For Penn State Football, it’s Drew Allar time.
Allar, the former five-star and No. 1 ranked quarterback in the 2022 recruiting cycle, takes over the reins as the Nittany Lions‘ starter this fall with high expectations ahead of him and the program.
Following a freshman campaign that saw Allar complete 35-of-60 passing attempts for 344 yards with 4 passing touchdowns, while showing significant growth, he takes over an offense with plenty of firepower.
Here are 5 reasons Penn State Football will win a National Championship during Drew Allar’s career
1. Penn State Football has offensive weapons galore
When Drew Allar takes the field for Penn State Football this fall, he will be lining up with an impressive lineup of offensive weapons.
To start, Allar will be sharing the backfield with arguably the top running back room in the nation with Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. The rising sophomore pair combined for 1928 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns, rushing at an average of 5.97 yards per attempt. With another year of physical development, this pair is set to be even better in the fall, giving Allar a complementary piece to the passing game and opening up play action passes.
On the outside, Penn State added two wide receivers in the portal to bolster a wide receiver room that was younger but talented. Dante Cephas, who will join Penn State over the summer, and Malik McClain will join returning starter Keandre Lambert Smith in catching passes for Allar.
The two transfers and Lambert Smith should give Allar plenty of experience to rely upon in the passing game and should give him confidence out of the gate.
At tight end, Penn State returns Theo Johnson, who broke out in the second half of last season after missing the first portion of the season due to injury, and Tyler Warren, who will hopefully be returning to full strength after being banged up for a portion of last season as well. Both of these two veteran tight ends have plenty of experience for Allar to rely on as well.
Overall, Penn State Football has plenty of talent and experience all over the offensive side of the football to put Allar in the best possible position to succeed. Penn State has the weapons, especially in the backfield to matchup to any top team in the nation, which will be necessary to make the playoffs and win a national title.
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2. Best offensive line in James Franklin Era
No matter how talented a quarterback is without an offensive line to protect them, they will not be successful.
Luckily, Penn State returns the best offensive line the program has seen in the James Franklin era. In 2023, Penn State brings back an offensive line that includes six players that started at least five games on the offensive line for the Nittany Lions in 2022.
The offensive line is anchored on the left side by 2024 first round prospect Olu Fashanu, who may have been OT1 if he had entered the draft after last season. Left guard Landon Tengwall will be returning from an injury that ended his 2022 season early, however even returning from the injury, Tengwall is getting major hype for next season. ESPN’s RJ Young projects the redshirt sophomore to get back to form and lists him among his “Way Too Early 2023 All American Offense”. Center Hunter Nourzad’s six collegiate seasons of experience should help Allar with setting protections and changing anything at the line. Right guard Sal Wormley and right tackle Caedan Wallace also bring years of starting experience with them into 2023.
In 2022, the offensive line allowed the fewest sacks in the James Franklin era, and I would expect that number to shrink further with this offensive line that is coming back.
Allar will have plenty of protection to take his time to read the field and find his weapons this fall behind this offensive line. This Penn State offensive line should help keep Penn State competitive offensively when Penn State runs into top defenses, which is likely on a playoff and national championship run.
3. Drew Allar’s physical tools
One thing that sets former five-star quarterback Drew Allar apart from other quarterbacks that Penn State has seen in the James Franklin era are the physical tools that Allar possesses.
At 6-foot 5, 238 pounds, Allar is a much more physically imposing quarterback than Penn State has had under Sean Clifford or Trace McSorely.
At times throughout Clifford and McSorely’s careers at Penn State, both quarterbacks were banged up and injured, limiting their play at times. Allar’s larger frame may keep him healthier as he is able to absorb more impacts without major injury. Another key to Allar’s large frame is the arm strength that comes with it. Allar has an extremely strong arm and can sling the ball all over the field.
Allar’s arm strength will allow him to stretch the field with the deep ball and allow him to make any throw required in Mike Yurcich’s offense.
4. Penn State’s stellar defense
To win a national championship in college football, a team not only has to have a great offense capable of scoring points on any defense in the nation.
A true contender must also have an elite defense that can play complementary football.
In 2021 and 2022, Penn State’s defense was complimentary and one of the best defenses in the country. Penn State Football ranked 10th in total defense last season in college football, after ranking 7th in 2021. With Manny Diaz at the helm for the Penn State defense, the defense got more aggressive in the pass rush and played with more energy and swagger than in recent years.
While Penn State Football lost a few key pieces on the defense in PJ Mustipher and Jayir Brown, the Lions return a ton of talent on a defense in the top 10 nationally.
Even if Allar has a bit of an off game, Penn State’s defense is good enough to pick up any slack and truly wreck games. If Penn State does win a national championship with Allar, the defense will surely play a large part in the title run.
5. Consistency in offensive scheme
One thing that held Sean Clifford’s development back during his career at Penn State was the constant change in offensive coordinator.
In his six seasons at Penn State, Clifford worked with four different offensive coordinators. The constant learning of new schemes and lingo would prevent Clifford from further developing other skills during important spring practice windows.
Luckily for Allar, barring any major unforeseen change, Allar will be entering his first year as a starter with the same offensive coordinator that he has worked with since he enrolled early in January 2022. Being able to go through two sets of spring practices, two training camps, and then two seasons with the same coordinator should provide comfort and also allow Allar to have a better handle on the offense than a normal first year starter.
This level of comfort in the system will allow Allar to develop faster and have a great handle on the offense in his first year as a starter. This comfort plus Allar’s experience from year 1 should allow him to operate a high level required to take the Penn State program to the playoffs and on a national championship run.
Penn State Football opens a huge two-year championship window this year. Allar, Singleton, Allen, and Carter all are guaranteed at least two more years in college before being eligible for the NFL draft.
With Allar at the helm of the offense, Penn State Football will look to capitalize on this window by making major strides toward big ten championships, playoff appearances, and national championships with elite quarterback play by Allar.
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Education: Saint Vincent College, Penn State Law School
Location: Washington, DC
Experience:Robert Casturo has covered Penn State football for NittanyCentral since 2022. Casturo previously covered Penn State football through a social media presence (@PSU_FB_Thoughts on X) since 2019. Casturo earned his bachelor's degree from Saint Vincent College in 2015, where he was a punter for 1 season on the Saint Vincent College football team and worked in the athletic department for 2 years as a student manager. Casturo earned his JD from Penn State Law in 2018 where he was a senior editor of the Penn State Law Review.
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