Everything Penn State head strength coach Chuck Losey said after winter workouts

Chuck Losey’s official title is Assistant Athletics Director for Athletic Performance – Football. What that really means, of course, is that he is the head strength coach for James Franklin’s team. Losey’s enters his third season in that role after taking over for Dwight Galt in January of 2022. Like his predecessor, Losey holds a news conference each winter to share updates on how the Nittany Lions are progressing ahead of spring practice. This year’s took place last last Thursday.

“I want to recognize my strength staff members, first,” Losey said. “Coach [Alvin] Futrell, Coach [Jeff] Earls, Coach [Jon] Fleury], Coach T [Tyrone Smith], those guys are outstanding. They’ve been with me all these years. Super proud of them. I think we got the best performance staff in the country.. You add Dr. [Andrew] Nelson, Leanne Louden, and Dan Vasey, that makes up our performance team. It’s been another unbelievable winter. So, I’m really happy to have that crew.

“Just as far as the winter review goes little bit different than what years past have been from a timing standpoint. Obviously, with the ’24 in-season running later in January, we had to adapt and modify some things during the winter program, which actually ran into test day today, as you can see. But I think we did the right thing with the modifications that we did do within the program, and I’m really happy with the way that it turned out.”

You can watch, and read, everything else he said below.

Which Penn State players are standing out from a leadership perspective?

“Zane Durant, he’s a purpose-driven kid who’s had an unbelievable winter up to this point,” Losey said. “I fully expect him to be an even better version of who he was in 2024. That’s the way he’s working. Dani Dennis-Sutton, you talk about adding a layer of resilience this offseason, from a physical standpoint and a mental standpoint, you know, I think he’s done that. Super happy with him. Zakee [Wheatley], leader of the safety room, leader of the defense. Super proud of him. Because, he’s been able to; maybe, at one point, what wasn’t necessarily his strength, his work ethic, he’s completely flipped the script on that, and he’s one of the hardest workers, if not the hardest worker on this football team right now. Super proud of him.

“Drew Allar, Drew Shelton. Talk about our maturity, confidence, commanding the room. Very impressed. Drew Shelton. He’s the guy that the guys, especially the big guys, to look to for energy, as an example guy. He offers it every day. And then you got your OGs of the group, Dom DeLuca, Nick Dawkins, those guys are steady staples in there. They’re unbelievable.”

Who is standing out in terms of consistency?

“Nick Singleton, I think I probably say it every time I talk to you guys, he’s the model of consistency for us. Continues to be that for us. Cooper Cousins is a guy who’s working to be great, not just good. He’s working to be great. Does every little thing that we ask him to do. Luke Reynolds, he’s got a template set out in front of him with Ty Warren for the past four or five years, he’s following it to the T so far. Has been outstanding. Vega [Ioane], one of the most respected guys on the team right now, through his work ethic, through his leadership, and again, through his consistency. I think the whole quarterback room has shown consistency. Drew [Allar], [Ethan] Grunk[emeyer], [Jaxon] Smolik, Jack [Lambert], I think that whole room has been outstanding. Liam Clifford is always a stalwart inconsistency.”

Which Nittany Lions are ‘trending’?

“Elliott Washington, he’s always been a high horsepower guy for us, but I think he’s also a guy who understands the role that he needs to be in for us this year, and I’ve seen a difference in him,” Losey said. “Zuriah Fisher, another one, he’s a vet. He understands the expectations. We got a little bit of a void to fill out that defensive end position. We got a lot of good people to do it, and he’s the eldest of the group. So, I think he understands that, and takes a lot of pride of that.

“Jven Williams, I’ve seen a gear shift in him. Katron Allen has had as good a winner as he’s ever had since he’s been on campus. Probably in the best training cycle. Luke Reynolds, again, he’s up 40 pounds from the day he stepped on the campus, 40 pounds, and he moves like he’s 195 pounds out there. He’s doing a great job. Alex Birchmeier, Chimdy Onoh, those guys have been absolute studs. You talk about maturity with those guys, guys we need to step up, in Chimdy’s case, developing toughness during the off season. I think he’s been great.

