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STATE COLLEGE — Micah Parsons stood at the end of the line, where he could easily see the rest of his classmates.

In a first for the program, Penn State brought out all of its scholarship freshmen from last season for media interviews. And as Parsons gave a quick look at the program’s heralded 2018 recruiting class, the linebacker didn’t hesitate to give his prediction.

“Our freshman class, I think this is going to be the best class ever,” Parsons said Wednesday at the team’s practice facility. “I think this class can bring a championship. We have a bunch of pieces to this puzzle, man, and I think we’re gonna go places, this class right here.”

They’re not exactly freshmen any more. Parsons, who led the Nittany Lions in tackles as a true freshman playing the position for the first time, has been on campus for nearly a year-and-a-half now.

Tight end Pat Freiermuth caught eight touchdowns, three more than anyone else on the team. Jahan Dotson learned a new receiver position to take over a starting job midway through the year. Jake Pinegar handled every field goal and extra point attempt. Running back Ricky Slade, linebacker Jesse Luketa and defensive tackle PJ Mustipher all played enough to burn their redshirts.

Heading into 2019, the group — now sophomores and redshirt freshmen — already has seven projected starters with perhaps more to come. At the Blue-White Game in April, Freiermuth and Dotson were joined on the first-team offense by Slade in the backfield, Justin Shorter at wide receiver and Rasheed Walker at left tackle.

Pinegar is slated to handle kicking duties again. Parsons is set to be a full-time starter on defense, while Mustipher and Jayson Oweh push for jobs up front.

And despite its relative youth, the group of 20 will have to start helping lead the team right away. A senior class led by record-setting quarterback Trace McSorley is gone. Five juniors left early for the NFL. Twelve more players transferred, including McSorley’s long-projected successor, Tommy Stevens.

“Definitely, it’s on us,” said Shorter, a former five-star recruit along with Parsons and Slade. “With the transfer portal and guys leaving, I feel like our class had to step up. I feel like our class went from freshmen to being like juniors and seniors.”

The early playing time for the group backs that up.

Freiermuth, Parsons, Luketa and Pinegar played in all 13 games in 2018, followed by Mustipher (12), Slade (nine) and Dotson (eight).

Eight others benefited from the NCAA’s new redshirt rules and got to play in up to four games without losing a year of eligibility — Shorter, Oweh, Walker, WR Daniel George, CB Trent Gordon, DL Nick Tarburton, TE Zack Kuntz and OL Juice Scruggs.

The other five — QB Will Levis, LB Charlie Katshir, DT Judge Culpepper, DT Aeneas Hawkins and OL Bryce Effner — are set to get their first action this fall, with Levis hoping to push Sean Clifford for the starting job after Stevens’ departure.

“I feel like I’m much more prepared (to compete), especially compared with last summer’s camp,” Levis said. “This past spring was just so much more enjoyable, so much more comfortable for me because it wasn’t my first time having all the information in front of me.”

“Last summer with (learning the offense), you’re just bombarded with everything. It’s overwhelming. I did pretty well, but this spring was a lot more fun.”

As with any recruiting class, there has already been attrition. Offensive lineman Nana Asiedu and cornerback Jordan Miner — both four-star prospects — had their careers ended last year before even suiting up as medical tests revealed heart conditions.

After the regular season ended, safety Isaiah Humphries left the program and has since transferred to Cal.

And another player found himself in jeopardy this offseason as Scruggs was in a serious car accident that kept him out of spring ball. He was, however, at Wednesday’s media session, where he told reporters he had suffered a fractured vertebrae and was hopeful he’d be able to play at some point this fall.

In the meantime, his classmates are hoping to carry plenty of the load.

“We’re ready. We’re ready to start proving ourselves,” Freiermuth said. “We were one of the top five recruiting classes in the nation and through spring ball, we got a lot more confidence.

“Our team is young, but we’ve got a lot of swagger to us. A lot of confidence. I think a lot of people are writing us off, doubting us. But we’re working hard. And we’re going to surprise a lot of teams.”

Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons pursues a runner during the NCAA college football team’s spring practice Wednesday, March 28, 2018, in State College, Pa. (Joe Hermitt/PennLive.com via AP)
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_Parsons-spring-copy.jpg.optimal.jpgPenn State linebacker Micah Parsons pursues a runner during the NCAA college football team’s spring practice Wednesday, March 28, 2018, in State College, Pa. (Joe Hermitt/PennLive.com via AP)AP file photo

Dotson
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_Dotson_Jahan_H_18_MS_3270.jpg.optimal.jpgDotson AP file photo

By Derek Levarse

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