Drew Allar's NFL draft status hinging on upcoming Penn State football season, ESPN says

The eyes of the football world have been on Drew Allar since the prolific quarterback prospect out of Medina passed on playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes to commit to the Penn State Nittany Lions back in 2021 .

It’s not about to get any easier for him this year.

In the realm of college football this is Allar’s “it” year. He’s a junior, the incumbent starting quarterback and it’s time to truly show up and show out.

That’s a lot of pressure for anyone, let alone someone expected to carry a team of more than 100 players to Saturday afternoon glory in the pre-eminent conference in college football, the Big Ten (Eighteen?).

And that pressure is building courtesy of ESPN , which selects him as one of the players in the country with the biggest glare from the spotlight on him with his NFL draft position on the line, according to NFL draft analyst Matt Miller.

“Depending on who you ask, Allar is either a former top recruit with a ton of NFL talent or a frustratingly talented player who hasn't quite figured it out,” Miller writes at ESPN.com.

By the numbers , Allar was the fourth-ranked quarterback in the conference in 2023. With the significant changes in the Big Ten with adding refugees from the Pac-10, the conference will be a lot different and could be significantly more competitive with the addition of the likes of USC, UCLA, Washington and Oregon. No, nothing is sacred. When thinking of the Big 10, everyone thinks of the West Coast.

But, you know, money talks and… I digress.

The Nittany Lions will see USC, UCLA and Washington this year from the new boys, along with potential conference heavyweight Wisconsin (dependent upon what coach Luke Fickell can do with them) and West Virginia in the non-conference schedule.

For a young quarterback potentially eyeing the NFL, that schedule provides a proving ground. The NFL is watching — already.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Drew Allar's NFL draft status hinging on upcoming Penn State football season, ESPN says