More: Buzzworthy: Penn State winter workouts produce unique standouts

“Lot of competition going on in the defensive end position. Got a ton of guys to name off, but you know who they are. [Jaylen] Harvey, [Max] Granville, [Mason] Robinson, [Mylachi] Williams, [Enai] White, especially those other younger guys in there. I think those guys have shown a ton of potential.

“And then Quinton Martin, I’ve seen a difference in Quinton Martin, that kid is dialed in right now. He understands the player that he wants to be, and he doesn’t want to watch from the sideline with me over there. He wants to be on that field as much as he can.”

How are the January early enrollees looking?

“Tikey Hayes has been incredibly impressive so far,” Losey said. “He’s wired right. Everything he does is important to him. Andrew Olesh, the kid’s added 17 pounds since he’s been on campus. He’s already an exceptional mover. He’s got great ball skills. We just got to continue to develop size and strength with him. Koby Howard, unbelievably strong, powerful guy from the jump for us. We got a 7 am lift group, Monday, Wednesday ,and Friday for these guys, and he’s the first one in the building for all those days.

“Daryus Dixson: Mature, coachable, smart athletic. Mike Troutman, he’s added nearly 20 pounds since he’s been on campus. Really good athlete, fluid for a big body. And then Yvan [Kemajou], Yvan is a monster. You guys are going to love him. He’s got a monster work ethic, especially, you’ll see him when he gets out there. He’s a very developed kid for a young kid. In his lower half, he’s got a ton of strength. He’s going to be a good one for us.”

And what about the Penn State transfer portal additions?

“[Devonte] Ross, [Kyron] Hudson, [Enai] White, [TJ] Shanahan, [Owen] Wafle, and [King] Mack, all of them have been outstanding,” Losey said. “I think we’ve done a great job at identifying guys in the transfer portal, obviously, guys that we need to help us on the field, but also guys that fit our culture and fit our team. Ross has thrived in the program. He’s up 16 pounds right now, very powerful for his size. Hudson is a pro mentality. He’s got a vet presence, very mature, fluid, good football player. Enai, he’s up almost 20 pounds since he came in January. Just got to continue to develop his speed and his strength.

“Shanahan, body composition guy, that’s what we identified early with him. He lives in those low, mid three hundreds, but we got to kind of do a composition reformation on him, muscle mass, drop the fat, and he knows that, and he’s working really well for that goal. Wafle’s added 15 pounds sincehe’s been on campus, strong, compact athlete. And then King Mack. It’s awesome to have King Mack back, his energy, his work ethic, i’s infectious to the rest of this team. So really happy to have him back.”

Will the modifications Penn State made to winter workout continue throughout the year?

“It’s not going to be a long-term thing,” Losey said. “I think we’ll pretty much steady out by the time we get back from the spring break. It’s more pre-spring break. Normally during this time of the year, I’ve got anywhere from six to seven weeks to really be aggressive with the guys before we get up to a test week. This year, I think we played into the second week of January. Gave the guys two weeks off because they needed it. And when we came back from the break, normally, we would hit it pretty hard. But we took a little bit of different approach.

“We concentrated a little bit more on recovery regeneration for those first two weeks, really getting their bodies back under them, getting their legs back under them, and getting them primed up for what was going to be another four aggressive weeks, this being the fourth. So just a little bit [of] difference in intensity.”

Which Penn State players are in the program’s top tier of training?

“I mean, it’s evolved, and it continues to evolve,” Losey said. “Tier three is not like a set standard, ‘okay, you met this criteria.’ It has a set of standards, but it’s also fluid in meeting the individual needs.

“But as far as the elite of the elite, I mean, you got your Nick Singleton’s up there, you got your Zane Durants, you got your Dani Dennis-Suttons, just things, guys were already 650-, 700-pound squatters. Guys who were 450-plus bench pressers. Just more of us taking care of them rather than crushing them with volume, with intensity and frequency.”

What’s the plan for quarterback Drew Allar this offseason?

“Physically, it doesn’t change,” Losey said. “I told you guys last year, I think his big thing was body composition at that time. His body composition is in a much better place this year. But his big thing is movement economy, and making sure his short area of movement, mid-to-long distance speed, is there. And I think he flexed to get opportunities to flex it this past season.

