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BWI Live: Decision time looming for several critical Penn State Football players

Headshot 5x7 reduced qualityby: Thomas Frank Carr11/28/23ThomasFrankCarr
Tyler Warren, Theo Johnson, Penn State Football On3
Before the season, Penn State tight end Theo Johnson was a virtual lock to leave for the NFL. After a statistically disappointing season, could he return? (Photos: USA Today Network)

The Penn State Nittany Lions finished the season strong, beating Michigan State 42-0 on Black Friday. Today, we’re discussing the win and the impending fallout of the season’s conclusion on the BWI Live show. Join Penn State insiders Sean Fitz and Nate Bauer as we discuss the players that have a decision to make about their future heading into the 2023 offseason. 

Penn State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz left off awards list

The Broyles Award, given to the best assistant coach in college football, announced its finalists this year. Shockingly, Penn State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz was not among the finalists. We’ll discuss that decision before talking about Diaz’s future. Will he stick around for another season? We’ll ask the experts. 

For his part, Penn State head coach James Franklin gives Diaz full credit for taking a quality defensive program and elevating it. 

“First of all, we have been fortunate to play good defense here for a while, but I do believe that Manny has done a phenomenal job of not only taking what we have been able to do here over ten years but taking it to another level,” Franklin said earlier in the season.

“This style you have the ability to be more suffocating, which we talked about in the past because there is just not a whole lot of gimme, free yards on the field with as much press coverage as we play.

I think he’s done a really good job of teaching and promoting standards of what the standards of the Penn State defense are all about.”

From there, we’ll shift our focus back to the game on Friday to recap Penn State’s final game of the 2023 season. Did the Nittany Lions take a meaningful stride on offense? Or were they playing a bad defense? We’ll discuss Drew Allar’s performance, the explosive plays, and more. 

Big decisions that can change the face of the team

Several Penn State football players have big decisions to make regarding their future. Nate Bauer wrote about which players can return and which have run out of eligibility. We’re discussing the list in a superlative fashion. Who has the biggest decision to make? Which one might be the biggest surprise to leave? And which one is the most important to stay? 

Tight ends Theo Johnson and Tyler Warren highlight the list. Check out the show to find out which ones we highlight. 

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