NFL Combine: 7 Penn State players land invites

A total of seven players from the 2022 Penn State squad that won a Rose Bowl and finished 11-2 are headed off the NFL combine, receiving invites from the league. The combine is scheduled to start in Indianapolis on Feb. 28.

With seven players going to the NFL combine, Penn State comes in third among Big Ten teams being represented in Indianapolis. Michigan leads the way with nine players invited and Ohio State has eight. The national leader is Alabama with 13, and Georgia is right behind with 12.

Of the seven Nittany Lions invited, there are no big surprises — and it was a long shot that he’d get an invite, but quarterback Sean Clifford will not be at the combine.

Penn State players invited to the NFL combine

• Ji’Ayir Brown, DB
• PJ Mustipher, DL
• Joey Porter Jr., DB
• Juice Scruggs, OL
• Brenton Strange, TE
• Mitchell Tinsley, WR
• Parker Washington, WR

The two most exciting players in this group are probably the defensive backs. Joey Porter Jr. has a chance to be the top corner draft or be a 1st round pick, given his size, skill and production in college. His interception total is one during his career, but Porter has 20 passes defensed and showed his ability to eliminate a side of the field. Helping him in that regard was Ji’Ayir Brown, a versatile defensive back who mostly played safety for Penn State. Adept both defending the pass and stepping up in the run game, Brown can provide value to an NFL team.

As for PJ Mustipher, the third and final defender on the list, he might not be the flashiest prospect, but he was as solid as they come playing in the middle of a Big Ten defensive line, and NFL teams are always looking for gap fillers up front.

The offensive players from Penn State going to the combine is a bit more of a mixed bag. The pass catchers — wide receivers Parker Washington and Mitchell Tinsley, plus tight end Brenton Strange — aren’t likely to be high picks and don’t headline their position groups. But in the modern, more passing-centric NFL, skilled pass catchers should find a home.

And while Juice Scruggs was not the most sought after prospect on the Penn State offensive line — that’d be Olu Fashanu, who decided to return for the 2023 season — he, much like Mustipher, has the physical ability and technique honed playing in the trenches.