Three things to watch for in Penn State’s Blue-White game Saturday
Penn State will close out spring practice Saturday with its annual Blue-White game in Beaver Stadium. The team’s 15th practice of the spring will kick off at 2 p.m. and should give fans a look at what could be ahead in the 2025 season.
Here are three questions worth considering heading into Saturday’s scrimmage.
Who stands out at receiver?
This has been a question for months and will continue to be until Penn State plays a real game. And even then it might still be a question until the Nittany Lions play a team like Oregon in late September. So while Saturday will not answer everything that’s been asked about the most questionable position on the roster, it will give the public its first look at what the turned-over room could look like.
Gone are Tre Wallace and Omari Evans, with the former off to Ole Miss and the latter at Washington. And in their places are former USC receiver Kyron Hudson and former Troy receiver Devonte Ross. Through a few weeks of spring ball, it looks like both could be upgrades. That’s largely based on limited practice viewing windows that happen once a week, but offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki did note that Ross and Hudson have both adapted well to the program.
“Our expectations for [Ross] and Kyron to not have entry level expectations in terms of understanding what we’re doing offensively in the playbook,” Kotelnicki said. “And those guys have done a great job catching themselves up. And they’re obviously older, and so with that comes some understanding already, because they’ve got real game reps in college football already. But I’ve been really pleased with both [Ross] and Kyron in their acceleration of picking up what we’re trying to do mentally.”
Both Hudson and Ross are capable of elevating the defense with what they bring to the table. Ross specifically has the traits that could make him a valuable weapon for Kotelnicki.
“He’s really got some elite change of direction as a player,” Kotelnicki said. “His ability to accelerate and decelerate is pretty special and unique, and that shows up on film back when we were first recruiting him and evaluating him. And that’s showed up here on the practice field.”
And while those two could be penciled in as starters, it will be worth watching who stands out among the rest of the position. It’s possible — and maybe even likely — that Penn State only starts two receivers and plays in 12 personnel to start games with two tight ends on the field. But eventually the team will go to three wide receiver sets and 11 personnel. That third spot is up for grabs between a relatively large group that includes Liam Clifford, Kaden Saunders and Tyseer Denmark, three players who could excel in the slot. A big day Saturday is just another data point among the 15 that will be collected after spring ball — but it’s a data point nonetheless.
How different is the defense?
Penn State has the best defensive coordinator in college football on its staff and this will be the first chance to see just how much he’s changed. Jim Knowles replaced former defensive coordinator Tom Allen after Allen left for Clemson. And when Knowles arrived on campus in January, there were plenty of comments about him blending what he does with what Penn State has historically done well under head coach James Franklin.
That could mean Knowles adapting his defense in a major way, or it could simply be him changing his terminology to fit more of what Penn State does. The latter makes more sense than the former given how much success he’s had in his time as a coordinator. That should mean the Nittany Lions look like they’re running a Jim Knowles defense, which has a few characteristics that stand out.
The biggest aspects of what Knowles does well, disguising blitzes and coverages and having the right calls for the right moments, won’t be visible Saturday. But there should be at least one key personnel adjustment that is noticeable — his use of a fifth defensive back. Not necessarily that he uses one, but how he does. Knowles trusts his fifth DB to be in the right place at the right time and has that player act as a Swiss Army Knife, who is required to be one of the smartest and most instinctual players on the field. Whoever takes on the role when the Penn State starters are out there will potentially be the front-runner to have a massive role in the defense this season.
And there’s an aspect of Knowles that the players have had to adjust to that won’t be as visible on gamedays — his demeanor. Cornerback A.J. Harris said the new defensive coordinator is more quiet than his predecessor, but that doesn’t change the impact he’s had.
“I feel like Jim Knowles is a real football mind and he definitely knows what he’s talking about,” Harris said. “He’s broadened my education on football and things that I may not have known that will definitely help me this year.”
Who replaces departed starters?
Penn State will have a handful of players hear their names called in the 2025 NFL Draft before Saturday’s Blue-White game kicks off — and another slew will find NFL homes as undrafted free agents after the three day event ends. Saturday will be the first opportunity to see who is replacing all of those starters and how they could fare moving forward in their new roles.
The two most obvious names needing to be replaced are defensive end Abdul Carter and tight end Tyler Warren. The former will be replaced by Dani Dennis-Sutton as the team’s primary pass rusher this season, with a group of players backfilling behind him to soak up his own missing reps. That group will include players like Zuriah Fisher, Max Granville and Jaylen Harvey, while Texas A&M transfer Enai White continues to refine his talent and try to turn it into production. Warren will likely have Khalil Dinkins step into his role as the team’s starting tight end, but sophomore Luke Reynolds could benefit even more as the player most likely to take on some of his target share this season.
The Nittany Lions will also need players to step up at safety, with Jaylen Reed heading to the NFL, and defensive tackle, with Coziah Izzard and Dvon J-Thomas doing the same. Dejuan Lane is the most likely candidate to take up Reed’s spot and join Zakee Wheatley as a starting safety, while Xavier Gilliam is primed to slot in alongside Zane Durant as a starting defensive tackle. Many of those players should give fans a glimpse into what a reshaped Penn State team will look like as it begins its chase for a national title.
