Will Penn State football get Olu Fashanu and Joey Porter Jr., back on the field this season?
Penn State coach James Franklin revealed on Tuesday that receiver Parker Washington will miss the remainder of the 2022 season. It is believed to be due to injury. But, the leader of the Lions did not directly say that during his final regular season news conference of the year at Beaver Stadium.
Franklin was also asked to address the status of corner Joey Porter Jr., and left tackle Olu Fashanu, who have missed the last two and three games, respectively. The former has been out due to appendicitis. The latter, meanwhile, is dealing with an undisclosed injury that he suffered during the end of the Ohio State game.
Could either be back this week when Penn State hosts Michigan State at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday inside of Beaver Stadium on FOX Sports One?
“Olu Fashanu, we expect back,” Franklin said. “When that is, we’ll see hopefully this weekend.
“We’ll see how that plays out. And, same thing with Joey Porter.”
In other words, time will tell.
Without Porter Jr., Penn State has played Johnny Dixon and Marquis Wilson more at corner. Freshman Cam Miller is seeing more opportunities, as well. Then, at left tackle, the Lions have burned the redshirt of freshman Drew Shelton, who has started the last three games as Fashanu’s spot. He would be expected to take the first-team reps again this week if Fashanu is again unavailable.
In positive injury news, Penn State did get linebacker Curtis Jacobs back on the field last week. He played 40 snaps and finished with five tackles (two for loss), a sack, a forced fumble, and a pass breakup in a 55-10 win over Rutgers. The Lions also traveled right tackle Caedan Wallace after he missed some time recently. But, he did not play in the victory.
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How will Penn State replace Washington moving forward?
As noted above, Washington is done for the year. That will lead to increased opportunities for players like Liam Clifford, Harrison “Tre” Wallace, and Omari Evans behind starters Mitchell Tinsley and KeAndre Lambert-Smith.
“I am excited for them,” Franklin said. “That’s kind of the nature of our game and the nature of our sport. When an opportunity presents itself, you go to be ready. And to me, it’s always kind of an interesting situation. Because, a lot of guys are ready when their number gets called, and some guys aren’t. It’s always interesting to see how that plays out. But I’ve been impressed with those guy, and how they’ve handled opportunities they’ve had this season. Some of their roles have grown, even without some of the bumps and bruises. But obviously last week, and this week, and moving forward, that’s going to be really important for us.
“So between our tight ends stepping up, and our running backs stepping up in the passing game, specifically; we’re also going to need KeAndre and Mitch to take on more responsibility. But, we’re also going to need those other guys that you just mentioned to take a bigger role as well.”
