Can Penn State’s WRs rebound after a tough year, and what should fans expect from the position?
Camp opens for Penn State on Friday and, in preparation, we’re tackling the most serious issues facing the Nittany Lions every day until then. Up today: Can Penn State’s WRs rebound after a tough 2018?
The offense had its fair share of problems in 2018. Trace McSorley, an early-season Heisman hopeful, experienced pressure on 34 percent of his drop-backs through nine games. The play-calling, at times, left something to be desired. Injuries didn’t help. And maybe most obviously of all — drops became a recurring issue.
According to The Athletic, which cited Sports Info Solutions, Penn State’s receivers dropped 25 passes last season for the 15th-worst total in the nation. If all those were caught, the Nittany Lions would’ve finished with a 61 percent team completion rate as opposed to 54 percent.
Drops and receiver play were the kryptonite of the offense. And, for this offense to be successful in 2019, that can’t happen again.
So let’s break it down:
What happened last year?
It’s unfair to blame all the problems on a single person, in former wideouts coach David Corley. But it’s certainly no stretch to say he played a critical role.
James Franklin didn’t even initially hire him to coach the receivers. Corley was supposed to be the running backs coach but, two weeks after Corley was hired on Jan. 12, 2018, receivers coach Josh Gattis bolted for Alabama. Rather than hire a receivers coach, Franklin jumped on an unhappy Florida assistant in Ja’Juan Seider, a talented running backs coach with a new boss in Dan Mullen who moved him to tight ends.
Franklin hired Seider and moved him to RBs and slid Corley to WRs. And that’s how this mess started; prior to arriving at Penn State, Corley never even coached wideouts in consecutive seasons. And, in 2017, he oversaw Army’s wideouts — a group that combined for less than 10 catches and focused more on blocking. Penn State’s receivers weren’t exactly set up for success, and it showed. Immediately.
In Penn State’s first five games, according to Pro Football Focus, the team had committed 17 drops for the worst rate in the nation. McSorley’s completion rate would’ve hovered around 65 percent at that point if all those balls were caught. Instead, it had dipped to 53 percent.
Juwan Johnson, a projected 2019 first-round NFL draft pick at the time, struggled and eventually transferred. DeAndre Thompkins took a step back. Brandon Polk went from breakout candidate to the bench to the transfer portal. And injuries, inconsistencies and frustration mounted.
Corley was fired the day after the 27-24 loss to Kentucky in the Citrus Bowl.
What’s different this year?
For one, Corley is gone. And an experienced successor, Gerad Parker, took his place.
Parker is a former receiver himself, having played for Kentucky, and he also coached the position group for Marshall (2011-2012), Purdue (2015-2016) and Duke (2018). Parker mentored players such as Marshall’s Aaron Dobson, a second-round draft pick; Purdue’s DeAngelo Yancey, an all-conference selection and top-10 in the school record books in most career receiving categories; and Duke’s T.J. Rahming, a second-team All-ACC pick.
In short, Penn State’s receivers are set up a lot better this season. Parker would appear to agree.
“I never want to comment on another man’s work, but you also can’t ignore the truth — we talk about it a lot,” Parker said last month, when asked how much he’s had to work to rebuild confidence. “And the fact is that I think one of the biggest things that happened (last year) is a loss of confidence that even trickled maybe into the stadium itself.”
Parker acknowledged mistakes will still happen. But, this year, he doesn’t want the receiving corps to dwell on the hiccups — and he’s tried to help the receivers mentally so one drop doesn’t lead to other drops, like it did last year. And, on the positive end, he has a lot of talent to work with.
Although Johnson, Polk and Thompkins are gone — either via graduation or the transfer portal — there’s still certainly reason for optimism. There’s potential.
Besides Division II transfer Weston Carr and the two walk-ons who earned scholarships, Dan Chisena and Isaac Lutz, Penn State has eight scholarship receivers on the roster — and all of them are redshirt sophomores or younger.
Of those eight, five (K.J. Hamler, Jahan Dotson, Justin Shorter, John Dunmore, Daniel George) came to Penn State ranked as four-star prospects or better. And those same five were all ranked within the top-325 prospects nationally in their respective recruiting classes, per 247 Sports.
The personnel is considerably different from last season. Only three of Penn State’s top-eight pass-catchers return — Hamler, Dotson, TE Pat Freiermuth — but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Which brings us to ...
Who are this season’s starters, and who’s in line for reps?
Let’s get the obvious out of the way: K.J. Hamler is the clear No. 1 here, and he should be used in more spots this year, making it a little harder for defenses to focus on him every down. He’s a dynamic playmaker who needs the ball in his hands, and opposing DBs have taken notice.
Illinois DB Nate Hobbs called him the second-best slot receiver in the conference, behind Purdue’s Rondale Moore. And Michigan linebacker/safety Khaleke Hudson referred to Hamler as a “magnificent player.”
The other two starting spots aren’t huge mysteries at this point either, as the starters are expected to be the same as the spring in Shorter and Dotson. Shorter is a popular breakout candidate; he’s physically imposing at 6-foot-4 and 235 pounds, and he was widely regarded as one of the top-10 high school players in the nation. Injuries reportedly slowed him and prevented him from playing a larger role as a true freshman.
Dotson played above expectations in 2018, snagging 13 receptions for 203 yards. He made four starts, including in the bowl game, and he’s earned some early comparisons to former fan favorite Jordan Norwood.
So, if those are the starters, who else could be in line for some serious reps? Daniel George is the best bet to be the No. 4 target here, as he generated some hype last season with a record-breaking 95-yard touchdown catch. From there, it gets a little murky.
Weston Carr, a Division II All-American, is known for his high football IQ and for not getting rattled — two characteristics that should be a big help to Penn State’s young receiving corps. Even if he doesn’t see a lot of receptions, his presence should still be important to this group. Dan Chisena, a track specialist, has the potential to be a downfield threat. Mac Hippenhammer returned to the program after spending the spring with the baseball team. Cam Sullivan-Brown is back after flirting with the transfer portal. And two true freshmen, T.J. Jones and John Dunmore, could contribute more heavily a la Dotson later in the season if the group falters.
In all likelihood, this will be the most-improved position group from last season. In part because there’s nowhere to go but up.
This story was originally published July 30, 2019 at 4:28 PM.
