Penn State back Keyvone Lee enters transfer portal
Penn State’s running back room has no shortage of talent. That’s a good problem to have, but in the transfer portal era, it can sometimes become an issue, too.
A case in point came Friday night when Lions running back Keyvone Lee announced that he has entered the portal, He had two years of eligibility left.
At the end of the 2020 season, Lee looked as if he’d be a mainstay in the Nittany Lion backfield for year’s to come. Appearing in all nine games during the COVID-shortened season, including three starts, Lee was one of a few bright spots in an otherwise poor season, as the true freshman totaled 438 yards rushing and four touchdowns, all while averaging 4.9 yards per carry.
He had a similar season in 2021 – 108 carries, 530 yards and two touchdowns – but while that was taking place, Penn State had also found his future teammates. In addition to four-star IMG Academy running back Kaytron Allen, the Nittany Lions signed Gatorade Player of the Year Nicholas Singleton, too.
An injury ended up cutting Lee’s 2022 season short, but even by then, both Allen and Singleton had surpassed him on the depth chart. After earning nine carries against Purdue in the season opener, Lee saw his carries decline in three of the next four games. He carried the ball 10 times against Northwestern, but that was mainly because Singleton, who earned Freshman Player of the Year honors in the Big Ten, fumbled the ball twice.
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Coming out of high school, Lee earned four-star rating in the On3 Consensus, ranking No. 246 nationally. He was the 37th-ranked player in the state of Florida and No. 24 overall at the running back position.
What does the Penn State running back room, Lee’s outlook, look like in 2022?
Singleton and Allen will lead the way. Penn State also signed London Montgomery, who is coming off of an ACL injury that cost him his senior season, and Georgia three-star Cameron Wallace, in the Class of 2023. So, the Lions enter the 2023 season with four scholarship running backs despite Lee’s expected departure.
Lee is from St. Petersburg, Fla. He played in high school at American Collegiate Academy. So, he could look south for his next destination. He told BWI before the Rose Bowl that he felt 100 percent after suffering the injury earlier this year. But, he didn’t receive a carry. That said, he should be healthy at his next stop.
