Penn State's Landon Tengwall Retires From Football

'This is a hard thing,' coach James Franklin said of Tengwall's decision to retire for medical reasons.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. | Penn State offensive lineman Landon Tengwall, who sought to return to the starting lineup after a 2022 injury, announced Wednesday that he is medically retiring from football. Tengwall said on social media that he "sustained an injury that will not allow me to safely continue to play the game I love and that has given me so much."

After practice Wednesday, Penn State coach James Franklin began his media availability with a statement about Tengwall.

"I think you’ll be seeing Landon around here, hopefully pretty soon," Franklin said. "But we just talked about it as a team as well, and we’re just gonna be as supportive as we possibly can. This is a hard thing."

Tengwall, a redshirt sophomore, started the first five games of 2022 at left guard before sustaining an injury during warmups at Michigan. He was projected to start this year despite dealing with "bumps and bruises" throughout camp, Franklin said. It's unclear whether the injuries are related. In June, offensive coordinator Phil Trautwein said that Tengwall "had a great mindset" following last year's injury and returned last spring ready to go.

"Injuries make you see football in a different perspective," Trautwein said in June. "He's grinding, he’s working his butt off. He came back firing on all cylinders. He had a good spring and graded the highest in the offensive line room for the spring game. He’s motivated as heck and he’s ready to go."

The news was crushing for both Penn State and Tengwall, a standout on the field and the top-rated player of the 2021 recruiting class. Tengwall was a well-liked member of the team both inside and outside of the locker room. He serves as vice president of Penn State's chapter of Uplifting Athletes, which conducts the annual Lift For Life fundraising event. Tengwall's absence presents significant change to the offensive line, thought to be one of the strongest groups on the roster.

"We all love Landon. When he first got here, he was a hard worker. He gave everything he had." defensive end Adisa Isaac said. "We all love him, and he’s always welcome here."

Here’s James Franklin’s statement on Landon Tengwall’s medical retirement:

“We’re just gonna be as supportive as we possibly can” pic.twitter.com/Ty3HU2GCyu

— Max Ralph (@maxralph_) August 30, 2023

Without Tengwall, Penn State will turn to JB Nelson and Vega Ioane at left guard. Nelson, a transfer from Lackawanna College, played sparingly in four games last season but is the favorite to slot in as the starter. Franklin praised Nelson last week for his development through spring and summer. The staff anticipated before the season that Nelson could start or see starter-type reps.

"His habits are a lot better in terms of how he practices, approaches meetings and everything else," Franklin said of Nelson. "You could make the argument he may be our most physical offensive lineman."

Ioane redshirted last season after appearing in four games, but the second-year offensive lineman has received praise for his size, strength and athleticism.

"He’s a big kid, but he moves really well for his size," Isaac said. "Just the way he picks up some of the plays and some of the twists we run last second is really impressive."

Tengwall is the third player Penn State officially has declared as out for the season. The program previously confirmed that defensive linemen Smith Vilbert and Alonzo Ford Jr. will miss the 2023 season.

pic.twitter.com/zbzX3LPwtA

— LandonTengwall (@landon_tengwall) August 30, 2023

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Max Ralph is a Penn State senior studying Broadcast Journalism with minors in sports studies and Japanese. He previously covered Penn State football for two years with The Daily Collegian and has reported with the Associated Press and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Follow him on Twitter (X) @maxralph_ and Instagram @mralph_59.