“You guys saw the improvement in his pocket awareness and his ability to maneuver in the pocket, and then his ability to actually get downfield and make plays with his legs. So that’s an area that I knew was going to be developmental for him, and I don’t think; I still think we got some more development to go with it, So his foot work, and foot speed, body composition, those will remain the focus for him.”

How are the defensive tackles looking?

“They’re great,” Losey said. “They’re doing a really good job. I think you guys got a chance to see [Xavier Gilliam] squat. They’re bulls in here for us. They’re at the point now to where we just got to get them out there for practices. Like from a performance standpoint, and they’re at Penn State for a reason, like they’re exceptional at this stuff. All of our defensive tackles are. They just need snaps. They need reps. We need to get them out there on field and spring ball. That’s where they are. But in here, they’ve been outstanding.”

What are the first impressions of Penn State receiver transfer Devonte Ross?

“I was surprised at how strong and powerful he is for his size,” Losey said. “I think he got here and he weighed in at like 161, which is really light. He’s not a large frame guy, but he’s thrived in the sense that he’s taken advantage of all the resources that we offer, as opposed to a place like his previous school. And that’s not a knock on them at all. I’ve coached at schools like that before, but the resources just aren’t available at that level.

“Nutrition, recovery, the staff, he’s embraced it all, and he’s applied it all, and it’s really helped him put on the mass that he’s put on without compromising the speed. He’s already a very good to elite mover on film. We knew what we were bringing in, but we needed a little bit more robust body for him to put up for the duration of the season.”

On when he noticed a change in Zakee Wheatley

“Last winter, last January, I can pinpoint it,” Losey said. “Last January, he was a different dude when he stepped into this room after our two-week break, after the season, a three-week break. I noticed a staunch difference then, and it’s only continued to snowball, and I noticed it again. So really proud of him.”

What can Penn State fans expect to see from alums Abdul Carter and Tyler Warren at Pro Day?

“They’re going to, I’m not going to throw out times or measurables or anything like that, but you guys know the two type of two people they are, the type of performers they are, that they’ll put on great showing,” Losey said. “It’ll be great representation of who they are and what they can do. I have no doubt about that.”

On Class of 2025 quarterback signee and early enrollee Bekkem Kritza

“So what’s nice about Bekkem is I’m pretty much like, if Bekkem is not where he needs to be, a year, two years, three years now, then, from a developmental standpoint, it’s my fault, because he’s a clean slate coming in,” Losey said. “A lot of guys you get in from high school programs where you have to reteach things, break them, back down, re-teach, which a lot of times is harder than receiving a clean slate. With Bekkem, I’ve got a clean slate on everything from a development standpoint.

“Obviously undersized from a body weight standpoint. He’s a long, rangy guy. We’ve had to work through things in here, but I’m really happy with the progress that he’s made and where he is. I think he’s really taking advantage again, like we talked about with Devonte [Ross]. He’s taking advantage of the resources that we have, and he’s where he needs to be so far.”

Are there any Penn State players who were limited last winter but are impressing now?

“I mean, Drew Shelton is one who comes to mind,” Losey said. “Drew was coming off of a shoulder last winter, where he was limited on a lot of things in here with us, and to see him get through a full winter healthy, and the impact that it’s made on the team, obviously having them in there, from a physical standpoint, to lead the guys, but also from an emotional mentality, I think it’s only bolstered his role as a leader on the team. So he’s probably the primary one that comes to mind.”

What was the advantage of having so many midyear enrollees on campus for the CFP run?

“Yeah, and I’m not going to say, like, anything outweighs the next for reasoning or bringing those guys in, but that was a huge piece of getting them in here, because a lot of times when those guys, when they get in the building in January, we have to go through full assessment of them, which takes time,” Losey said.

“Physicals take time. There’s a lot of paperwork behind the scenes that you need to kind of check boxes before the guys can actually get into physical activity with you. So we were able to really get ahead on all that stuff in our bowl prep. That way, once we came back from the Playoff game, we were actually probably, on average, 10 days ahead of where we would have been had they not come early.”

How are the Lions linebackers looking without Kobe King?

“I think all of them embraced it,” Losey said. “They know exactly what the situation is. They understand the type of player that Kobe is and was for us. So they’re all hungry. I would say that they’re all incredibly hungry. And I’m not going to say that one of them stands out above the other, because I think the competition going on at that position, it’s very, very much alive.”