First week of Penn State spring practice review on T-Frank Friday
Penn State’s first week of spring practice was chalked full of activity. Not only did we get our first look at the newest Nittany Lions at the first spring practice, but we ended the week watching key veterans take the next step at Pro Day. Of course, it’s impossible to get to everything in a busy week, so we’ll end with a recap and a discussion on T-Frank Friday. Below are some additional thoughts and context to this week’s events, which you can discuss in the Lions Den message forum.
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Penn State Spring Practice
The Nittany Lions got started on spring ball Monday, and BWI was there to see it. It’s hard to see everything, mainly when focused through a camera lens, but some things were noticeable by their absence. In the two-deep he announced on Monday, Penn State head coach James Franklin didn’t mention veteran lineman Bryce Effner. He also was not visible during practice. That doesn’t mean he wasn’t there, but, notably, a five-position swing player is MIA. Penn State is screaming for depth on the offensive line, and Effner can help that problem.
Pro Day
Once again, Penn State’s Pro Day set the world on fire with a would-be record-breaking time by special team’s gunner Drew Hartlaub. According to Penn Sate, the speedster ran an official 4.22, which would be an NFL Combine record.
He wasn’t the only one that put on a show Thursday. I did not see receiver Jahan Dotson drop the ball during his on-field workout, making it look easy. A side effect of that was Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford shining in front of scouts and GMs. He uncorked a gorgeous deep ball that sailed about 50-yards in the air on a perfect arc to Dotson.
Watch: Penn State Players do on-field testing
Can he finally be that player in a game? The frustrating part about Clifford is that you can clearly see that he can do just about anything on the football field; it’s just the translation of those skills into game action that is the issue.
Finally, I have a hard time seeing Ellis Brooks going unselected in the 2022 NFL Draft. After talking to him about his game, play-style and thought process about the position, he’s just too good of a football mind.
Penn State Class of 2022 Interviews
The defensive line is another area of depth and concern for the Nittany Lions, especially at defensive end. I sat down with five-star edge rusher Dani Dennis-Sutton to understand what the budding superstar was up to this spring. Impressive is too mild of a word to describe Dennis-Sutton.
The Penn State pass-rusher just “gets it.”
He comes off as a humble yet confident young man with great confidence and perspective. What stood out to me is that Dennis-Sutton learned the hard things early in life. He talks about dedication to diet, discipline in his lifting, and work ethic on his craft. But, what stands out to me is that he genuinely likes those things. Make sure you check out the full interview to hear about his path to Penn State in his own words.
Finally, I’ll leave you with a preview of Monday’s interview with four-star linebacker from La Salle College High School, Abdul Carter. Carter has a similar work ethic and drive as Dennis-Sutton, which I got to know over roughly 20 minutes on Thursday. But what is unique about Carter is a serious and business-like undercurrent to his personality. He’s a low-key interview, but an intensity (he called in from the gym for our conversation) dominates his mind.
Oh, and he’s just getting used to the linebacker position, which is a scary thought for running backs.
Tune into the BWI Daily Edition on Monday to get the full interview. If you haven’t yet, subscribe to our YouTube channel by clicking here.
