the end of each position area depth chart is a commentary about a point of discussion that is taking place with that position here in the Lions Den. With that being said let's get right into my projected position depth chart on both offense and defense.
Offense
QB
Sean Clifford [6-2, 216]
Will Levis [6-3, 229]
Ta"Quan Roberson [5-11, 192] OR
Michael Johnson Jr. [6-2, 199]
The biggest topic of discussion concerning the QB position here in the Lions Den during the first five days of preseason practice is if Sean Clifford has legitimate 4.5 40-yard speed and ran a faster 40-yard time than Trace McSorley when he was on Penn State's campus. Some Lions Den members think this is a slap in the face to McSorley and diminishes what he accomplished at Penn State. It is not.
Forty yard times are a measuring stick used by coaching staffs to evaluate the overall positional speed of a team on offense and defense. But as Penn State offensive coordinator, Ricky Rahne, told Nate in his interview with Rahne in BWI's Penn State 2019 Football Preview, there are athletic traits that are far more critical to the performance on the field by Penn State's QBs than his 40-yard speed.
"[40-yard speed] They mean everything and they mean nothing at the same time. Obviously, you would love for a guy to score when he does get into the open field, to make a big play and take it to the house. [But] one of the things that is more important to us, though, is their foot quickness and their ability to change direction.That is more important to us at the QB position than necessarily the 40. The 40 is a bonus and you would love to have it. But foot quickness is the more important one. Because you have to be able to change direction [in the pocket to function as a QB]. That helps not only the pocket movement, but also in the run game and all that sort of stuff."
And Sean has that? "Absolutely, he does. He's very good on that very good on change of direction, Absolutely."
RB
Ricky Slade [5-9, 198]
Journey Brown [5-11, 206]
Noah Cain [5-10, 206]
Devyn Ford [5-11, 194]
Ja'Juan Seider has been a running back coach at Marshall, West Virginia and Florida since 2011. During that time before last season when Miles Sanders ran the football 220 times for 1,274 yards [5.8YPC], only in 2013 and 2015 has he coached a running back that has run the football for 200 or more times in a season.
When Coach has the luxury of having three or four quality running backs in the backfield, like Penn State has for the upcoming 2019 season, his favorite option is having three or more running backs have 60 or more carries in that season. The average number of carries for the No. 1 running back is between 140 to 160 carries and in one season and once No. 3 running back totaled just over 80 carries.
Knowing that tendency I feel quite comfortable predicting you'll see a running back by committee philosophy being used this fall with Slade being the No. 1 back and with Brown, Cain and Ford all getting carries this fall.
Wide Receiver
X WR
Justin Shorter [6-4, 235]
Daniel George [6-2, 220]
Cameron Sullivan Brown [6-0, 194]
T.J. Jones [6-1, 196]
Z WR
Jahan Dotson [5-11, 175]
Weston Carr [6-2, 202]
Dan Chisena [6-3, 202]
John Dunmore [6-1, 180]
Slot-WR
K.J. Hamler [5-9, 176]
Mac Hippenhammer [5-11, 182]
Jahan Dotson [5-11, 175]
Isaac Lutz [5-11, 183]
Penn State's inexperienced WRs appear to be the No.1 question mark for Penn State by some Lions Den members. Not with me because all those receivers that dropped most of the passes are no longer on the team. We'll talk about my No.1 concern on offense later when I discuss the offensive line and depth at RT and LT.
My big surprise at WR is George. He's 6-2, 220 and physically reminds me of Chris Godwin. I like Penn State's inexperienced underclassmen WRs.
TE
Pat Freiermuth [6-5, 256]
Nick Bowers [6-4, 260]
Zack Kuntz [6-7, 243]
Brenton Strange [6-3, 233]
Freiermuth and Bowers are the best pair of TEs in the Big Ten and one of the best pair in the country. They are traditional TEs with excellent size and athletic enough to play as a flex-TE because they can stretch the field vertically with the passing game.
The fact Penn State labels its tight ends TE/H [short for H-back] illustrates the athleticism Penn State's TEs possess.
