Making a case for JT Daniels to Penn State

You’re probably reading this and thinking, “Sean Clifford is coming back and Drew Allar is coming in.” As far fetched as it seems, why not explore the possibility of it actually happening. Former USC and Georgia quarterback JT Daniels entered the transfer portal following Georgia’s run to its first national championship since 1980, and he remains out there on the transfer market. Could Penn State legitimately be a potential transfer option for Daniels?

I mean, the Wisconsin Badgers have emerged as a serious contender for former Oklahoma quarterback Caleb Williams. The Badgers! This is a team that has no history of producing NFL-caliber quarterbacks (This does not include Russell Wilson, who was not initially recruited by the Badgers).

After Jaxson Dart entered the transfer portal, Williams received multiple crystal ball predictions to USC. The Trojans seem like the obvious choice for Williams, right? But, what if he shocked the world and went to play for Paul Chryst and the Badgers?

What if JT Daniels also joined him in the Big Ten and played for James Franklin and the Nittany Lions?

Yes, it would be huge for Penn State and it seems unlikely that it would happen. But, it seems pretty obvious that Daniels would start fairly easily over Clifford. Plus, why not have Allar sit and learn behind a quarterback that has been a part of a winning program and has the talent to play at the NFL level?

Penn State is a quarterback away from being a very competitive team in the Big Ten. Hence the reason why several fans are excited for Allar.

Franklin has consistently recruited high-level players, and this 2022 class coming in now has three five star recruits, including Allar, Nicholas Singleton and Dani Dennis-Sutton.

Clifford did announce his return to Penn State, but was also benched a few times this season for freshman quarterback Christian Veilleux, including in the Outback Bowl against the Arkansas Razorbacks. (He was knocked out with an injury against Rutgers, but he legitimately played poorly in the Outback Bowl).

It’s likely Daniels will want to go to a team with little to no competition at the quarterback position. Yes, Penn State currently has a fairly deep quarterback room. But, with a team that has impressive offensive talent coming in like Singleton and Kaden Saunders, you will get a year out of Daniels before he likely enters the 2023 NFL Draft with some solid weapons around him.

During his time at USC, Daniels threw for nearly 3,000 yards and 15 touchdowns before transferring to Georgia.

At Georgia, Daniels saw limited time on the field. But, he showed several flashes that he should be a starting quarterback right now, including putting up a 35-0 lead against Vanderbilt in the first quarter before being benched for Stetson Bennett.

Again, it’s tough to make a case for Daniels coming to Happy Valley, especially since Clifford is returning for a final season. But, it seems likely Daniels would walk into very little competition at Penn State and why not have Clifford be the backup?

Another notable school that might be interested in Daniels is Texas A&M, who just recently landed former LSU quarterback Max Johnson.

Former USC quarterback Jaxson Dart also just received a crystal ball to Ole Miss today, which could likely check them off the list for destinations for Daniels.

It seems very unlikely that Daniels would end up in Happy Valley. But, those Caleb Williams being linked to Wisconsin rumors look very jaw-dropping right now.

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2021-2022 Penn State Nittany Lions transfer portal tracker

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