Penn State Nittany Lions were just inches away from reaching the national championship final until the opportunity slipped from their grasp as they lost to Notre Dame in the semifinal. The fault? Well, there can’t be too many because Penn State looked like a well-oiled machine throughout the season. Decimating opponents and making their way successfully to the playoffs. However, there were still some warning signs in the sky and here’s why.

They had Drew Allar, one of the best quarterbacks in college football right now. They had Nick Singleton, a running machine, precisely. And they also had Tyler Warren, their wildcard tight-end, who lit up the field through his explosive receptions. And that is why Drew Allar returned for another season at the college, leaving his NFL dream at bay. However, there’s still a slight problem.

RJ Young of Fox Sports highlighted the issues that Drew Allar had over the course of the season. “It’s really up to Drew (Allar) how good Penn State is for me okay, I have yet to see Drew all go win Penn State a football game. I’ve seen Nick Singleton do it I’ve seen Kaytron Allen do it. I’ve seen Abdul Carter and the defense do it. I have not seen Drew Allar do it, and it’s going to be even more difficult unless they can use the spring transfer portal to get that man some wide receivers.” The statement looks highly loaded at first, but there may be some truth to it, and here’s why.

James Franklin heavily relied on his running game to win the game. Sure, he used RPO situations too on his game, but his game has primarily relied heavily on running backs. This is the reason they are first in rushing yards with 202.3 yards per game. Their passing yards stand at  9th in their conference, which is quite low on their standards. So, was it because of bad receiving corps or just James Franklin’s heavy reliance on rushing plays? Well, here’s the thing.

They did have some very good receivers in Tyler Warren, who received 1,223 yards at an average of 11.9 yards per reception. And they had Harrison Wallace, who received for 720 yards at an impressive average of 15.7 yards per reception. However, as good as they were, they coped due to the combination of the running game and Abdul Carter’s defensive exploits. However, that may not be easily replicated in the upcoming season. For context, hear this.

Can Drew Allar have the necessary support in the 2025 season?

The team is now losing Tyler Warren to the NFL draft, who was also an All-American. James Franklin is also losing Harrison Wallace to Ole Miss and Omari Evans to Washington. This essentially means that most of their wide receiver corps are heading out and they will have to look for options in the transfer portal. Why transfer portal? Because they also do not have any good wide receivers in their 2025 freshman class who can compete at the levels of these guys. The question now is what lies ahead.

Well, Drew Allar will need to rely on James Franklin’s expertise in order to provide the essential firepower. However, he has another addition in Trace McSorley, who has joined as offensive analyst for the team. He is undoubtedly a Penn State legend in his own right as he garnered career highs of 9,899 passing yards and 77 touchdowns for them. Still, questions are being raised about his age (29) and inexperience by the Penn State Nation all around. The verdict?

Well, James Franklin now has no choice but to find the required receivers in the transfer portal. However, he has added Devonte Ross from the Troy Trojans and Kyron Hudson from the USC Trojans. These two players, although good, are nothing like the void that needs to be filled in the team right now.