Julian Fleming not starting? These are Penn State football's biggest training camp battles...

wide receiver all of the cornerback spots both starting tackle spots there are a lot of position groups that have key battles for Penn State as training camp is set to begin you are locked on nitty Lions your daily podcast on the Penn State nitty Lions part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day happy first day of training camp to all of those who sell this is locked on nitty Lions I your host Zach Seiko and thanks so much for making us your first listen and watch every single day we are free and available wherever you get your podcast including YouTube and Today's Show is brought to you by FanDuel make every moment more as the playoffs wind down the Sports Stop sportsing like we want them to but this summer FanDuel is hooking up all of its customers with a boost or a bonus daily that's right there's something for everyone every day all summer long Visa fanduel.com to get started talking about position battles just identifying them on offense defense special teams as Penn State is officially one month away from West Virginia and the depth chart still isn't exactly sorted out let's jump into it I'll start on the offensive side I feel like I'm going to go from most important or some of the most important position battles to least important or not as concerning wide receiver number two and Slot wide receiver since your passing game was well below average and you made an offensive coordinator change to correct some of these issues you still don't have wide receiver to figured out or the slot wide receiver and I know what people are thinking well let's just assume it's Julian Fleming right not the case not the case Amari Evans is going to be battling for that second wide receiver position the only one that is really safe is Trey Wallace Mari Evans and Julian Fleming are going to be competing for wide receiver number two and then the slot wide receiver that could either go to a Liam Clifford or Caden Saunders and I'm not really here to make predictions just yet again training camp is just officially underway today here on the last day of July but just identifying these battles so Julian Fleming comes in as a five star and Amari Evans has always been that underrated three star high upside but he's a Speedster and why he's in contention for the second wide receiver spot is because of that speed element he's much faster than Julian Fleming Julian Fleming obviously brings that festar potential veteran experience the Run blocking which was certainly needed so I can't pick a winner here even to begin training camp because I feel like both these wide receivers are needed I feel like both of them need to split reps because you need that run blocking element from Julian Fleming at times you also need Amari evans's speed to take the top off of a defense to add those explosive plates so I think this is really dependent on formation Play Type both both players provide different skill sets that you need and yes you could hypothetically have them both on the field at the same time but if we're talking about who's that complimentary receiver to Trey Wallace on the boundary either Mari Evans or Julian Fleming they are going to be going at at it for the wide receiver number two spot for wide receiver three or slot wide receiver I don't really consider the slot the third wide receiver but that's what most people uh kind of indicate that as but it's Kaden Saunders and Liam Clifford this is Shing up to be another 50/50 type of battle we'll see who is the true winner and it might be better if both of them end up seeing split reps I think that's better for the team in general now o over the course of I I guess all of 2023 and in Winter workouts and a little bit of Spring ball here so it's been a while no recent Intel but the indicator has always been that Liam Clifford has been the leader in this potential battle it's not that Kaden Saunders is far behind or wouldn't be able to catch up but it's always Liam Clifford would have the nod to be the next slot receiver over a Caden Saunders here so again that Intel comes a little further back a lot can change over the summer and everything else and of course going into training camp where these battles are truly decided we'll flip over to the defense because Penn State not only has one quarterback spot two but three starting Corners that are moving on to the NFL you lose kin King Dayan Hardy and Johnny Dixon and now you got to replace all of them you went to the transfer portal to get AJ Harris he is going to be battling for that number one cornerback spot but I think it's fair to say that cam Miller would be in that battle as well to be that primary boundary Corner that either Shadows the number one wide receiver or takes away a boundary for Penn State whatever they decide to do schematically for Tom Allen's defense I think AJ Harris is going to be the first quarterback just because he has traits that are close to what a Joey Porter J J did where you just you can isolate him you don't have to worry about safety help and that's why you bring in a player like AJ Harris who was a top 50 Prospect Once Upon a Time in the nation and committed to Georgia so I think and all of the Intel coming away from Spring football is that AJ Harris is that guy for cornerback number two this is where you have Jaylen Kimber and if Cam Miller doesn't win the number one cornerback spot that Penn State likes to operate and I think this will continue the way that they did with Manny Diaz Tom Allen probably adopt it as well where