Penn State beat Maryland 44-7 despite not having a key piece of its offense, and coach James Franklin addressed that topic to reporters in a pre-Big Ten Championship Game Zoom presser.
Harrison “Trey” Wallace III, who has been Penn State’s top receiver, showed up as “questionable” on the Big Ten’s injury report.
He ended up not playing against Maryland.
Penn State didn’t need him to pound Maryland. But it could probably use its best receiver against the No. 1 team in the country. As usual, Franklin didn’t definitively say whether or not Wallace would play but he did give some insight.
WHAT FRANKLIN SAID
Photo by Matt Lynch, Nittany Sports Now: James Franklin
“Trey tweaked something during the week and was not able to go, but we’re hopeful he’ll be able to go this week,” Franklin said. “Too early to tell, but was unable to go this past week.”
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.On the season, Wallace has 35 catches for 579 yards and three touchdowns.
He’s second to superstar tight end Tyler Warren among Penn State’s pass catchers in receptions and yards and leads Penn State’s wide receivers in both categories. Wallace had the best game of his career Week 1, catching five passes for 117 yards and two scores— all in the first half— in a 34-12 win at West Virginia. He also had a big game against Washington Nov. 9, catching five passes for 84 yards in a 35-6 win.
REGARDLESS OF WALLACE, RECEIVERS NEED TO STEP UP
James Franklin and Julian Fleming during pregame warmups.
Penn State’s passing game has been a lot of QB Drew Allar and TE Tyler Warren. Although the receivers have shown flashes— three have gone over 100 yards at some point in the season— fans still want to see more. Next to Wallace, Penn State’s next highest-performing receiver, Omari Evans, has 338 yards and three touchdowns on 18 catches, with more than a third of than coming against a Kent State team that hasn’t won a game since 2022.
Penn State takes on Oregon in the Big Ten Championship, scheduled for 8:00 on Fox in Indianapolis.
