The Penn State Nittany Lions, entering the season, have high expectations and have an immense amount of talent and star power on both sides of the football. However, it's not always the stars that make the difference between a win or a loss any given week. With just nine days until Penn State football returns, Happy Valley Insider takes a look at five potential x-factors for the Nittany Lions 2023 season.
We could've gone for a few options in the wide receiver room, but we'll go with Omari Evans as an x-factor at the position for Penn State. As a true freshman, Penn State played in all 13 games for the Nittany Lions, recording five receptions for 55 yards and one touchdown. Coming out of high school, the Texas native was mainly a quarterback for Shoemaker High School in Killeen, so the wide receiver position was relatively new for Evans. However, Evans is a phenomenal athlete and showed athleticism and raw speed throughout the season. This upcoming season, Evans should be a part of Penn State's two-deep at wide receiver and see plenty of opportunities to make an impact this fall. This wide receiver room for Penn State has a chance to be a very good one, but most of the talent at this point is also unproven at the Power Five level; KeAndre Lambert-Smith and Harrison Wallace III give the Nittany Lions a good top two at the position, but they'll need a third and likely a fourth wide receiver to step up at the very least as the season goes on, Evans has a chance to be one of those emerging players for the Nittany Lions. With his athleticism and speed, Evans could be an extremely dangerous player with the ball after the catch and can be a game-changing type of player for the Nittany Lions.
Penn State's defensive tackle room is the most significant question mark on the defensive side of the ball. The Nittany Lions are searching for a player in the room who could be a solid pass-rushing asset in the middle of the defensive line. Zane Durant, the former four-star, could be the answer. Last fall, according to Pro Football Focus, Durant graded out as Penn State's best interior defensive lineman when it came to the pass rush. Durant totaled eight quarterback pressures and five hurries across 108 pass-rushing opportunities. Durant now has a full year of playing time under his belt and showed flashes throughout last season of why Penn State was so high on him coming out of Lake Nona in Orlando as part of the 2022 recruiting cycle. If Durant can develop into a pass rusher for opposing offenses, at the very least, they need to be aware of the pass rush. It will only open up more opportunities for the Nittany Lions' defensive ends and linebackers like Abdul Carter, Curtis Jacobs, Keon Wylie, and Tony Rojas.
Dani Dennis-Sutton had a solid freshman season in which he flashed the skillset that made him a top-10 prospect in the 2022 recruiting cycle. Now, he comes into his sophomore year with a full year with the program under his belt, and the results could be massive for the Nittany Lions. As we mentioned in our Penn State Top 25 countdown, don't be surprised if Dennis-Sutton leads Penn State in tackles for loss or sacks this season. Chop Robinson and Adisa Isaac are terrific pass rushers and have the opportunity to be high draft picks next spring. Still, Dennis-Sutton, by far, has the highest ceiling of any of Penn State's defensive ends.
Johnny Dixon is a pretty known commodity, but with Kalen King now being the top defensive back on the Nittany Lions defense, Dixon will be under a bigger microscope himself. Offensive coordinators and quarterbacks will have to pick their poison between Kalen King and Johnny Dixon. Last year, Dixon was thrown at 32 times over the course of the season, allowing 14 receptions on the year for 241 yards. He notably did not allow any touchdowns in coverage while intercepting two passes and breaking up an additional six. James Franklin said this week that Dixon has taken significant snaps and that between Dixon and King, the Nittany Lions have "two really good corners and two corners that are very physical and tough." If Dixon can build off his strong season in 2022, good luck to opposing quarterbacks trying to throw into this secondary.
The fifth spot will be Penn State's pair of placekickers, Sander Sahaydak and Alex Felkins. Felkins, a senior who was originally at Columbia, has been battling the redshirt sophomore Sahaydak this fall to be the Nittany Lions starting kicker. It's a competition that has helped Sahaydak develop "dramatically," according to head coach James Franklin. Whether it's Sahaydak or Felkins as the Nittany Lions' starting placekicker this upcoming season or if the two split reps, Penn State will need consistency. On a team with very few questions, place-kicking is arguably the biggest, and could lose a game or two if the Nittany Lions are not careful.
