Penn State Seeks Leadership, Particularly From Its Quarterbacks

The Lions begin 2023 with a young, gifted room of QBs who must find their voices.

Penn State's quarterback room underwent a dramatic change after the Rose Bowl. Sean Clifford finally exhausted his eligibility and Christian Veilleux transferred to Pitt, leaving the Lions with one quarterback who has taken a snap.

Further, all three of Penn State's scholarship quarterbacks are freshmen on the academic calendar. For head coach James Franklin, the 2023 season begins with a new imperative: developing leadership in the quarterback room.

"We're going to need both of those guys not only competing but also taking on a significant leadership role," Franklin said Tuesday at his first press conference following the Rose Bowl. "No one cares that they’re young. They’re in that position, and a big part of that position is leadership."

Penn State began winter workouts Tuesday, the first of eight sessions that will introduce a preseason top-10 team to its expectations for 2023. Several assistant coaches pointed out the opening-day standouts, with Pribula getting the nod from offensive coordinator, and quarterbacks coach, Mike Yurcich.

Quarterback is the most intriguing position group on the roster, one with exceptional potential and a long arc of unknowns. Allar won the No. 2 spot as a true freshman, demonstrated a phenomenal arm and actually has Heisman odds.

Penn State quarterbacks Drew Allar (left) and Beau Pribula seek to take larger leadership roles ahead of the 2023 season :: Dan Rainville/USA Today Sports

Pribula brings an edge of competitiveness that Yurcich loves, while Franklin has called early enrollee Jaxon Smolik the "steal" of the 2023 recruiting class. But none has even finished his freshman year of college, giving Penn State one of the youngest rooms in the country.

Meanwhile, the Lions must replace a four-year captain in Sean Clifford who took his mentor role seriously last year. Franklin called leadership development one of his biggest offseason goals for this team. It's even more essential at quarterback.

"I thought Sean did a great job with that," Franklin said. "So for us, I don’t want [Allar and Pribula] to go from 0 to 100. Just kind of work into that role and take responsibility and have a plan and be intentional like everything else we do. But I think Drew and Beau are ready for that."

Allar begins Penn State's offseason as the starter, though Pribula certainly will challenge. But the Lions are notably undersized on experience, though Franklin said another factor will help offset that.

"In a perfect world you’d love to have a little bit more experience and a little bit more age in that room," Franklin said, "but at the end of the day it’s about talent. And I think we’re talented in that room."

Which prompted another question about the NCAA Transfer Portal. Penn State has made limited moves there, adding a receiver (Malik McClain) and cornerback (Storm Duck) who drew notice on the first day of winter workouts. Penn State has received a commitment from former Kent State receiver Dante Cephas, who will enroll later.

Though he's open to welcoming a transfer quarterback, Franklin understands the reality. The room has three recruited freshmen already in-house, which doesn't bode for much immediate playing time. However, the right quarterback might see an opportunity to lend experience while understanding his place on the roster.

"I think the challenge of the transfer portal is, I think you can do it and I think there are some options that we can look at and we’re still open to," Franklin said. "But I wouldn’t say, based on how that room looks, that maybe it’s attractive to a lot of the quarterbacks out there that we would want to bring in. So we’ll see how that thing plays out, but you never know. We’d be open at obviously every single position to try to bring some guys in."

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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich. And consider subscribing (button's on the home page) for more great content across the SI.com network.