Penn State’s breakout star for 2022

As we begin to move closer to the start of a new college football season in Happy Valley, the staff at Nittnay Lions Wire is spending some time sounding off on some big questions facing the Nittany Lions this fall. Today’s focus is on potential breakout players for the Nittany Lions in 2022.

Penn State appears to have some good talent across the roster in 2022, and we have profiled a number of players expected to be key contributors to the program this fall. But who is a player you feel is flying under the radar and could emerge as a key breakout player for the Nittany Lions in 2022?

Sam Dehrig, Contributor
@sam_dehring68

Penn State has quite the intriguing offense. They brought in guys like Drew Allar and Nick Singelton. They even brought in two transfers with Cornell offensive tackle Hunter Nourzad and Western Kentucky wide receiver Mitchell Tinsley. It’s hard to call Tinsley a sleeper when many analysts already have him mocked in the first three rounds of the 2023 NFL Draft.

Speaking of sleepers, I’m heading over on the defensive side of the ball for defensive tackle Coziah Izzard. When it comes to the defensive line, many will think of PJ Mustipher, and rightfully so. Mustipher going down with an injury last season resulted in several new faces getting some more playing time on the field. In his first season, Izzard didn’t see much production. But in 2021, he finished with 21 total tackles, two sacks, and a forced fumble. I think Izzard has a strong chance to break out for the Nittany Lions this season.

Izzard saw the majority of his 2021 production against Rutgers, where he finished with four total tackles and a sack. He is currently slated to start up front. Those stats mentioned are a solid stepping stone to potentially have a breakout season for the Nittany Lions in 2022.

Mustipher developed into a leader for Penn State, and Izzard, now being one of the upperclassmen, has a good chance to do that as well.

Two other names I wanted to throw out…