On Penn State's Defense, Abdul Carter's Move Is a 'Win-Win for Everybody'

Coach James Franklin says "there's an opportunity" for Carter to thrive at defensive for the Nittany Lions.

Curtis Jacobs, the Penn State linebacker who played with Abdul Carter for two seasons, believed Carter's position switch was inevitable.

"I saw it coming from our 'Prowler' package," Jacobs said at Penn State's Pro Day in State College. "He’s just too dynamic of an athlete not to have him going after the quarterback."

The most interesting, and likely inevitable, position switch of Penn State's offseason occurred on defense, where Carter, the two-time All-Big Ten linebacker, shifted to defensive end. At 6-3, 250 pounds, Carter already has the body of a college edge rusher. In fact, Penn State coach James Franklin said he recruited Carter out of Philadelphia's La Salle College High as a defensive end. But when Carter and his father said they preferred linebacker, Franklin and his former defensive coordinators (Brent Pry and Manny Diaz) agreed. 

But for the 2024 college football season, Carter will play defensive end, unlocking the pass-rush potential he introduced as a freshman in 2022, when he led the team in sacks. His former teammates, including two defensive ends headed to the NFL, called the change obvious.

"I feel like that’s a good move for him because he’s so natural as a pass-rusher and as an athlete," Chop Robinson said at Pro Day. "When he gets with [defensive line coach] Deion [Barnes] and they work on the little details, he will be unstoppable."

Speaking with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine, former Penn State end Adisa Isaac said, "He’s going to do great. He has a great skillset that’s plug-and-play anywhere on the field. He just has to work on a couple techniques, but he’s going be a great player at defensive end. You have watch out for him."

The last point is something Franklin noted when Penn State began spring football practice. Like Robinson, Carter is an explosive and flexible athlete for 250 pounds. Robinson made a similar move (albeit from Maryland to Penn State) and thrived at the position. But he struggled early with some of the technical components of playing edge, notably the hand-fighting skills he needed to complement his speed. Franklin suggested that Carter must go through a similar transformation.

"I know Abdul is excited about it, and we're looking forward to having an opportunity to work with him, but it is a big change," Franklin said. "He's never really done this before, and it is a big change. It's not just like you make the decision to move and you snap your fingers and automatically you're a defensive end. It's a different world the closer you get to the ball, just like it's a different world if you move back to the secondary. We're excited about watching his development and growth."

Carter joins a talented room, notably with projected starter Dani Dennis-Sutton, and leaves a room that has some young talent. Penn State also has a rich corps in the secondary, particularly at safety, which defensive coordinator Tom Allen might deploy in more 4-2-5 base packages.

Ultimately, getting Carter to defensive end might have taken two years, but Franklin believes it will be worth it. As does Carter, whom Franklin said now wants to play on the line.

"The reality is, we just wanted him in our program and knew he was going to be a really good player wherever he decided to play, but this wasn't really something from us," Franklin said. "This was Abdul really wanted to make this move I think for a number of reasons, and we're excited about it. Obviously we've lost some defensive ends this past year that were highly productive. We feel really good about the current room, but obviously being able to inject Abdul into that room as well is going to be a positive for us as well.

"He was really kind of on the bubble of struggling I think to keep his weight in a linebacker. Him and Kobe [King]. They've been right around 250, above or below, for a while. So I think his body was naturally telling him he could make the move if he needed to and wanted to, and there's an opportunity there. So having depth and talent and the type of length that we want at the defensive end position, I think this is going to be kind of a win-win for everybody."

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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.