Penn State redshirt report: Which freshmen made their debut against West Virginia?
Penn State football played around 50 players, according to Pro Football Focus’ snap counts, in last Saturday’s 38-15 win over West Virginia. According to the analytic company’s tracking and the Nittany Lions’ postgame notes, six of them were true freshman who saw at least one snap in their first game in a blue and white uniform.
Before kickoff, 10th-year Penn State coach James Franklin said safety King Mack, cornerbacks Zion Tracy and Elliot Washington II, and linebacker Tony Rojas were all green-lit to burn their redhsirt. All four saw the field, as did defensive end Jameial Lyons. Linebacker Ta’Mere Robinson was originally in the official postgame notes as a participant, but he did not play on Saturday evening.
“These guys have shown that they’re the closest not just to play on defense but also have significant roles on special teams,” Franklin said last Tuesday when asked about Mack, Tracy, Washington II, and Rojas. “I think that’s one of the big things out there for recruits and players, whether it’s in college or even in the NFL.
“There’s so much value in that in terms of, okay, here’s a guy that’s in the two deep on special teams, and here’s a guy in the three deep on offense or defense. He’s going to play enough that it makes sense to green-light him and go from game one. He’s going to get enough reps between the combination of his offensive responsibility and his special teams responsibility or his defensive responsibility, that everybody is comfortable with it. The coaches are comfortable with it. The players are comfortable with it. It makes sense. That’s where those guys have been able to get the green light, is being in what I would consider the three deep on defense and being within the two deep on enough special teams units that it makes sense.”
How many snaps did each Penn State freshman play?
Cornerback Zion Tracy led the way. The first-year Nittany Lion played 12 snaps. He had two tackles (one solo) in the win. Linebacker Tony Rojas was right behind him. He netted the exact same counting stats over 11 snaps.
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Washington II, Mack and Lyons were each credited with a single snap by PFF.
Nittany Lions 2023 redshirt tracker
Thanks to an NCAA rule change, players can now suit up in four regular season games and an unlimited number of postseason games while still preserving a year of eligibility. So, Penn State would need to use a freshman in five of 12 regular season games to burn his redshirt this fall.
Here’s where the Penn State tracker stands after Week 1
One game
DE Jameial Lyons
LB Tony Rojas
CB Elliot Washington II
CB Zion Tracy
S King Mack
Zero games
QB Jaxon Smolik
RB London Montgomery
RB Cam Wallace
WR Carmelo Taylor
TE Joey Schlaffer
TE Andrew Rappleyea
OT J’ven Williams
OL Alex Birchmeier
OT Chimdy Onoh
OT Anthony Donkoh
DE Joseph Mupoyi
DE Mason Robinson
DT Tyriq Blanding
LB Ta’Mere Robinson
LB Kaveion Keys
CB Lamont Payne
S DaKaari Nelson
