Penn State Football: These Young Players Have the Most to Gain During Spring Practice
There may still be a winter chill in the air, but inside the friendly confines of Holuba Hall Penn State Football is already hard at work ushering in the Spring.
With a veteran squad locked and loaded for another run at that elusive national championship, winter workouts are already hot and heavy.
If you’re expecting a healthy dose of Fat Man and Saint Nick, Drew Allar, Zane Durant, and Dani Dennis-Sutton, think again.
That crew and the many other Nittany Lions that chose ‘Unfinished Business’ as the 2025 battle call have all earned the right to sit this one out, or at least carry a lighter load heading into August.
With that said, Spring Ball is always a time for the young guns to shine and this spring will be no different.
With a healthy handful of redshirt Freshman, true sophomores who burned their redshirt a year ago, and the 15 early enrollees that came to campus in January, there’s no shortage of Nittany Lions that are itching to make themselves a household name by the time the Blue-White game wraps up on April 27th.
This year’s roster may be chock full of grizzled vets ready to make one last run at the mountaintop but there is plenty of room for some young guys to sneak in and make their mark.
Penn State Football Players with Most to Gain this Spring
WR Tyseer Denmark
As much as I hate to say it again, the elephant in the room remains the Wide Reciever corps.
They have completely flip-flopped with the O-Line over the past few years and remains a glaring weakness coming off that Orange Bowl loss to Notre Dame that ended with a big fat Zero in catches by a wide receiver.
With the transfer of both Harrison Wallace and Omari Evans, the room is as bare as ever and searching badly for any signs of life.
The timing is ripe for a player with the most to prove and Philly’s own Tyseer Denmark has his sights set on righting the ship.
Denmark flirted with burning his redshirt in 2024 but never got going as much as we wanted to see what he had to offer. The word ‘toughness’ has repeatedly been used by the coaching staff to describe his style of play and quite frankly that may be the one trait Penn State wide receivers have missed the most.
He may not be blessed with KJ Hamler speed but if Denmark can at least bring a little swagger back to a position that’s been stuck on stale, it would go a long way.
TE Luke Reynolds
Unlike Denmark, sophomore Tight End Luke Reynolds wasted no time burning his redshirt in 2024, although he was used mostly as a blocker and a decoy in offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki‘s complex schemes.
That said, Reynolds’ catch and run on a fake punt against Minnesota was a catalyst in propelling Penn State‘s late-season surge and playoff run.
As stacked as the tight end room is with senior Khalil Dinkens leading the way, that one play was a glimpse of the 5-star talent Reynolds garnered in the Class of 2024. With the All-World, Swiss Army Knife Tyler Warren off to the NFL, those shoes may never be completely filled by any one player but it’s possible Reynolds may be the most trusted to snag a first down pass when we need it most.
EDGE Max Granville
On Defense, Darth Vadar has left the building and awaits a possible First or Second Overall Pick of the upcoming NFL Draft.
With Abdul Carter gone, there is a glaring need to replace his disruptiveness on the D-Line.
Of course, Dennis-Sutton is back and firmly entrenched as the next great pass rusher but opposite him the position is wide open.
Last year, Texas’s Max Granville became a late addition to the Class of 2024 after being reclassified a year early and managed to climb his way into the rotation by season’s end.
Granville’s combination of size, speed, and toughness for such a young player raised some eyebrows for all the right reasons, and with a full year now under the watchful eye of Chuck Losey he has as good a chance as any to make a run at filling the shoes of one of our all-time greats.
QB – Ethan Grunkemeyer
Last but not least, the time is here and now for QB Ethan Grunkemeyer.
Forced into a backup role after Beau Pribulla entered the transfer portal the week prior to Penn State’s playoff run, the true sophomore who had already affectionately gained the nickname Grunk thankfully never did have to enter with meaningful playing time on the line.
This spring though, all eyes will be firmly entrenched on the new No.2. As 2024 rolled on the buzz around Grunk grew louder as a player that was showing signs of having both an arm that could sling it like Allar and legs that could rival Pribula’s.
As Winter Workouts proceed and Spring Practice just a couple weeks away, it’s Grunkemeyer that probably has the most to prove out of anyone as he helps ease our minds in case the always reliable Drew Allar is ever unable to go.
MORE Penn State Football News from NittanyCentral:
- Tom Allen Sounds Off on ‘Major Factor’ Behind Leaving Nittany Lions for Clemson
- Ranking Penn State’s Top Position Battles to Watch This Spring
- Pat Kraft Has Just Two Words to Sum Up Jim Knowles Hire
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