Penn State Football: 5 Breakout Candidates to Watch This Spring
Penn State Football is just a week away from kicking off spring practice. After breaking through to the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history in 2024, expectations are even higher for the Nittany Lions heading into 2025.
While a large part of the core of the Nittany Lions roster opted to return for one more season after last season’s heartbreaking end in the Orange Bowl against Notre Dame, Penn State will need a few players to step up to fill voids left by veterans off to the NFL.
Here are five players that are breakout candidates for Penn State Football this spring:
Wide Receiver Tyseer Denmark
Redshirt freshman Tyseer Denmark will have a massive opportunity in front of him as he takes part in his first set of spring practices for Penn State.
Denmark was not one of Penn State’s 16 enrollees last season, getting to campus over the summer ahead of his freshman season. Despite this, Denmark was able to earn himself a little bit of playing time as the season progressed.
Denmark appeared in four games for the Nittany Lions, preserving his redshirt. Denmark showed flashes of his high potential last season, despite only catching two passes for 28 yards and a touchdown and returning one punt for 16 yards.
With Omari Evans and Harrison Wallace III transferring this offseason, there are plenty of snaps up for grabs in the wide receiver room this offseason. Denmark has all of the athletic tools to break through in the room, he will now need a strong spring performance to earn playing time and targets next season.
Defensive End Max Granville
In my humble opinion, defensive end Max Granville may have one of the highest ceilings on the entire Penn State roster.
Granville appeared in seven games for the Nittany Lions last season, even while he could have still been in high school had he not reclassified and enrolled a year and a half early at Penn State. Granville recorded only one tackle and defended one pass last season in a limited role behind superstar Abdul Carter, however, he could be poised for a much larger role in year two with Carter off to the NFL.
Despite his limited playing time in year one, Granville took the opportunity during his first year on campus to bulk up physically. Since his enrollment last summer, Granville is up over 20 pounds, in part by eating 12 hard-boiled eggs a day. This spring we will see just how much Granville has developed in his first year on campus and whether he is ready to fully compete for Abdul Carter’s starting spot next fall.
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Running Back Quinton Martin Jr.
Running back Quinton Martin Jr. will have a massive opportunity this spring to compete for the RB3 position next season.
With both Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton carrying plenty of experience into 2025, both senior backs should be on a load management plan this spring, giving plenty of opportunity to the younger backs on the roster to see crucial practice snaps.
Earlier this month, Penn State strength coach Chuck Losey noted that Quinton Martin Jr. “is dialed in right now.” Losey continued that, “I think he understands the player that he wants to be, and he doesn’t want to watch from the sideline with me over there. He wants to be on that field as much as he can.”
Although Penn State Football has its top two running backs back next season, with both Singleton and Allen out of eligibility after 2025, whoever wins the RB3 competition will have a major leg up on the starting running back job competition heading into 2026 and can play a valuable role next season giving Singleton and Allen a break when needed.
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Linebacker Keon Wylie
Linebacker is a very intriguing position this spring.
With Kobe King deciding to forgo his final year of eligibility and head to the NFL draft, Tony Rojas’ availability unclear for the spring after a 2024 injury, and Dom Deluca potentially getting the veteran treatment with load management this spring, Penn State may have a ton of practice snaps to pass around for young linebackers this spring.
After missing the entire 2024 season with a “significant” injury, Wylie is expected to be fully available for spring practice, setting him up for a breakout campaign ahead of the 2025 season. In November, as Wylie returned to Penn State practices after his injury, now Penn State linebackers coach Dan Connor called Wylie an ”elite player.” If Wylie can shake the rust off after missing the entire 2024 campaign due to injury, he could be a breakout player that the Nittany Lions need in the linebacker room next season.
Defensive Tackle Xavier Gilliam
With three of Penn State’s top defensive tackles from last season out of eligibility and no longer on the roster heading into 2025, there is a vast hole to fill next to Zane Durant before the 2025 season begins.
One player that could make a leap into that hole is redshirt freshman Xavier Gilliam.
This winter, Gilliam earned three competitor of the day shoutouts from defensive line coach Deion Barnes. Gilliam played in four games last season, recording one tackle.
If Gilliam wants to contend for playing time next fall, he will need to take the next step this spring in a room with plenty of snaps give out.
Penn State Football has a few key holes on the roster to fill before starting the 2025 season next August.
While the core of the roster from 2024 returns to make a run at the national championship, the Nittany Lions will need a few young players to step into key roles in 2025.
With the spring transfer portal window opening near the end of spring practice, the next few weeks of practices will play a major role in showing the staff just how aggressive they need to be during that window.
If players are able to step up and show development from last season, Penn State’s roster could be in good hands ahead of a very important season for James Franklin and company.
MORE Penn State Football News from NittanyCentral:
- Breaking Down Penn State’s Cornerback Battle at Suddenly Loaded Position
- Ranking Penn State’s Top-5 Position Battles to Watch this Spring
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