Evaluating Penn State's Offensive Progress This Spring

James Franklin said he's confident the Lions' offense will improve. So how's that going?

Mike Yurcich understands that his first season as Penn State's offensive coordinator didn't reach expectations. He also wants to begin Year 2 with a clean slate.

"If I go back to last year, I think it's a distraction and I don't think it's pertinent to our mission to improve this spring," Yurcich told reporters in State College recently.

So how is the offensive coordinator progressing in his second year with the Lions? Head coach James Franklin said that he's "comfortable and confident" that the offense will improve under Yurcich, whose group ranked 90th nationally in scoring last season. Here's how Yurcich described the process after two weeks of spring drills.

The freshmen backs have been standouts

Yurcich certainly did not want to rehash the run-game issues of 2021 beyond saying, "We're going to execute better, we're going to coach it better and we're going to play better."

With that in mind, Yurcich raved about freshmen running backs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen, two early enrollees who have made a strong first impression in the backfield.

"Those two guys are going to make it ultracompetitive in that room," Yurcich said. "They’re very explosive. What's impressive to me is they came out of high school and physically they’re at a stage where they can do all things. You don’t have to worry about what down with it is with those guys. They can play on all downs because of their physical strength and their maturity.

"So we just have to get them squared away mentally from a protection standpoint and assignment standpoint. But they’re doing a hell of a job and they’re just going to raise the competitive level in that room."

Sean Clifford is gaining 'fluidity'

Quarterback Sean Clifford and Yurcich had an uneven first season together, affected certainly by the offensive constraints around them. Yurcich said Clifford is better versed in the system now and anticipating decisions more smoothly.

"The biggest thing from year one to year two is just the fluidity of getting through the progressions and being able to anticipate," Yurcich said. "It's RPOs. He's more well-versed in the system in his second year. You can see that, and I think he feels that now.

"... There's more of a comfort zone with how I call [the offense]: what we’re looking for, what we’re trying to get done and more familiarity."

The freshmen QBs arrived well-coached

Everybody wants to know about Drew Allar and Beau Pribula, specifically whether one can make a run at playing time. Franklin addressed that question, while Yurcich wasn't ready to scout either definitively this early in their careers.

However, Yurcich did praise the skill levels the quarterbacks brought to Penn State, attributing that to their coaching.

"Both Beau and Drew were coached extremely well in high school in different systems," Yurcich said. "Our system’s different than their systems, and just getting the verbiage down, being under center at times, being able to have to direct protections, even run checks at times, all those things are probably the biggest areas of growth right now for us with regard to the younger quarterbacks.

"They’re doing an excellent job. They’re very far along because of how they were groomed in high school, so they show a lot of arm talent, they have good feet and they have good pocket awareness."

Watch for more from the tight ends

Brenton Strange, Theo Johnson and Tyler Warren combined for 44 receptions last season in an offense that often underused them. Yurcich wants to employ those three players more this season.

"The top three guys are fun to coach," Yurcich said of the tight ends. "Their leadership, from what those guys are all about from inside their chest, is tremendous. … They can block, they can play in space, they can all run routes. I'm very excited about all those guys, but their attitude is really what strikes me. They're very unselfish. For as talented as they are, there's no ego there, and they work wonderfully together."

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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.