Answering five Penn State spring game questions

Several days before Penn State football’s Blue-White Game, we posed five questions we hoped to see answered during last Saturday’s scrimmage.

With the event behind us, we take our best shot at answering those questions with the information we received.

Question: What will we see of Penn State’s freshman quarterbacks?

Answer: Some up, some down.

In other words, just what you would expect from two freshman signal-callers showcasing their skills in front of fans for the very first time at the collegiate level.

Of the two, Beau Pribula posted the better showing.

He looked comfortable, athletic and capable of making the throws that needed to be made. It certainly wasn’t a spectacular performance — he completed two of the three passes he attempted for seven yards during the periods that were officially scored. But he did avoid mistakes.

Drew Allar illustrated the arm strength that made him a five-star prospect, but also some of the inconsistencies that make him a freshman. He threw two interceptions during the officially scored periods — one thanks to a drop by Omari Evans.

Question: Will Adisa Isaac and Sal Wormley play a part?

Answer: Yes.

Returning from injuries that held them out for the entirety of last season, Isaac and Wormley both took part in the Blue-White Game.

Isaac, a defensive end, played on three drives. He claimed a tackle for loss as his only statistical impact.

Wormley, an offensive lineman, also took part in three drives.

James Franklin spent all spring emphasizing the importance of having both of those players back in the fold. Both have the potential to be impact players in the fall, with Saturday’s spring game acting as a crucial launching pad.

Question: What can we glean from Penn State’s running back situation?

Answer: A little here, a little there.

The first two running backs into the game once the Nittany Lions began their simulated drives were Keyvone Lee and Nick Singleton.

Certainly, there are a whole lot of reasons why it’s unwise to read too deep into that. But at the same time, nobody would really be too surprised if that was how the depth chart looked going into the fall.

The run game, collectively, didn’t achieve much. The Nittany Lions rushed 32 times for 114 yards — an average of 3.6 yards per carry.

The flashiest of the contributors turned out to be Devyn Ford, who rushed five times for 28 yards.

Notably, Singleton contributed nicely as a receiver out of the backfield. He broke off a 27-yard gain on his only reception.

Question: How will Manny Diaz’s defense look?

Answer: Pretty, pretty, pretty good.

Even without the underline provided by the final score of this awkwardly formatted contest — Defense 17, Offense 13 — it was apparent that the defense was ahead of the offense on the day.

The Nittany Lion defense kept the run game bottled up for almost the entire afternoon. It forced mistakes out of the Nittany Lions’ quarterbacks and it limited explosive plays.

The defensive unit also came up with a goal-line stand on the final drive of the scrimmage to secure its victory.

It’s only a scrimmage, but overall it proved a nice outing for the Penn State defense.

Question: What format will the Blue-White Game take on?

Answer: It’s complicated.

Alternating between special teams, full contact, thud periods and seven-on-seven, Penn State rolled out a difficult-to-follow spring game. In truth, it acted more like a practice.

Franklin made that decision based on the health and availability of his limited group of offensive linemen.

Acknowledging that format doesn’t best serve the fans, he said he’d prefer a traditional Blue-White Game in the future.