Offensive Line
LT
Rasheem Walker [6-6, 324]
Desmond Holmes [6-5, 315]
Caedan Wallace [6-5, 333]
LG
Steven Gonzalez [6-4,341]
C.J. Thorpe [6-3, 322]
Bryce Effner [6-5, 297]
Saleem Wormley [6-3, 319]
Center
Michal Menet [6-4, 313]
Hunter Kelly [6-2, 309]
Michael Miranda [6-3, 295]
Juice Scruggs [6-4, 289]
RG
C.J. Thorpe [6-3, 322]
Michael Miranda [6-3, 295]
Bryce Effner [6-5, 297]
Saleem Wormley [6-3, 319]
RT
Will Fries [6-6, 313]
Anthony Whigan [6-4, 301]
Caedan Wallace [6-5, 333]
Here is where my No. 1 concern on offense lies. If Penn State has a bad injury at one of its two offensive tackle positions it could be a big problem. Experience depth at OT is at a premium. If Fries or Walker gets hurt that means Desmond Holmes [6-5, 315], Anthony Whigan [6-4, 301] and /or Caedan Wallace [6-5, 333] need to emerge as a viable option coming out of preseason practice.
Also Coach Limegrover if that happens might have to think of moving Bryce Effner [6-5, 297] to tackle.
Defense
DE
Yetur Gross-Matos [6-5, 263]
Daniel Joseph [6-3, 260]
Nick Tarburton [6-3, 263]
DT
Robert Windsor [6-4, 289]
P.J. Mustipher [6-4, 311]
Damion Barber [6-3, 290]
Judge Culpepper 6-4, 285]
DT
Antonio Shelton [6-2, 311]
Fred Hansard [6-3, 316]
P.J. Mustipher [6-4, 311]
DE
Shaka Toney [6-3, 243]
Shane Simmons [6-3, 259]
Jayson Oweh [6-5, 255]
Adisa Isaac [6-4,241]
I don't think it is an unrealistic goal for this starting defensive line to total close to 30 sacks and over 50 tackles for loss. But the best news here is what Antonio Shelton told Nate of our staff on Media day. "All of our DTs are interchangeable except Hansard." That means Mustipher is big enough at 6-4, 311 to play at the 1-technique DT spot and athletic enough to play at the 3-technique DT spot. Depth at DT much better than was expected.
Linebacker
Will OLB
Micah Parsons [6-3, 245]
Jesse Luketa [6-3, 247]
Brandon Smith [6-3, 240]
MLB
Jan Johnson [6-2, 232]
Ellis Brooks [6-1, 234]
Jesse Luketa [6-3, 247]
Sam OLB
Cameron Brown [6-5, 235]
Charlie Katshir [6-3, 229]
Lance Dixon [6-2, 213]
This will be the area on defense that will be the most improved for the upcoming 2019 season. Katshir is the real surprise here at the Sam OLB position. He's added 15 pounds to his frame since spring practice. Penn State's group of underclassmen linebackers is the best in the Big Ten. Brandon Smith [6-3, 240] is a good enough athlete to practice at all three LB positions. Lance Dixon [6-2, 213] will be a terror on the punt and kickoff coverage teams this fall.
Jack Ham believes that Sam OLB Cameron Brown [6-5, 235] will be the most improved LB on Penn State's roster this fall and will become one of the defense's biggest leaders. he also believes Will OLB Micah Parsons [6-3, 245] will be right there with his improvement with Brown and that he has AA potential.
Secondary
Boundary CB
Tariq Castro-Fields [6-0, 197]
Keaton Ellis [6-0, 190]
Trent Gordon [5-11, 188]
Joey Porter Jr. [6-2, 180]
Field CB
John Reid [5-10, 181]
Donovan Johnson [5-9, 185]
D.J. Brown [5-10, 183]
Marquis Wilson [5-11, 174]
Boundary Safety
Garrett Taylor [6-0, 198]
Jonathan Sutherland [5-11, 201]
Tyler Rudolph [6-0, 204]
Field Safety
Lamont Wade [5-9, 199]
Jaquan Brisker [6-1, 213]
Jonathan Sutherland [5-11, 201]
Even with the loss of CB Amani Oruwariye and Field Safety Nick Scott I'm predicting the secondary will be better this year. Watch for CB Donovan Johnson [5-9, 185] he's healthy and he wants the starting nickel-back job back and the No. 1 position battle between Wade, Brisker and Sutherland at the field safety position will be the best position battle on defense in preseason practice.
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