they have a cornerback 2A and a 2B on the boundary so like they did with a Johnny Dixon and Ain King when Joey Porter Jr was there at Penn State before he got drafted by the Steelers you are going to have a similar sense here where you have Jaylen Kimber and cam Miller almost splitting boundaries on the other side of the football field now here's where it really gets interesting here Penn State has a lot of safeties that they can play so that third quarterback spot is normally going to go who's the slot cornerback my my choice or at least the a battle for playing time here aavan Collins has been receiving High Praise rave reviews and I think he'll be able to back that up with with a training camp remember he came over from Mississippi State in the transfer portal and was almost like a wait and see kind of thing or a sit and wait your turn type of deal for Collins and he has really progressed nicely here from what we've gathered from the coaching staff so Adavan Collins would be one of the choices for that slot cornerback spot I think a cam Miller you know any of those guys will kind of rotate in but Jaylen Reed and KJ Winston make this very interesting because zacki Wheatley is going to be your starting free safety and you don't just bench Jaylen Reed or KJ Winston just because they both play the same position you create an additional position to accommodate them so that's where the conversation around the 425 has been really I is starting to trend for Penn State because they just have too many good players at the safety spot but oh quarterbacks are better at covering in the past than safeties not not necessarily this lion position that's going to be in Tom Allen's defense is going to be specifically crafted for a Jaylen Reed for a KJ Winston and those two guys can cover as well they're not liabilities they're not just hard-hitting safeties extra pseudo linebackers in this case so that's where a slot cornerback May that the the position battle theirs in itself if do you keep Jaylen Reed on the field and I think you do or do you bring in an aavan Collins to help out and you can always run six defensive backs as well I don't think Penn State is going to box itself in to one type of secondary look but that's that's the position battles at cornerback because you have all the vacancies from a season ago that's what it's going to look like here to start training camp still to come linebacker number two who's going to be that if they run a 425 primarily who is that second linebacker next to Kobe King also your starting offensive tackles you lost both Kaden Wallace and Olu fashu is that a big question mark who could end up factoring into those competitions that's coming up next here on lock down n lons and today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel I love sports I love them so much that I never want them to stop but as the playoffs wind down we get fewer games and the sports aren't sportting like I want them to but FanDuel lets me keep the sports going whenever I want all I have to do is open up the app and dream up bets anytime I'm in the mood and this summer FanDuel is hooking up all of its customers with a boost or a bonus daily that's right there's something for everyone every day all summer long so head over to fanduel.com and start making the most out of your summer and if you look over at fanduel.com you can see some major league baseball lines now the Pirates and the Phillies are off for Thursday but you could bet on the Cardinals in the cup that's a pretty close game with the Cardinals being minus 104 on the money line and the total set at eight the Rockies are on the road against the Angels they are plus 102 on the money line as a slight Underdog with the total set at nine if you like those lines you can bet on all of that and more right now at fanduel.com once again that's FanDuel an official sports betting partner of Major League Baseball as a reminder to all of you watching and listening please let me know down in the comments section which position battles you think are key for Penn State going into the game against West Virginia and if you want to add any predictions as well early predictions for Penn State West Virginia I'd love to hear them now going back to linebacker number two before we get to the offensive tackles and there's still a lot of key rotational roles backups that we'll cover in the third segment linebacker number two is important because especially if the base defense is going to be that 425 with KJ Winston and jayen Reed as two safeties in addition to Zack Wheatley on the football field who's going to be that second linebacker Dom Duca Tony Roos Tyler ellon don't forget about guys like Kavon Keys Tamir Robinson that are just starting to come into their own now as they are in their second season with Penn State I think Dom Duca and Tony roas are going to lead the way as far as the competition goes I don't I think Kavon Keys is a long shot I think he'll play more but he's not going to be an instant impact starter if you will everybody is looking to Tony Roos and Dom duuk has been that veteran he's going to be a captain on special teams again as he was last season so it makes sense I wouldn't be surprised if again another situation where you just rotate them in to keep fresh legs Kobe King is a three- down linebacker I don't think he's leaving that Mike linebacker spot but who's going to be separate to him who's going to be next to him more often than not look for ad d deuca a Tony Roos to compete I think both of I I think both of them add different kind of skill sets kind of like Amari Evans and