Who were the top Penn State competitors of the day during winter workouts?

The Penn State football team is enjoying a well-earned spring break after a grueling month and a half of early morning conditioning drills and afternoon lifting sessions helped prepare it for the first practices of the year next week. The Nittany Lions will hit the field for the first time in 2024 on March 12 and conclude their 15 days of drills with the Blue-White game on April 13 at 2 p.m.

“It’s been a good seven weeks,” head strength coach Chuck Losey said last week. “This team, from a maturity and a focus standpoint, I think we’re where we need to be. We’ve set a good foundation going into spring ball. So, I’m really happy with it.”

After each of the eight winter workouts at Holuba Hall, the coaching staff picked a competitor of the day at each positon. Who stood out the most? We have that rundown, plus a complete list of all the picks, below.

Top Penn State winter workout competitors of the day by position

Quarterback: Backup Beau Pribula dominated for the second year in a row. The extremely athletic passer earned six of eight competitor of the day honors in 2023. He backed that up by swiping four of eight this winter.

Running back: Junior Nicholas Singleton earned four of eight head nods from position coach Ja’Juan Seider. He hit the same number a year ago. We advise not reading too much into Kaytron Allen not winning one for the second consecutive year. The classmates are set to lead this position group again in 2024.

Wide receiver: In a room that desperately needs competition, it should come as no surprise that Marques Hagans’ picks were all over the board as that works itself out early in 2024. Two players did lead the way with a pair of wins each: Malick Meiga and Omari Evans.

Tight ends: A Nittany Lion who hopes to earn a bigger slice of the rep share in 2024 led the way here. Redshirt freshman Joey Schlaffer took three of eight competitor of the day nods. Starter Tyler Warren was right behind him with two.

Offensive line: A pair of Penn State players who hope to become first-time starters in 2024 led the way for Phil Trautwein’s room. Center Nick Dawkins led his peers with three wins. Tackle Anthony Donkoh was right behind him with two.

Trimmings: Five Penn State players trending up out of winter workouts

Defensive line: Sticking with the trend of 2023 backups who want to play more in 2024, defensive end Zuriah Fisher signaled his intent to have a big spring by winning a position-high four of eight workouts.

Linebacker: New coordinator and position coach Tom Allen spotlighted middle linebacker Tyler Elsdon three times, allowing him to lead the way. Dom DeLuca and Tony Rojas followed him with two honors each.

Cornerback: Cornerback Cam Miller set the table for his push into a starting role with three wins each. But, perhaps more notably, transfer AJ Harris was right behind him with two for Terry Smith’s group.

Safety: In Anthony Poindexter’s room, the top standout was redshirt freshman Lamont Payne Jr., who picked up three wins.

Special teams: New Penn State coordinator Justin Lustig went with long snapper Tyler Duzansky the most. He was a three-time winner.

Complete list of Penn State 2024 winter workout winners

Quarterback: Beau Pribula (2/5, 2/7, 2/13, 2/20), Ethan Grunkemeyer (2/15), Drew Allar (2/22, 3/1), Jaxon Smolik (2/27)

Running back: Cameron Wallace (2/5), Nick Singleton (2/7, 2/13, 2/27, 3/1), Quinton Martin (2/17, 2/20), Amiel Davis (2/22)

Wide receiver: Liam Clifford (2/5), Malick Meiga (2/7, 2/27), Anthony Ivey (2/13), Julian Fleming (2/15), Omari Evans (2/20, 2/22), Kaden Saunders (3/1)

Tight end: Joey Schlaffer (2/5, 2/13, 2/15), Tyler Warren (2/7, 2/20), Jerry Cross (2/22), Luke Reynolds (2/27), Andrew Rappleyea (3/1)

Offensive line: Nick Dawkins (2/5, 2/7, 2/22), Addison Penn (2/13), Anthony Donkoh (2/15, 3/1), J’ven Williams (2/20), Vega Ioane (2/27)

Defensive line: Zuriah Fisher (2/5, 2/15, 2/20, 2/27), Zane Durant (2/7, 2/13), Jameial Lyons (2/22, 3/1)

Linebackers: Tyler Elsdon (2/5, 2/20, 3/1), Dom DeLuca (2/7, 2/22), Tony Rojas (2/13, 2/15), Kobe King (2/27)

Cornerback: Cam Miller (2/5, 2/20, 2/22), AJ Harris (2/7, 3/1), Elliot Washington (2/13, 2/15), Antoine Belgrave-Shorter (2/27)

Safety: Jaylen Reed (2/5), Zakee Wheatley (2/7, 2/20), KJ Winston (2/13, 2/27), Lamont Payne (2/15, 2/22, 3/1)

Special teams: Punter Riley Thompson (2/5), kicker Sander Sahaydak (2/7), long snapper Tyler Duzansky (2/13, 2/15, 2/22, 3/1), long snapper Blaise Sokach-Minick (2/20, 2/27)