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Penn State

James Franklin evaluates play of Penn State WRs

Alex Weberby:Alex Weber•11/17/22
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Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images

Penn State is loaded with young talent at wide receiver. Two of their top three wideouts are likely coming back next year, along with a pair of tight ends who have logged a lot of receptions for the Nittany Lions. Even behind the first and second-stringers, James Franklin likes what he’s seen from the young talent on down the depth chart.

One thing is for sure: Penn State has talented pass catchers for years to come. At a press conference this week, Franklin was asked how some of those younger pieces further down the lineup have developed, even if they haven’t become important contributors on the field yet. In response, he pointed to three underclassmen, who have less than 300 combined receiving yards, as potential stars of the future. So far, he’s impressed.

Here was the Penn State head coach on his young wideouts, singing the praises of some redshirt freshmen and sophomores (you can also read his full comments below):

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“Yeah, I think, you know, there’s some guys that have shown some good things. Malick Meiga showed us some good things. Trey Wallace has showed some good things, too. You know, there’s there’s a number of those guys. Omari Evans shows some things. So there’s some flashes. I don’t know if there’s one guy that’s totally separated himself on a consistent basis. There’s been guys that have done it at times, but not on a consistent basis. So we’ll continue to give those guys opportunities, whether they’re behind those guys and tapping like we’ve done most of the year or if it’s a rotation perspective.

That trio of underclassmen haven’t been major contributors, or even regular ones in the case of Meiga and Evans. However, in the situations where they have been asked to perform, the youngsters have come through.

Wallace leads the group with 13 receptions and 173 receiving yards on the year in his redshirt freshman season. Meanwhile, Evans has 44 yards and Meiga has just 19. But, as mentioned, these are younger playmakers just getting their feet wet next to a super-senior quarterback. These are Drew Allar’s pass catchers of the future. And James Franklin is pleased with their development.