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Penn State Football

Penn State Football All 105 No. 3: Liam the Last Clifford Left

Penn State Nittany Lions wide receiver Liam Clifford (82) November 12, 2022 David Hague/NSN

Welcome to All 105, a Nittany Sports Now series profiling each Penn State football player. The series’ third article of this offseason profiles third-year receiver Liam Clifford.

Before Penn State: Clifford, the younger brother of former Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford, played at St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, becoming a team captain for his senior season in 2020. Clifford led the Greater Catholic South Conference in all receiving categories his senior season and earned the league’s Player of the Year honors. The year before that, he was the Greater Catholic South’s co-Receiver of the Year. Clifford was a three-star recruit according to 247Sports’ composite ratings and committed to Penn State in October of his junior season.
2021: Clifford redshirted his first season at Penn State.

Last year: Clifford finished the year with eight receptions for 89 yards and no touchdowns. But 2022 was best known for what he accomplished away from football. He and his older brother helped launched Limitless NIL, a collective run to “build cutting edge brands and business relationships designed for the world of NIL,” according to its website. The collective has signed more than 50 athletes since launching last March.  The Clifford’s sold Limitless to TEAM in February, but the two are still involved with the organization.
Both Clifford’s are likely to be successful well after football if their business keeps growing.
Where he stands: Penn State’s losing its top two receivers from 2022. Parker Washington (46 catches, 611 yards, two touchdowns) declared for the Draft in December. Mitchell Tinsley (51 catches, 577 yards, five touchdowns) used his last year of college eligibility last season. Even with those two gone, there is still enough depth in Penn State’s receivers room that it will be tough for Clifford to get a lot of playing time without injuries or other unforeseen circumstances. Guys like KeAndre Lambert-Smith, Dante Cephas and Malik McClain are all talented and projected to be big targets for new QB Drew Allar. Clifford’s best chance to get playing time for Penn State is in the slot, where Penn State will need to replace Washington. Second-year receiver Kaden Saunders, a former four-star signee, is also in the slot, and will likely start there if healthy.

A quote from Clifford: Did Liam Clifford ever think that, after just one year of college, he’d be talking business with CEOs of Fortune 500 companies?

“To be honest, no,” he said with a laugh at Penn State’s second-year player media availability last May. “I never would have thought that. But I’m just fortunate to be able to now. I think it’s been really cool. It’s been a cool experience, and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I’ve had so much fun in the last few months working on this. Especially doing it with my brother. It’s been awesome.l

A quote about Clifford: “He’s a very focused young man who works his tail off,” then-wide receivers coach Taylor Stubblefield said ahead of the 2021 season.

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