Kotelnicki: Penn State receivers, previously a ‘scapegoat,’ now ready to overachieve
Andy Kotelnicki understood the narrative upon his arrival to the Penn State football program. Taking over a Nittany Lions offense that was unable to produce much of a threat against its best opponents in 2023, necessary improvements were straightforward.
Chief among them, he heard, Penn State had receiver issues.
The Nittany Lions had just one wideout to finish with more than 25 receptions last year in a passing offense that ended the campaign ranked No. 77 at just 215 yards per game. An easy weakness to identify and criticize for its sheer lack of production, the group endured months of pointed disparagement.
But, Kotelnicki wasn’t completely buying it. Immediately approaching the job with a clean mindset and a deep dive into all of the film from the 2023 campaign, the offensive coordinator instead formed a markedly different opinion.
“Coming in, people were talking about Drew (Allar) in the quarterback room, the line. And then you think about the running backs and tight ends. There was some depth in those two rooms. And then they’re talking about receivers,” Kotelnicki told BWI. “I think they’ve unfairly become the brunt of the reason there was limited success, if you want to call it that, or there was a ceiling.
“I think those guys are going to overachieve next year in everyone’s eyes. And I feel confident saying that. So, that’s my evaluation of them, especially after being with them through the spring.”
Assessing Penn State’s receivers
Crucially, Kotelnicki’s comments include an important caveat. Made in June, two months removed from the transfer portal departure of KeAndre Lambert-Smith, the absence of last year’s top target has not dissuaded that opinion.
“It’s Penn State,” he said. “There are guys who are fast enough, big enough, good enough to help us be successful. I think they’re going to surprise people. I feel very confident saying that. And we need them to, so we’re going to make that happen.”
At the forefront of that effort, Trey Wallace stands apart as the top returning piece from last season. His 19 catches for 228 yards and a touchdown were accumulated in just seven games played in an injury-plagued campaign.
Complementing him, Liam Clifford, Omari Evans, and Kaden Saunders each added limited contributions. A class of receivers now entering their third (Evans and Saunders) and fourth (Clifford) seasons, respectively, they’re joined by another veteran performer in transfer fifth-year Julian Fleming.
Meanwhile, a trio of Tyler Johnson, Anthony Ivey, and Mehki Flowers, with virtually no game experience among them, will look to make a mark at the position. So too will true freshmen Peter Gonzalez and Tyseer Denmark.
Developing a plan
Collectively, the group runs the gamut of size and speed, with Penn State head coach James Franklin repeatedly praising its talent this offseason. And, with those pieces, Kotelnicki has a plan with which to make the most of that palette.
“They’re gonna be a diverse group. It’ll be a committee, most likely,” Kotelnicki said. “But, we have players that all can do certain things at a high level.”
He said this ties into a philosophical contrast he often makes between the NFL, high school, and college football. Compared to comparatively limited roster sizes at the levels above and below the college game, the evolution, growth, and tweaking of offensive schemes are passed on in favor of the college game’s more simplistic personnel solutions.
“(College football is) totally overrun by systems. You play left outside receiver, you play our tailback, you play the Y, you’re our slot receiver, you’re the right outside receiver. And this is what our system is. And the system is the system and you need to fit the system,” Kotelnicki said. “If not, don’t worry. We have 85 scholarships and 120 kids on our roster we can find someone that will do it. You can’t play our outside receiver left? Slide you over, make room for this guy. Oh, he can’t do it? Okay, next one. And now we’ve had the portal that makes it even more likely.
“It’s easy to not ever have to change it or evolve it. And you have all the numbers to make it okay, to make it good enough, at least in most people’s minds. But, if we’re trying to win these kinds of games that we’re talking about, you have to go beyond that. And it’s profound when you think about it.”
Next steps
As the 2024 season quickly approaches, Kotelnicki’s confidence is not without complementing qualifiers, though. Pleased by the progress made thus far within the room of assistant Marques Hagans, Franklin remains steadfast this summer that the program has the talent in place for production.
Echoing his comments after the Blue-White Game in April, Franklin insisted that the group’s potential can only be met with continued dedication and significant strides before the start of the Nittany Lions’ campaign.
“I’ve never questioned the talent that we have in that room,” he said. “But, there needs to be a significant step this year, that not only are they a big-time unit, but one of the better units in our conference. That’s what our whole offseason is about, that’s what training camp is going to be about, that’s early in the season, what that’s going to be about is because I think with success, that this unit can take off.
“Talent’s not our issue. Measurables; speed, strength, those types of things, our room probably matches up with the best receiver rooms in the country. But, we got to produce and we got to do it.”
A public show of support paired with motivation, the next steps for the Nittany Lions receivers are straightforward.
Needing toughness, execution, and a morale boost, paired with Kotelnicki’s plans, Penn State is confident its receivers can get the job done.
“They were the scapegoat for everybody. I don’t want to blame the players. I think that group will overachieve and surprise people, I really do,” said Kotelnicki. “And I know that’s gonna happen because they’re good enough to win us football games.”
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