They lose not only the d end, but they lose the best tight end in the nation in Warren. They also lose a bunch of starters on defense, namely Kobe King, Jalen Kimber and Kevin Winston. They also lose basically their entire wide receiver core.
They also lose their backup qb, who had a pretty nice package there for him.
They bring back Aller, their top 2 running backs and most of their offensive line. On defense, they are bringing back a couple defensive ends and their d-tackles.
They are losing really solid talent.
A guy for Athlon Sports just did a way-too-soon top 25 (=5) for 1025-26 that had OSU #1, PSU #4, Oregon #6, IU #18, ILL #21; Michigan #22, and Nebraska #27.
I think that's a little too high for PSU. Warren & Carter were huge for that team. There's going to be a drop-off there. I also think Pribula had unique talents as a running QB that they missed in the playoffs and will continue to miss in '25.
I don't think they've "solved" the WR problems in the portal. They lost Wallace who caught 46 for 720 yds and Evans who was at 21 for 415.
They gained Hudson from USC who went went 38 for 462 and who seemed to have similar issues to those with Wallace & Evans. The wild card is slot receiver Ross, from Troy, who had huge stats --something like 79 for 1000+ yds as I recall. He is a smallish guy, he played at Troy, so we'll see how that translates. Perhaps Hudson + Ross is a small + over Wallace/Evans, but no one will come close to replacing Warren at TE.
I guess the wildcard for them is whether Allar kicks it up a notch. He certainly is talented , but he hasn't stepped it up in the big games. He was throwing off his back feet the whole game v. ND. He looks great getting off the bus and in warm-ups but the jury is still out, that's for sure. How would he have performed this year with Rourke's injuries?
Comparing PSU to IU.........I don't think they're going to be 14 spots better than us. We have had losses, but we appear to have more than able replacements at TB, QB & TE. Hemby has averaged 5.3 for his career at Maryland, very seldom fumbles, and is a very solid pass receiver. Beebe had great stats the last two years for a weak UAB team. Mendoza is the 2nd or 3rd rated portal QB. I like our prospects at LB. Our secondary should be improved. DT most concerns me, as Carpenter & West were quite a duo. But Tucker, Burris, and the 2 portal guys look solid.
PSU had a HS class ranked 15th, much better than ours, but our portal haul has been better than their's.
Obviously, there are always uncertainties. We were pretty fortunate last year with injuries. Maybe Mendoza is less than expected. But going into the year I'd think it would be more like PSU #6, IU #13.
I suppose one can argue that we overachieved in '24, while PSU probably achieved consistent with their talent. We could come back down to earth, but it doesn't feel like that will happen absent serious injuries.
I have no opinion as to OSU, Oregon or Illinois, but I have to believe Michigan & Nebraska are underrated. Michigan has the #1 HS QB recruit coming in, as well as the #1 portal TB. Nebraska is getting some real prospects in the portal...last time I saw they were #6 ranked. They also had losses to the portal, but there's a net improvement there.
www.si.com
www.pennlive.com