We could've gone for a few options in the wide receiver room, but we'll go with Omari Evans as an x-factor at the position for Penn State. As a true freshman, Penn State played in all 13 games for the Nittany Lions, recording five receptions for 55 yards and one touchdown. Coming out of high school, the Texas native was mainly a quarterback for Shoemaker High School in Killeen, so the wide receiver position was relatively new for Evans. However, Evans is a phenomenal athlete and showed athleticism and raw speed throughout the season. This upcoming season, Evans should be a part of Penn State's two-deep at wide receiver and see plenty of opportunities to make an impact this fall. This wide receiver room for Penn State has a chance to be a very good one, but most of the talent at this point is also unproven at the Power Five level; KeAndre Lambert-Smith and Harrison Wallace III give the Nittany Lions a good top two at the position, but they'll need a third and likely a fourth wide receiver to step up at the very least as the season goes on, Evans has a chance to be one of those emerging players for the Nittany Lions. With his athleticism and speed, Evans could be an extremely dangerous player with the ball after the catch and can be a game-changing type of player for the Nittany Lions.
Penn State's defensive tackle room is the most significant question mark on the defensive side of the ball. The Nittany Lions are searching for a player in the room who could be a solid pass-rushing asset in the middle of the defensive line. Zane Durant, the former four-star, could be the answer. Last fall, according to Pro Football Focus, Durant graded out as Penn State's best interior defensive lineman when it came to the pass rush. Durant totaled eight quarterback pressures and five hurries across 108 pass-rushing opportunities. Durant now has a full year of playing time under his belt and showed flashes throughout last season of why Penn State was so high on him coming out of Lake Nona in Orlando as part of the 2022 recruiting cycle. If Durant can develop into a pass rusher for opposing offenses, at the very least, they need to be aware of the pass rush. It will only open up more opportunities for the Nittany Lions' defensive ends and linebackers like Abdul Carter, Curtis Jacobs, Keon Wylie, and Tony Rojas.
Dani Dennis-Sutton had a solid freshman season in which he flashed the skillset that made him a top-10 prospect in the 2022 recruiting cycle. Now, he comes into his sophomore year with a full year with the program under his belt, and the results could be massive for the Nittany Lions. As we mentioned in our Penn State Top 25 countdown, don't be surprised if Dennis-Sutton leads Penn State in tackles for loss or sacks this season. Chop Robinson and Adisa Isaac are terrific pass rushers and have the opportunity to be high draft picks next spring. Still, Dennis-Sutton, by far, has the highest ceiling of any of Penn State's defensive ends.
Johnny Dixon is a pretty known commodity, but with Kalen King now being the top defensive back on the Nittany Lions defense, Dixon will be under a bigger microscope himself. Offensive coordinators and quarterbacks will have to pick their poison between Kalen King and Johnny Dixon. Last year, Dixon was thrown at 32 times over the course of the season, allowing 14 receptions on the year for 241 yards. He notably did not allow any touchdowns in coverage while intercepting two passes and breaking up an additional six. James Franklin said this week that Dixon has taken significant snaps and that between Dixon and King, the Nittany Lions have "two really good corners and two corners that are very physical and tough." If Dixon can build off his strong season in 2022, good luck to opposing quarterbacks trying to throw into this secondary.
The fifth spot will be Penn State's pair of placekickers, Sander Sahaydak and Alex Felkins. Felkins, a senior who was originally at Columbia, has been battling the redshirt sophomore Sahaydak this fall to be the Nittany Lions starting kicker. It's a competition that has helped Sahaydak develop "dramatically," according to head coach James Franklin. Whether it's Sahaydak or Felkins as the Nittany Lions' starting placekicker this upcoming season or if the two split reps, Penn State will need consistency. On a team with very few questions, place-kicking is arguably the biggest, and could lose a game or two if the Nittany Lions are not careful.
