Penn State Gets Richer at Running Back

Lions fans know about Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen. But the position got stronger this offseason.

Brad Penner/USA Today Sports

College football knows all about Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen, Penn State's magnificently talented sophomore running backs who rushed for a combined 1,969 yards and 22 touchdowns last season. And few understand their continuing potential better than Lions running backs coach Ja'Juan Seider, who guided them through a memorable 2023 season.

But running backs can be difficult to read, particularly young backs who find early success. And with all the forces that can detour backs (injuries, lack of carries, the temptation of the transfer portal), teams can't stack enough of them on the roster. Penn State at one point had five scholarship running backs, but only Singleton and Allen were on the spring roster. Further, as Seider tells them, "There's a sophomore slump out there too eager to bring you down." Which is why Penn State is always looking for reinforcements.

One arrived this summer in Trey Potts, a veteran running back originally from Williamsport, Pennsylvania, who played the last four seasons at Minnesota. Potts and freshmen Cam Wallace and London Montgomery will round out the running backs room with a needed blend of veteran presence and young skill that Seider is eager to coach. Potts in particular fills a roster gap that some fans might not have known existed.

Potts, now the oldest scholarship running back at Penn State, has one season of eligibility remaining, which he will play at his original dream school. Penn State didn't recruit Potts out of Williamsport High, where he rushed for 3,490 yards and 59 touchdowns despite multiple injuries during his career. So Potts went to Minnesota, where he rushed for 1,195 yards and 11 touchdowns over four seasons. Last season Potts carried 101 times for 471 yards and three touchdowns behind starter Mohamed Ibrahim.

After Potts entered the transfer portal, Seider and Penn State made contact. Seider asked multiple times whether Potts was sure he wanted to transfer to Penn State. Potts' response won Seider's respect.

"To walk into a place where you’ve got two young kids who are established —and not just good players, let’s be honest, these two could potentially be great players — and to say, 'I’m going to come in and play with those guys?' That says a lot," Seider said. "We had four guys leave here because of those two freshmen. Now we have a guy who wants to come in and play with them? So to me, that’s why I say I respect a kid like that."

Meanwhile, Penn State brings in another promising two-back freshman class. Montgomery rushed for 2,356 yards and 36 touchdowns during an astonishing junior season at Scranton Prep in 2021, prompting Penn State coach James Franklin to predict a 3,000-yard senior year. But a preseason injury sidelined Montgomery for the year, though it didn't sideline Penn State. The program continued to send him recruiting material, including good-luck letters and graphics as though he were still playing. The point: to keep Montgomery engaged as though he still were playing.

As he continues rehabilitating from the injury, Montgomery isn't likely to make a huge field impact this season. But Seider certainly can see that impact in his future.

"Your job is to get healthy," Seider said of Montgomery. "The best thing you have is Nick, Kaytron and Trey Potts, older guys in front of you. Take a deep breath. There are expectations but also there aren’t. ... Learn how to walk and talk first before you worry about how to run out onto the football field."

Wallace, meanwhile, might be a steal of the recruiting class, Seider said. Wallace played at Montgomery High in Mount Vernon, Georgia, where he rushed for 1,300 yards and 15 touchdowns as a senior. Seider was drawn to Wallace's speed and explosiveness; he was state silver-medalist in the 200-meter dash as a senior. Wallace also is the kind of player Seider loves recruiting.

"We might have stole one with Cam," Seider said. "He reminds me a lot of the kids [he recruited] when I coached at another place [like Florida and West Virginia]. We won a lot of games with those guys in the backfield," Seider said. "You can put them out wide and in the slot, and you’ve got to cover those guys. He's got juice, real juice. That’s what I love about going to the country areas in that part of Georgia. You still can find a kid who people overlooked. I'm really excited about him."

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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.