Top QB target compares himself to Drew Allar as James Franklin has Penn State on target's final visit itinerary
While James Franklin and the Penn State Nittany Lions are focused on winning their first national championship since 1986, the careful balance of college football always requires an eye toward the future at the same time. The Nittany Lions are a unanimous top-three team entering this fall, and the development of quarterback Drew Allar has […]
While James Franklin and the Penn State Nittany Lions are focused on winning their first national championship since 1986, the careful balance of college football always requires an eye toward the future at the same time. The Nittany Lions are a unanimous top-three team entering this fall, and the development of quarterback Drew Allar has everyone's attention. For NFL scouts, rival defensive coordinators, and prospects like four-star passer Keegan Croucher, Allar's jump in production is riveting.
Going from a sub-60% completion rate over each of his first two years to 66.5% in 2024 and increasing his yards per attempt from 6.8 to 8.4 is massive. Another jump, even if marginal, could lock Allar into being a top-five pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. And that would be a massive help in Franklin's chase for Croucher.
The 6-foot-3, 185-pound high school junior is still a year away from his own National Signing Day, but Penn State has been heavily invested in his recruitment for years. The Fonda, NY, native is rated as highly as the ninth-best QB in the class already, with Penn State earning the slight nod in On3's prediction machine. The latest update from insiders has Ole Miss and Oregon as Penn State's main competition.
While Croucher will visit Ole Miss, hosting LSU in September, and he's expressed a lot of intrigue in Lane Kiffin's offense, Penn State has time and relationships on its side. He's looking forward to seeing what Dan Lanning and Oregon will show him as well, but the love was spread to Franklin and company, too.
“Penn State, I’ve been in touch with the longest,” Croucher said. “Coach (Danny) O’Brien and Coach (Andy) Kotelnicki have done a tremendous job with recruiting me. I’ve been there four times, so I’m very familiar with the staff.
“I love what they are doing and did with Drew Allar as their quarterback. I think I play like him a little bit. I’m excited to get back down there. It is closer to home. Only about a four-hour drive so that’s nice.
“Excited to see what they do this year.”
The Nittany Lions have four-star Troy Huhn committed from the 2026 class, and the California native will be a major threat to start as a freshman if the transfer portal doesn't bring an obvious veteran candidate to challenge him. Franklin's 2025 class only boasted three-star Bekkam Kritza, who is a developmental prospect from Colorado.
What's interesting is that Penn State is involved in a number of 2027 candidates. They're favored to land Massachusetts native and four-star passer Peter Bourque over Michigan, but they only have a handful of outstanding offers. Brady Edmonds opted for Ohio State while Teddy Jarrard picked Notre Dame.
All of Franklin's eggs aren't in Croucher's basket, but they're heavily tilted toward the two options for now.
