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Penn State Rose Bowl depth chart: Offense

Headshot 5x7 reduced qualityby:Thomas Frank Carr01/02/23

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Penn State right tackle Caedan Wallace was back at practice in front of the media this week after missing most of the end of the 2022 regular season. (Photo: Ryan Snyder/BWI)

Penn State faces Utah in the 2023 Rose Bowl Monday, to close out bowl season. To get you ready for the game, here’s the projected depth chart for tomorrow’s game. After a month of practice, the team is significantly healthier and ready to face off against the Utes Monday evening. 

Defensive depth chart

Penn State Offense

Quarterback

14 Sean Clifford (Sr.+)+
15 Drew Allar (Fr.)
9 Beau Pribula (Fr.)

The Lowdown: 

The 2023 Rose Bowl will be starting quarterback Sean Clifford’s final game of his collegiate career. Unless things get out of hand, either way, it’ll be Clifford all the way. 

Penn State running backs

13 Kaytron Allen (Fr) OR 10 Nick Singleton (Fr)
24 Keyvone Lee (So.)
38 Tank Smith (R-Jr)

The Lowdown: 

Keyvone Lee is reportedly available and will play in the game, giving Penn State its full complement of running backs for the first time since September. How much Lee will play in his first game back is uncertain, but expect the rotation of Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen to be as strong as ever. 

Lions receiver

Wide receiver

Harrison Wallace (R-Fr.)
KeAndre Lambert-Smith (So.)
80 Malick Meiga (So.)

Slot

Mitchell Tinsley  (Sr+)
82 Liam Clifford (R-Fr.) 
Kaden Saunders (Fr.)

Wide receiver

KeAndre Lambert-Smith (So.)
18 Omari Evans (Fr.)
13 Cristian Driver (Fr.)

The Lowdown:

Penn State ended the 2023 regular season by shifting KeAndre Lambert-Smith over to replace Mitchell Tinsley, who moved to the slot to replace Parker Washington. We’ll use that as our jumping-off point for the upcoming game. After that, the question will be how many players will rotate in after a month of practice. 

Penn State tight ends

86 Brenton Strange (R-Jr.)
84 Theo Johnson (Soph.) 
44 Tyler Warren (Soph.)
16 Khalil Dinkins (R-Fr.)
88 Jerry Cross (Fr.)

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The Lowdown: 

The tight end room is presumably healthy and ready to square off against the stout Utah defensive front. Head coach James Franklin mentioned that even freshman Jerry Cross is healthy now, so the room is at full strength. However, the only player who could see the field outside the top three would be Khalil Dinkins, who plays behind Strange in the H-back position. 

Lions offensive line

Left tackle

66 Drew Shelton (Fr.) OR 74 Olu Fashanu (So.)
72 Bryce Effner (R-Sr.)
65 Jim Fitzgerald (Fr.)

Left guard

64 Hunter Nourzad (R-Sr.) OR
56 JB Nelson (R-So.)

Center

70 Juice Scruggs (R-Sr.)
64 Hunter Nourzad (R-Sr.)
71 Vega Ioane (Fr.)
52 Dominic Rulli (Fr.)

Right guard

77 Sal Wormley (R-Jr.)
71 Vega Ioane (Fr.)

Right tackle

79 Caedan Wallace (R-Jr.)
72 Bryce Effner (R-Sr.)
51 Jimmy Christ (R-Soph.)

The Lowdown: 

Take Fashanu’s presence at the top of the Penn State depth chart at left tackle with a hefty portion of salt. Franklin said Fashanu is a game-time decision, but the standout left tackle wasn’t seen at practice this week. 

The good news is that beyond Fashanu, the offensive line should have some serious reinforcements for the game. Right tackle Caedan Wallace is back, which will give some flexibility to have Penn State swing tackle Bryce Effner play both tackle positions if necessary. 

Also, JB Nelson and Vega Ioane are eligible to play and still preserve their redshirts, so the Nittany Lions enter the game with more depth than they’ve had in several months.  

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