ALTOONA, Pa. -- That's Tyler Elsdon pictured above, and it's starting to sound like he will be Penn State's starting middle linebacker when the team opens at Purdue in two weeks.
James Franklin said Wednesday that Elsdon is "a little bit ahead" of Kobe King in the competition at this stage. And since we're only a week away from starting game prep for Purdue, one would think Elsdon will be getting the nod at the key position against the Boilermakers.
But King definitely will play in the opening game. Franklin spent more time talking about that, and about Robbie Dwyer, than he did giving praise or updates about Elsdon.
King is "still kind of figuring it all out," Franklin told reporters in University Park, but the coach also noted that "he's gonna play a lot no matter what."
Elsdon (6-2, 233 pounds) is a sophomore from North Schuylkill High School who played in 12 games last season on defense and special teams. He had 12 tackles, including six against Auburn.
As for Dwyer, who is still likely third on the depth chart at the position, Franklin said he's done "a great job" and reminds him of former linebacker Jan Johnson.
"I think he's gonna have a huge special teams role for us this year," Franklin said of Dwyer.
TRANSFER TALK
Penn State has had two players enter the transfer portal in the past week -- sophomore running back Caziah Holmes and true freshman defensive end Ken Talley, who stunned everyone by leaving before his first game with the Lions.
The Holmes decision seems perfectly understandable, given the depth Penn State has at running back with Keyvone Lee, Devyn Ford and true freshmen Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen.
"I don't necessarily see it having a huge impact on kind of where we were trending, which is probably why it happened," Franklin said of Holmes' decision to transfer.
"I don't think it's too far out of what we expected, and how things played out, obviously, whether it's him or other guys, we obviously want nothing but the best for them and their futures. It's a very different college football (than) we all grew up with, but it's part of the process now."
The Talley news was shocking because he had been such a key part of Penn State's recruiting class.
Franklin was asked if Talley's decision to transfer was made by the player or the team.
“I don’t get into the specifics with any of these things," Franklin said. "I don’t think it would be appropriate for me to talk about any of these guys and the specifics and why they’re leaving. That’s their personal business. We want them to leave and go on and be successful. It didn’t work out for a variety of reasons.”
LOVE FOR LEE
There's a lot of buzz about the younger running backs, but Penn State does have a two-year starter returning in Lee.
"Keyvone's probably better than what he gets credit for," Franklin said.
"There's a lot left in the tank for Keyvone. ... He's taken a big step and will have a chance to show that this year."
KEEPING PLAYERS HAPPY
Franklin had some interesting things to say about how to keep players happy in the era of the transfer portal, which allows them to leave with no consequences if they want to.
The coach said you can really only keep about 25 guys perfectly happy -- the starters on offense, defense and special teams. Beyond that, "You're always gonna have a portion of the team that wants more."
The key, Franklin believes, is to try and be transparent with each player and not to overpromise anything during the recruiting process with regards to playing time.
"I think we lose some recruits because of that," Franklin said, adding that the coaches "don't tell them what they want to hear" sometimes when it comes to promises or guarantees.
"I wish that that was embraced more (by recruits)," Franklin said, adding that players say they want the truth, but then don't really want the truth when it's not what they want to hear.
QB STUFF
Bringing on a new defensive coordinator in Manny Diaz and showing different things on that side of the ball in practice has helped Sean Clifford, Franklin said.
He praised Clifford for having a high football I.Q., and now that he gets to see new stuff from the defense every day, it benefits his development.
It also sounds, as expected, like Christian Veilleux will be the No. 2 QB entering the season, over freshman Drew Allar. Franklin mentioned that they have a veteran quarterback and a guy (Veilleux) who has already played some in the Big Ten, so there aren't as many question marks entering this season, compared to last.
TEAM BONDING
The players had a special team bonding day with games and activities such as laser tag inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
Franklin has always liked to have one of those kinds of days during camp to help the players get a little break and enjoy the experience.
