All 105 is a Nittany Sorts Now series profiling each Penn State football player. In this edition, we will be taking a look at Minnesota transfer running back Trey Potts.
Height: 5-foot-9
Weight: 218 pounds
Hometown: Williamsport, Pennsylvania
Before Penn State: Potts is a PA guy who was a star at Williamsport High School. In just 31 games, Potts ended his prep career with 3,490 yards and 59 touchdowns on 347 carries. Potts’s best season came as a sophomore, where he picked up more than 2,000 yards 34 touchdowns on 187 carries.
In his senior season, Potts only played in five games, but in that time, picked up 580 yards and three touchdowns on 68 carries. A consensus three-star recruit, Potts committed to Minnesota in June 2018 ahead of his senior season.
2019: Potts scored his first touchdown against Maryland Oct. 26.
2020: Potts ended the season with 121 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries (5.0 YPC).
2021: Potts had his best college season to date. Having to pick up the slack after starter Mohamed Ibrahim suffered a season-ending injury Week 1 against Ohio State, Potts finished with 552 yards and six touchdowns on 112 carries (4.9 YPC).
2022: With Ibrahim back in the fold, Potts’s stats regressed from the year before, but he still contributed for the Gophers. Potts ended his last season in Minneapolis with 474 yards and three touchdowns on 101 carries (4.7 YPC).
Potts entered the transfer portal this past March and committed to Penn State the next month.
Where he stands: Potts is giving Penn State something it lacked for most of last season: A solid No. 3 running back.
It’s easy to forget because then-freshmen Nick Singleton (1,061 yards, 12 touchdowns, 156 carries) and Kaytron Allen (867 yards, 10 touchdowns, 167 carries) were so good, but there wasn’t much depth behind those two. In a perfect world, veteran Keyvone Lee would have been Penn State’s RB3, but Lee was hurt for much of 2022. Fortunately, Singleton and Allen stayed healthy for the whole season, but had something happened to one of them, walk-on Tank Smith would have had to step in.
If all goes well for Penn State, Singleton and Allen will be healthy again in 2023 and continue to cause problems for Big Ten defenses. But should something go wrong, Potts gives Penn State a solid option to step in.
A quote by Potts: “It was kind of a long time coming. There were some staff changes and with graduation this spring I would already have my degree, and my opportunities were kind of open. I love Minnesota, love the school, love everything they’ve done for me, but I felt like the most beneficial next step in my career would be a change. I decided to go experience something new.” — Potts to Lions247 on his transfer to Penn State.
A quote about Potts: “We changed his body. He was a little probably too heavy, but that’s how (Minnesota) wanted him in that system. Here, we want him to be a little bit light, because we’re playing more with a zone scheme, with multiplicity in the offense, where it was more downhill (at Minnesota). They’re going to mash you and play in tight holes and bounce when you need to. I know that offensive look with having (offensive coordinator) Kirk (Ciarrocca) here (at Penn State).” — RB coach Ja’Juan Seider on Potts at a coaches media availability in June.
