Penn State football roundtable: Who will be the offensive MVP in 2021? Here are our picks
We’re on to our second roundtable of the preseason for Penn State football in 2021 after selecting our choices for a player to break out last week.
This week, we’ll take a look at the offense and make our choices for the unit’s most valuable player this upcoming season.
Jon Sauber: WR Jahan Dotson
While quarterbacks generally lead the way for offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich’s units, I think it’ll be Jahan Dotson who shines brightest this season. While it’s true that Sean Clifford would have to get him the ball for Dotson to succeed, it’s also true that Yurcich will — or at least should — be scheming up every opportunity he can think of for the star receiver.
That means screens, sweeps, deep shots, slants, digs, you name it. The Nittany Lions should be searching for every avenue possible to get the ball in Dotson’s hands. He’s the clear-cut most talented weapon on the roster right now after breaking out last season and there’s room for him to have an even bigger year this season.
The senior receiver can work at all three levels of the field and has the type of make-you-miss ability you want in a game-changing type of talent. His talent — and the attention it gets from opponents — should open up the rest of the field for his teammates, including his quarterback. It may be more likely that Clifford has the best statistical campaign of any Nittany Lion, but I would bet on Dotson being the reason the team finds offensive success in 2021.
Kyle J. Andrews: RB Noah Cain
Noah Cain will be the guy. He has the pedigree, he has the ability to wear down opponents and wreak havoc, as well as play multiple downs. I know everyone will point to Penn State’s running back-by-committee situation, but Cain is eager to break out.
The fact that Devyn Ford, Jon Lovett, Caziah Holmes and Keyvone Lee are there gives Cain a spell at the position. Keep in mind that Cain had 84 carries for 443 rushing yards and eight touchdowns in an offense with Journey Brown leading the way. With less of a focus on the litany of backs that Penn State currently has, someone has to explode on the season. So, why not Cain?
Josh Moyer: QB Sean Clifford
For those of you optimistic Penn State fans who saw “Sean Clifford” bolded here and immediately associated it with an All-Big Ten kind of prediction, you might want to stop reading right here if you hope to maintain that optimism. That’s not what this is.
Clifford is a middle-of-the-road Big Ten quarterback right now, one who needs to rebound from 2020 ball-security issues and questionable decision-making. So why in the heck am I picking him here? One singular reason — process of elimination.
The question is not, “Who’s the best player on the Penn State offense?” (My answer would then be OT Rasheed Walker and/or WR Jahan Dotson.) It’s about the MVP and, based on offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich’s track record, Clifford will probably get the stats to clinch team offensive MVP status.
The cupboard is overflowing at running back and, as a result, we won’t see bruiser Noah Cain having a JK Dobbins-like season, where he rushes for 2,000-plus yards. The ball is going to be spread around. Ditto at receiver. Dotson will lead in targets but, under Yurcich since 2013, only one receiver has accounted for more than 25% of an offense’s completions. When a QB plays the entire season under Yurcich, he’s usually the MVP. I see the same happening again this season. So I’m playing the odds — not predicting an all-conference kind of campaign for Clifford. Sorry, PSU fans.
Lauren Muthler: OC Mike Yurcich
I feel like there can only be two right answers here — Sean Clifford or Jahan Dotson (depending on how one thinks Clifford’s season will go). So, in the interest of making this a more interesting roundtable, I’ll bend the rules and pick new offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich.
Penn State found itself ranked No. 19 in the preseason AP Top 25 this week, despite a 4-5 season last year that included five straight losses. Seemingly, enough voters had confidence in Yurcich’s ability to help Clifford take a step forward and turn Penn State’s offense around to give the Nittany Lions the benefit of the doubt.
Penn State football will either live or die by Clifford’s performance this season. And whether or not the third-year starter is able to improve from his nine-interception and 22-sack season, there are no viable backups behind him. It’s Clifford or bust.
Yurcich has only been with the team for seven months, and won’t have much time to work out kinks in his offense with No. 12 Wisconsin up first. For a man who has earned the reputation of a “quarterback whisperer,” this could be Yurcich’s toughest test yet.
Derek Heid: WR Jahan Dotson
There’s no sense in overthinking this selection. Dotson is a prolific star on this offense and could have very well been an early draft pick to the NFL last year, but he decided instead to return to Happy Valley for his senior season.
Last year, Dotson recorded an incredible 884 yards and 8 touchdowns on 52 receptions in just nine games. He was nothing short of unstoppable last season, especially in the first three games with 361 yards and 5 TDs — three of which were against an impressive Ohio State secondary.
Dotson even accounted for half of Sean Clifford’s TDs last season, and if KJ Hamler’s impressive 904 yard and 8 TD 2019 season taught us anything, Clifford loves to target his favorite receiver early and often.
Both members of this duo have returned, and Clifford will certainly be leaning on his favorite target Dotson to move the chains when the crowded yet talented backfield of “Lawnboyz” needs a break.