James Franklin Clarifies Abdul Carter's Status for 2024

On day two of Big Ten media days in Indianapolis, Penn State Football head coach James Franklin was available for his first official press conference of the 2024 season.

Ahead of an exciting season where the Big Ten brings in four new teams and the College Football Playoff expands to 12 teams, there is plenty of buzz around Penn State and the Big Ten as a whole this fall.

Penn State Football, Abdul Carter — Penn State linebacker Abdul Carter (Photo by Randy Litzinger/Icon Sportswire)

One of the biggest storylines for Penn State this offseason was the move of freshman All-American and sophomore All-Big Ten linebacker Abdul Carter to defensive end.

At media days Wednesday, Franklin directly answered questions on Carter’s position change and what it will look like for Penn State this fall.

Although Carter is officially listed on the Penn State roster as a defensive end, Franklin clarified Wednesday that Carter will play both linebacker and defensive end this fall for the Nittany Lions.

Franklin noted that Carter “made the adjustment [to defensive end] pretty quickly,” but the Nittany Lions will decide “week to week” on which position Carter will play to “have the most impact.”

How James Franklin Will Deploy Abdul Carter on Saturdays

Carter is one of college football’s most versatile defenders, and Penn State intends to take full advantage of his skill set.

Franklin further noted that this will allow Penn State to both be creative in getting the biggest impact out of Carter on the field depending on individual matchups next season and also force opponents to prepare for Carter playing at either position.

In 2023, Carter started all 13 games at linebacker for the Nittany Lions, racking up 48 tackles, 5.5 tackles for a loss, 4.5 sacks, an interception, and a forced fumble on the season. Heading into the 2024 season, Carter was listed on the Big Ten preseason honors list and as a second-team preseason All-American by Phil Steele.

Earlier this month, Carter appeared in Draft Wire’s Curt Popejoy’s Way-Too-Early mock draft as the number eight pick next April and has consistently gotten first-round buzz since his move to defensive end was announced this offseason.