Why Penn State is in desperate need of offensive reinforcements after deep College Football Playoff run

With the 2024 college football season now officially over, it’s time to start looking forward to what’s to come in the 2025 season. For Penn State, that means looking to improve one key position.

In the Nittany Lions' final game of the season, a 27-24 loss against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinal, there were a lot of disappointments for the Nittany Lions.

None were more glaring than the deficiency at the wide receiver position.

In that game, the Nittany Lions had exactly zero receivers catch a ball, instead only running backs and tight ends recorded receptions.

And now, with Penn State’s best pass catcher in TE Tyler Warren declaring for the 2025 NFL Draft and with both of Penn State’s best wide receivers, Harrison Wallace III and Omari Evans, both entering the transfer portal, the Nittany Lions have a lot of work to do to get QB Drew Allar some suitable weapons.

For much of the 2024 season, fans knew that the weak link of Penn State’s offense was its wide receivers, something that is not uncommon for Penn State. This weakness proved to be the Achilles heel of the Nittany Lions in that Semifinal loss.

Warren finished the 2024 season with 1,233 reception yards, more than Wallace and Evans’ combined number of 1,135 yards. Warren also dominated with 104 receptions. The next three closest guys combined for just 108 receptions. Warren led the Nittany Lions with eight receiving TDs in 2024, no other guy had more than five.

Warren alone is a massive loss to this underwhelming and largely one-dimensional Penn State passing attack, so without him, and without Penn State’s next two leading receivers heading into this upcoming season, there’s no more important need for Penn State heading into 2025 than some talent at the wide receiver position.