Penn State WR Justin Shorter reportedly in transfer portal; James Franklin ‘not sure where we’re at’
Penn State wideout Justin Shorter has reportedly entered the transfer portal, although head coach James Franklin was not ready to confirm those reports Tuesday afternoon.
Citing an unnamed source, Yahoo! Sports’ Pete Thamel reported at 1:15 p.m. that Shorter had entered the portal. About 10 minutes later, Franklin was asked about that report during his weekly press conference and acknowledged he had just gotten out of a meeting with the redshirt freshman receiver.
“Literally, we were just having a conversation and walking out when I came here,” Franklin said. “I’m not sure where we’re at. Obviously, it was a conversation that was had.”
Since that time, both 247 Sports and ESPN have also confirmed Shorter’s entrance into the transfer portal via unnamed sources.
Shorter’s declaration does not necessarily mean he’ll leave Happy Valley. Safety Lamont Wade entered his name into the transfer portal in January, before removing it later that month and becoming a dependable starter this season for the Nittany Lions.
But, more often than not, the transfer portal has led to, well, transfers.
Shorter’s decision comes in the second season of a career that has so far fallen short of lofty expectations. The 6-foot-4, 235-pound wideout came into Penn State as a five-star prospect — the nation’s No. 8 overall prospect, per 247 Sports — but his current production has not matched his previous recruiting ranking.
Shorter battled injuries in 2018 as a true freshman and caught three passes for 20 yards in four games. So far this season, in eight games, Shorter came away with just 12 receptions for 137 yards. He has yet to catch a career touchdown.
The pressure has been building on Shorter lately. Franklin has fielded a number of questions about the lack of a dependable No. 3 at WR, which only became louder after Shorter dropped two balls against Minnesota and lost a contested jump-ball that was intercepted.
After that game, Shorter lost his starting position. Former walk-on Dan Chisena took his spot in the last two games, against both Indiana and Ohio State, although Shorter still saw time in both contests and actually tied a career-high with three catches against the Buckeyes for 28 yards.
Franklin was high on Shorter in the spring, but it’s clear that consistency was an issue even then.
“He shows flashes,” Franklin said in April. “He can run when he opens his stride up and goes but, like a lot of big guys, it’s the transition stuff. It’s at the top of your route; it’s in and out of breaks. It’s playing as big and strong as he is, in terms of contested catches, in terms of blocking, in terms of release and being physical. It’s all those things, but he shows great flashes.”
Shorter was the nation’s consensus No. 1 receiver in the 2018 recruiting class, and he was the second-most high-profile prospect in that Penn State class — behind only five-star linebacker Micah Parsons.
Parsons leads the team in tackles and is a finalist for the Butkus Award, given annually to the nation’s top linebacker. Shorter is tied for fifth on the team in catches and yards, and he’s been out-shined by fellow second-year wideout Jahan Dotson, a Pennsylvania native who has 418 receiving yards and three touchdowns this season.
Penn State will take on Rutgers at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Beaver Stadium, where Chisena is expected to start for the third straight game.
This story was originally published November 26, 2019 at 1:38 PM.
