Penn State redshirt report: Which first-year Nittany Lions played at Ohio State?

Penn State sent 10 first-year freshmen on the road as part of its 74-man travel squad for Saturday’s 20-12 loss to Ohio State. Some of them played on special teams. But none of them played on either offense or defense in the team’s first setback of the year.

“I totally get it,” Lions coach James Franklin said about his 1-9 record against the Buckeyes all-time. “That’s a good football team. You know, what I’ll talk about is today. We lost to a really good football team on the road. We had our chances, we battled, and we weren’t able to capitalize.

“Big picture things. I’ll be happy to talk about that at some point. Right now, I want to know about, we lost to a really good football team on the road. Didn’t make enough plays when we needed it. And I think it’s a fair question. I get the question. But, right now I’m worried about [this game].”

Here’s a look at who did what from the Class of 2023 in the latest Lions game.

Which first-year Penn State freshmen did what against Ohio State?

The 10 Penn State first-year freshmen who traveled were offensive lineman J’ven Williams, quarterback Jaxon Smolik, safety King Mack, cornerback Zion Tracy, linebacker Tony Rojas, cornerback Elliot Washington II, defensive end Jameial Lyons, offensive lineman Chimdy Onoh, and offensive tackle Anthony Donkoh.

Tracy, Rojas, and Mack, and Washington II all played special teams per the usual. However, none of them played on defense as they have in past games. The non-blow-out nature of the game is why, of course. Penn State was unable to get others into the game for the first time this season.

Tracking the Nittany Lions’ redshirt plan

Thanks to an NCAA rule change, players can now suit up in four regular season games and an unlimited number of postseason games while still preserving a year of eligibility. So, Penn State would need to use a freshman in five of 12 regular season games to burn his redshirt this fall.

Here’s where the Penn State tracker stands after Week 5:

Seven games

LB Tony Rojas
CB Elliot Washington II
CB Zion Tracy
S King Mack

Three games
DE Jameial Lyons

Two games
OT J’ven Williams
OT Anthony Donkoh
TE Andrew Rappleyea
OL Chimdy Onoh
LB Ta’Mere Robinson
LB Kaveion Keys

One game

QB Jaxon Smolik
DT Tyriq Blanding
CB Lamont Payne
S DaKaari Nelson

Zero games

RB London Montgomery
RB Cam Wallace
WR Carmelo Taylor
TE Joey Schlaffer
OL Alex Birchmeier
DE Joseph Mupoyi
DE Mason Robinson