Penn State Football inside linebacker Kobe King is making the most of fall practices/ spring absence of Elsdon
In 2022, King and Tyler Elsdon virtually shared reps at MIKE linebacker, splitting reps 60/40 throughout most games.
However, Elsdon was named the starter in all 13 games last season with King coming off of the bench. Many Nittany Lions fans expected this streak to continue in 2023 with both players failing to separate from each other throughout the course of last season.
However, when Tyler Elsdon was forced to miss spring practices due to injury, King was able to get more comfortable with the defense with increased reps.
Here with James Franklin for the first time since April.
Said tight ends Theo Johnson and Tyler Warren and linebacker Tyler Elsdon, all injured this spring, are “all back and ready to go” pic.twitter.com/SB4KRF5WY0
— Seth Engle (@bigsengtweets) June 8, 2023
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According to Audrey Snyder of the Athletic, Kobe King’s comfort in the defense has been carrying over into fall camp.
Per Snyder, Franklin has stated that King has “command of the defense and he’s playing fast and aggressive because of his confidence.”
Remember back in the spring when Kobe King was starting to get really comfortable in this defense? It’s carried into the preseason.
Storylines that are emerging on the practice field https://t.co/2wYb6ujRwZ
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) August 15, 2023
Although Elsdon has one more year of experience in the program, the extra reps from spring ball while Elsdon was sidelined have made the competition between Elsdon and King even tighter.
With King having a “really good summer and training camp” according to Franklin, per Snyder, King is making a push to be the starter at the mike linebacker position this fall and may even be leading the competition.
With less than three weeks left until Penn State faces West Virginia on September 2nd, the competition at mike linebacker is definitely one to keep an eye on.
Asked James Franklin last night about Kobe King.
“He’s had a really good, really good summer and training camp.”
And, the Takeaway King at the moment isn’t a DB… https://t.co/2wYb6ujRwZ
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) August 15, 2023
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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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