Penn State's James Franklin on KeAndre Lambert-Smith departure: 'We love the guys in our wide receiver room'

KeAndre Lambert-Smith officially entered the transfer portal on April 15, two days after the Penn State spring game.

But speculation ramped up the week before about the wide receiver hitting college football’s free agency. On3 reported on April 12 that the former four-star recruit and top-200 prospect met with members of the coaching staff earlier in the week to discuss his potential options and was expected to enter the transfer portal.

The fifth-year player led the Nittany Lions with 53 catches for 673 yards and four touchdowns in 2023. Lambert-Smith took official visits to Auburn and Texas A&M during his portal recruitment, settling on the Tigers in late April.

Asked Wednesday at Big Ten media days to provide clarity on the receiver’s decision, Penn State head coach James Franklin declined to discuss any details.

“I’m more than happy to talk about the guys in our current program,” he said. “You want to talk about our guys in our current program?”

Quarterback Drew Allar finished Year Two with the Nittany Lions with 2,631 passing yards and 25 touchdowns and two interceptions. He also struggled in big moments against Michigan and Ohio State.

Penn State will now have to turn to Ohio State transfer Julian Fleming, who transferred in during the winter portal window. The No. 1 wide receiver prospect in the 2020 recruiting class has 79 catches for 963 career yards and seven touchdowns. A two-time Gatorade Pennsylvania Player of the Year, he picked the Buckeyes over Penn State coming out of high school.

“We love the guys in our wide receiver room,” Franklin said. “Excited about what they’re going to do. Obviously, we added Julian Fleming from the transfer portal. He’s a Pennsylvania guy and doing great.

“I want to talk about our program, our guys. I got nothing but respect and love for the guys that have been at our program in the past, but that’s not what the Big Ten media days are for, to talk about other programs and other players, in my opinion.”

Lambert-Smith wasn’t the only receiver to leave the program this spring. Penn State also lost Malik McClain, who would have been a contributor in 2024. He’s now at Arizona State.

Outside of Fleming, Penn State will have to rely on Harrison Wallace III and Kaden Saunders. Wallace posted 19 catches for 228 yards and a touchdown in 2023, while Saunders finished with six catches in 12 games.

Nearly a year ago, Lambert-Smith posted 123 receiving yards and two touchdowns in the 2023 season opener against West Virginia. He won’t be around this season when the Nittany Lions open at West Virginia on Aug. 31. Instead, he’ll be opening up his final season of college football on The Plains.

“It’s a hornet’s nest,” Franklin said Wednesday about playing at Milan Puskar Stadium. “They take a lot of pride in their football team. They’ve got no pro team. It’s all about West Virginia. All about Morgantown.”