Julian Fleming here where you have Dom Duca more of a run stuffer a physical presence and then Tony Roos who can you know not necessarily be overmatched by a tight end speed or maybe he can stick with the slot receiver for a moment depending on what kind of play is being called Tony Roos offers a little more speed here but I'm going to side with football intelligence when it comes to D deuca simply because he is a veteran but that's a battle to watch who is going to play in that second linebacker spot next to Kobe King in that 425 defense don't count out Tyler ellon he's going to factor into playing time as well I I think that's going to be your for and people can back up Kobe King too it's not that Kobe King is never going to come off of the field but I think you got to look at who's going to be the starting second linebacker and then after that who's going to rotate in frequently a Tyler ellon aabon Keys potentially AIA Robinson as well Penn State's linebacker dep wet unproven there there's still a lot to like about it from these previous recruiting classes and then over to starting tackle as we flip it back over to the offense so the offensive line is my biggest concern going into this season uh linebacker there is a question mark and is further down the totem pole as far as the strongest position groups for Penn State but offensive line when you lose old L fashion or you lose hunter NORAD you lose Kad Wallace and that was what we found out very quality NFL talent and the offensive line was average at best sometimes a little bit above average at times but there really wasn't that they they weren't a sound strength for the team and then you lose all this NFL caliber Talent it's okay I I've admitted this other times I look at this group and I and I think it's good quality College talent but I'm not looking up and down this list of available names and saying okay who's going to be drafted in the near future by an NFL team do I think they can play any of these guys can play way and and this is across the board from left tackle to right tackle everything in between but focusing on the tackles themselves right so that's that's why it's concerning to me so tackles especially when you want to keep Drew Aller upright and healthy Drew Shelton going at it for that starting left tackle spot Javin Williams is going to factor in here's kind of that I I don't necessarily want to identify him as a sleeper choice because as I start to go through these position battles a little further I like JB Nelson to be that starting left tackle because of what Penn State has available at guard versatility is very important so that if there is an injury if there is bumps and bruises if there are bumps and bruises you can end up moving guys over back and forth to where you have the best available players at each position but I don't know that Drew Shelton is a better option at left tackle than JB Nelson Shelton came in played admirably as a true freshman at the end of the season when Olu fashu was hurt in in his third in second season second season as a starter there before he returned and then ultimately got drafted by the Jets Drew Shelton was was okay for for a freshman right you could admire that performance then he's battled injuries here and there and Shelton just hasn't looked as polished as a true left tackle as you wanted him to be that's why they tried to swing him over to the right tackle spot at least light a flame under the seat of Kaden Wallace since Wallace had struggled at times over his career then really solidified himself so that competition move was smart by Penn State and particularly you know Phil troutwine to make that decision but if Shelton's going to move back over to left tackle and be that primary blocker I don't know how much confidence I have in him to be the starter that's where JB Nelson who has been that L that left guard that starting left guard for Penn State primarily over the P of last year I think he could kick out the tackle and we've heard that from James Franklin that Nelson can be a tackle he has that capability that is a sleeper pick that I ultimately think will happen just just because JB Nelson I think is a better overall offensive lineman at left tackle but that's the battle to watch I think quietly it's going to be Drew Shelton Javin Williams with JB Nelson in there as well because you have VGA Yan playing for that left guard spot and Sal Wormley returns as the six-year veteran so you don't just you don't just bench him people have said Center is a potential battle as much as I like Cooper cousins and I think he will factor into playing time and rotate in and he has versatility I think Nick Dawkins is going to be your starter so I don't really see that as a camp battle it's more figuring out how much time will Cooper cousins how many times how many snaps will he play throughout the season then over at right tackle Nolan Ruchi transfers in maybe he could f i I don't know that we need to base this off of left and right I feel like you're just going to have tackle battles at this point because Anthony Dono played an amazing peach bow one one of the few right because that was an absolute train wreck but if you had to pick a player out of the bunch it was Anthony Dono had one of the best performances in that game for Penn State against Old Miss and you have to think he's going to be able to roll that into this season talking to Landon Tang wall when we did an offensive line preview and he is very high on Anthony Dono as he compared him to Olo fashion who said that his development is on par U fashu has said himself Landon