Penn State depth chart vs. Auburn: Defense

Penn State football will likely not release a depth chart in 2022 after it didn’t do so in 2021.

“We’ve always released a depth chart. I really don’t have a strong opinion either way,” Franklin said last year.

“There’s been multiple schools in the conference that haven’t been releasing it for a number of years. This year, we found out that Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State, and Purdue either were not releasing it or were thinking about not releasing it, so it just didn’t make sense for us to do it if others weren’t.”

But the depth chart is an integral part of a fans’ experience each week. So, Blue White Illustrated is picking up the slack. 

We’ll be releasing a weekly depth chart reflecting what happened in the previous game and our reporting. 

Week Two – Offense

Penn State defensive line

Defensive end
46 Nick Tarburton (R-Sr)
44 Chop Robinson (So.)
56 Amin Vanover (So.)

Defensive tackle
51 Hakeem Beamon (R-Jr)
28 Zane Durant (Fr.)
99 Coziah Izzard (R-So)

Defensive tackle
97 PJ Mustipher (Sr+)
91 D’Von Ellies (R-Jr)
52 Jordan van den Berg (R-Fr)

Defensive end
20 Adisa Isaac (R-Jr)
33 Dani Dennis-Sutton (Fr.)
92 Smith Vilbert (R-Jr)

The lowdown: Everything remains firm with the Penn State defensive line rotation through two games. Nick Tarburton will start at one defensive end, with Adisa Isaac manning the other. However, depth continues to be a major factor here. Chop Robinson followed up his standout performance against Purdue with another quality effort. He’s out-snapped Tarburton 75 to 61 on the season, but the lineup remains the same. 

At defensive tackle, D’von Ellies and Jordan van den Berg remain in a dead heat for snaps behind starter PJ Mustipher. No one has stood out in that area, so until someone does, the list remains. Finally, Hakeem Beamon has flashed his usual disruptive plays, but head coach James Franklin wants more. 

Lions linebackers

WILL linebacker
23 Curtis Jacobs (So.)
11 Abdul Carter (Fr.)
42 Jamari Buddin (R-Fr.) 

Middle linebacker
43 Tyler Elsdon (So.)
41 Kobe King (So.)

SAM linebacker
0 Jonathan Sutherland (R-Sr.+)
34 Dominic DeLuca (R-Fr.)
14 Tyrece Mills (So.)

The lowdown: We got our first glimpse of Abdul Carter last Saturday, and the reason he’s quickly become a Penn State staff favorite is apparent. His size, speed, and explosiveness stick out like a sore thumb. He’ll get on-the-job training for Penn State which will change week-to-week based on his performance and the opponent. 

Beyond that, things remain the same at linebacker. Tyler Elsdon leads the way at Mike linebacker, and Jonathan Sutherland has performed above fans’ expectations for him this season. However, this weekend’s game against Auburn will be a true test of his run defense abilities and tackling in space against a Tigers team with speed and power at running back. 

Penn State secondary

Safety
16 Ji’Ayir Brown (Sr.+)
7 Jaylen Reed (So.)
21 KJ Winston (Fr.)

Safety
2 Keaton Ellis (Jr.)
6 Zakee Wheatley (R-Fr)
10 Mehki Flowers (Fr.)

Lowdown: Depth players got plenty of experience against Ohio, but the rotation and snap distribution remain the same. Penn State will play three and four safeties in certain third-down sub-packages.  

Cornerback
9 Joey Porter Jr. (R-Jr.)
8 Marquis Wilson (Jr.)

Cornerback
3 Johnny Dixon (Jr.) OR
4 Kalen King (So.)

Nickel
25 Daequan Hardy (R-Jr.)
3 Johnny Dixon (Jr.)

The lowdown: The major news last week was Johnny Dixon earning a start over sophomore Kalen King in the field cornerback opposite Joey Porter Jr. 

“We talk about competition. Terry, and the defensive staff, and Manny felt like he did enough to have the opportunity to start. Really, rep wise, it didn’t really change a whole lot for those two guys. But those are the type of competitions we hope to have kind of throughout our program and at every position,” Franklin said Wednesday. 

To Franklin’s point, King and Dixon were nearly dead even with 26 and 25 defensive snaps each. Dixon’s versatility to play in the slot and out wide make this competition less of an zero-sum proposition. Now that Dixon has earned a start, we’ll add an OR to the position with two full-time players at the position.