Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford has his first NFL destination
Former Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford has his first NFL destination. The four-year starter for the Nittany Lions who spent a total of six years in State College was picked by the Green Bay Packers in the fifth round with pick No. 149 in the 2023 draft.
All the Cincinnati, Ohio native sought was a shot at the next level after feeling snubbed when he didn’t receive an invitation to this year’s NFL Combine. He now has exactly that in Green Bay.
“The body of work that I’ve had with these teams here, you know, when I didn’t see my name as a combine guy, I felt disrespected, for sure,” Clifford said at Penn State Pro Day.
“But hey, it’s just more fuel to the fire and just being able to come out here, show the scouts what I got and being able to really just put on a show [at Pro Day], it’s been a lot of fun. A good way to cap off a great career at Penn State.”
Clifford is the Nittany Lions’ all-time leader in completion percentage (.612) completions (817), passing yards (10,382), passing touchdowns (84), and pass attempts (1,335). He is also the passer in program history to own three games with 250 passing yards and three passing touchdowns in two different seasons. He capped off his long career with a memorable victory over Utah in the Rose Bowl.
“I feel like I’m truly playing my best ball,” Clifford said at Penn State Pro Day. I” think the Rose Bowl speaks for itself and I know that I’m playing my best ball, and I know that I’m a pro.”
How does Penn State move on from Sean Clifford?
This is an easy one, of course. A position battle is underway for the first-team quarterback at Penn State for the first time since 2019. It’s between Drew Allar and Beau Pribula, of course. The former, a one-time five-star recruit, started spring practice in the lead. And, now that it’s over, he remains there. But, Pribula has pushed him hard and there are many indications that he could have some kind of role this fall despite likely being the backup.
“I think been a really good competition,” Franklin said in early April. Those guys are battling, and they’re both doing really good things. Sometimes it’s hard to compare and contrast, because our [first-team] defense is really good and talented.
“So, who they’re going against is part of it as well. So making sure Drew gets some reps with the twos, and Beau gets some reps with the ones and vice versa, those things are important. But, I think those two guys are both battling. They’re two guys that we’re really excited [about], not only for this year, but for their futures.”