tangwell quoted him that's saying that fashu was very impressed with the way that t that uh Dono has developed so Dono is going to battle Nolan Ruchi for that right Tackle Spot most likely and if he ends up being the best out of all the tackles available who's to say that Anthony danco doesn't end up being that left tackle but I think just because of the way he is more he is more athletic I would say he's more sound as a run blocker I'd feel more comfortable with him on the right side of the line of scrimmage versus the left tackle spot but these guys are almost position if you will it they you're going to have two starting tackle battles one person's going to protect the Blind Side of Durer the other's going to Anchor the front side there but those are the position battles that are key at for Penn State especially at this Tackle Spot when you lose a first round pick and a third round pick in fashu and Kaden Wallace we'll finish up with some of the backup rotational players tit number two who's behind Tyler Warren running back number three behind KRON Allen and Nicholas Singleton backup defensive end starting Place kicker that's coming up next here on lock on nney lions and today's episode is also brought to you by ibata are you taking that dream vacation this summer but you're dreading the cost with ibata you get cash back on all of your purchases so you can spend more time making memories this summer and less time dreaming about them ibata is a free app that lets you earn cash back every time you shop you can earn hundreds on items on groceries to Beauty Supplies even toys so you can make the most so you can so you can make sure you're beating inflation no matter what you're purchasing the average ibata user earns $256 per year that could cover the cost of an entire shopping trip that flight you've been eyeing or a fancy dinner you've been craving right now ibought it is is offering our listeners $5 for Trying ibata by using the code locked on College when you register all you got to do is go to the App Store the Google Play Store and download it for free the ibata app to start earning cash back and use that code locked on college that is IBO TTA in the Google Play or the App Store and use promo code locked on College today's episode is brought to you by Factor meals warmer sunnier days are calling and you can fill fuel up for them with actors no prep No Mess meals you can meet your Wellness goals in time for the end of summer thanks to the menu of Chef crafted meals with options like calorie smart Protein Plus and keto factors fresh never frozen meals are dietician approved and are ready to eat in Just 2 minutes so no matter how busy you are you'll always have time to enjoy nutritious great tasting meals so if you're like me you're not a fan of cooking but you want healthy and tasty meals Factor meals are the way to go head over to factor meals.com loock on50 and use that code locked on College 50 to get 50% off your first box plus 20% off the next month that's code locked on College 50 at factor meals.com lockon col5 to get 50% off your first box plus 20% off your next month while your subscription is active I think it's fair to begin this final segment with Place kicker and then go to some of the other rotational battles the backups because Place kicker is for a starting position battle Sanders sahak was originally the starter and then Alex Falcons ultimately took over fulltime remember sahak came out and was the first kicker available and then ultimately falcons as a transfer came in and won the job early in the season and never look back now Chase Meyer comes into the conversation I'll give you a sleep pick potentially this isn't just between sahak and Chase Meyer I think Ryan Barker could actually factor in to being the starting Place kicker this season Barker one of the top kickers in the nation when he was a cruit not too long ago because Sanders aak how reliable is he Chase Meyer comes over from a smaller school he kicked at Tulsa kicked at upen as well and was good but he hasn't been a consistent power four kicker Sanders sedek has been there has been here for years obviously didn't transfer so he's going to factor into this position in battle and I think most people are going to assume that he leads this one it's truly a tossup and that's why I throw Ryan Barker into the conversation because I don't think he's far behind here I think I I would not be surprised if Barker ends up winning the place kicker position battle there for Penn State it is truly a wideopen competition I and they brought in Chase Meyer for that exact reason because Place kicker isn't a sure thing here was the same thing with Alex Falcons it wasn't a sure thing last year Falcons anchored it down we'll see if that's Chase Meyer we'll see if Ryan Barker has developed enough since his time from high school or if Sanders a sahak has become a little more comfortable here being that first place kicker tight end number two for Penn State we know that Tyler Warren's going to be tight end number one there's really no splitting reps here anymore where it was overly crowded Brent strange Theo Johnson Tyler Warren that time share then Theo Johnson and Tyler Warren now it's Warren and everybody else first up is probably going to be khil denin but I have said throughout winter workouts Spring football that khil denkins isn't the sure guy as that second tight end because of how much potential Andrew Rapa has and we can't forget about Luke Reynolds a former five star who enrolled early is at least going to throw his hat into the ring as well it's not a given I will