Penn State's battle at right tackle taking shape

With Penn State fully underway in fall camp now, position battles will be key to watch before the Nittany Lions travel to Morgantown, W.Va., at the end of the month. Coach James Franklin provided an update at an important spot Thursday night.

Redshirt freshman Anthony Donkoh and redshirt junior Nolan Rucci are in a “battle” for the starting position at right tackle, while adding “Swiss army knife” JB Nelson will factor into the position in some way. It’s an important spot and one of the few on the offensive line that remains largely unknown, following the departure of New England Patriots draft pick Caedan Wallace.

Donkoh played in four games last season, including significant time at right tackle in the Peach Bowl against Ole Miss. The former four-star prospect handled himself quite well while on the field, and though he was a little banged up in the spring, Donkoh has a bright future ahead of him.

“What Donkoh was able to do as a true freshman was pretty impressive,” Franklin said after Thursday’s practice.

Rucci, meanwhile, is the former five-star, in-state prospect who got away from Penn State’s grasp. Now back in Pennsylvania with the Lions, Rucci has worked this offseason to add weight, which plagued him a bit at Wisconsin. He’s up to 317 pounds to fill out his legitimate 6-8 frame.

Franklin referred to Rucci as “Steady Eddie” through his time in the program thus far.

“A lot of times with O-linemen, if you don’t notice them, it’s a good thing. He’s just kind of doing his job and getting better,” Franklin said. “I think he’s gotten comfortable with the weight that he’s put on, and then finding that sweet spot of what the right weight is for him to play so that he’s got a chance to block Abdul (Carter) and also Dani (Dennis-Sutton), which are two very different types of players.”

Nelson has eight starts under his belt since transferring from Lackawanna College, mostly at left guard. But the staff has utilized him pretty much everywhere on the line except center, and he could wind up as a sort of super backup for Penn State this year. He was viewed as a tackle when he first committed to Franklin’s staff.

“We’re very pleased with JB. We think he’s got a very, very bright future,” Franklin said. “He’ll factor in as well.”