see how training camp unfolds I've heard a lot of positive Intel about Andrew Rapa I will continue to think and believe that he will be the second starting tight end Maybe by week four maybe khil Dinkins wins early in the season and then Andrew Rapa kind of quietly takes over in week four or five it it's another one of those cases where the more the marrier if you split reps at that second tight end spot it's not a bad thing I think khil denin and Andrew Rapa are right there but I would slightly favor Rapa in this case that's a position battle to certainly watch running back number three okay so we know Nicholas Singleton KRON Allen are your co-starters they're a 1A 1B so who is your third running back that's going to be left up to cam Wallace who was receiving a lot of recognition in last year's training camp was quietly pushing Trey pots for the third running back spot well Trey pot is gone so it would naturally make sense for the red shirt freshman cam Wallace to ascend and become that third running back but it's Quinton Martin who makes this interesting true freshman enrolled early he's just so they just want to get him on the football field a as a pure athlete there's been discussions about potentially moving him to wide receiver if they don't feel good about that position group that that's how good Quint Martin is that well we don't really like what we have at wide receiver we feel good about cam Wallace complimenting Nicholas Singleton and KRON Allen that will move Martin out to wide receiver and try to figure things out from there ginton Martin is that good I think he's that future running back youu for Penn State after Singleton and Allen move on but him and Wallace has a one-two punch in a year's time will will be good that's not going to be a significant drop off of course that's going to be tough to replace what Singleton and Allen have given Penn State over the past two seasons but Wallace and Martin I think will be a good dynamic duo in their own right in due time but that's running back number three Cory Smith I think is really on the outside looking in just because he enrolled over the summer and didn't have that extra Advantage with winter workout Spring football and then there is backup defensive end so it's not really the saving the best for last kind of thing there's just so many there's so many position battles here in training camp J Lions Aman vanover Smith vilbert the way that Penn State likes to operate they had chop Robinson Adisa Isaac and then that rotational defensive end so Deni Dennis Sutton was that last year where he backed up chop Robinson where he backed up Adisa Isaac he kind of rotated in as that third defensive end Jam Lions same thing that I'm kind of hearing when it comes to like silently like a Liam Clifford or an Anthony Dono as hey here's a sleeper player that could probably have a breakout season in Andrew Rapa Jam Lions falls under that category as well so now you have Abdul Carter and Deni Dennis Sutton being those defensive ends who's going to be that swing defensive end that is able to rot in for the two of them and when they go three pass rushers like that with that formation Jam Lions is probably someone that's going to be coming in as an extra pass rusher specialist but that's not to say that am me vanover Smith vilbert who returns from a long hiat since he had three sacks in the outback B can you believe that felt like ages ago Smith vilbert is back after that performance against Arkansas and showed a lot of potential right who's to say that he couldn't factor in and be that player as well remember Zariah fiser is banged up there is optimism that he will return sooner rather than later but if he was fully healthy he would factor into this rotation as well so assume that Abdul Carter and deny Dennis Sutton are your one-w punch at defensive end j Lions is going to be that swing potentially That Swing defensive end but Zariah Fischer Amin vanover all of those guys are going to contend for that spot don't forget about Smith vilbert those guys are all going to factor in to C A a good amount of playing time as rotational defensive ends behind Carter and Dennis Sutton that's going to do it for this edition of locked on nitty Lions again down in the comments let me know which position battles you think are the most important give some of your predictions who you think will win some of them and we'll discuss more about training camp we're going to get some Intel we're going to get some footage interviews all of that more as training camp has started media day is around the corner and we are exactly one month away from Penn State versus West Virginia and for more Penn State football content be sure to keep it right here un locked on nitty lions and again thanks so much for making locked on nitty Lions your first listen and watch every single day if you're not already becoming everyday or subscribed to lock on nit lines on YouTube and wherever you get your podcast for the latest conversations around your favorite Penn State sports teams and for your second listen enjoy locked on college football hosted by Spencer mlin I've been a guest on the show multiple times he's going to get you ready for an exciting season on the red Iron discussing the upcoming season and the everchanging landscape of college football nil conference realignment transfer Portal game previews the new expanded college football playoffs and so much more again that is locked on college football now available on YouTube and wherever you get your podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team each and every day