Terry Smith Discusses Penn State Offensive Changes, Player Usage and Injury Updates

Penn State interim head coach Terry Smith met with reporters on Tuesday evening following practice to discuss the state of the program amid its second bye week of the season.

Smith talked about some offensive changes, continued to focus on areas for improvement and provided health updates on several key Nittany Lions.

Here’s what he had to say.

Top-secret offense 

For possibly the first time ever, Penn State’s offense wasn’t available during the media viewing portion of practice, practicing inside Holuba Hall while the defense remained in view on the practice field.

When asked, Smith simply said the offense was working on “a new install period,” implying some changes to the scheme during the extra week of preparation before facing Ohio State in Columbus next Saturday.

The Nittany Lions’ offense has come under scrutiny this season for a lack of consistent production, including a lack of explosiveness, particularly in the passing game. When responding to a different question, Smith said the team needed to “grow our pass game beyond the intermediate zone,” implying the passing attack will have a refreshed look against the Buckeyes with an emphasis on deeper routes.

Spreading snaps

During the first days in his new role, Smith provided an honest assessment of the offense’s shortcomings, noting that Penn State needed to do a better job getting the best players on the field.

Against Iowa last Saturday, Kaytron Allen set a career high in snaps, while young wide receivers Tyseer Denmark and Koby Howard saw their first snaps since the start of conference play.

On Monday, Smith said the team now needs to work on “getting Nick Singleton going.”

“We want to try to get Nick the ball out in space,” Smith said. “He’s a faster back. He has the home run-hitting capability. So just trying to be strategic in getting the ball to him in space, that’s that’s going to be a focal point for us.”

Smith also said Denmark and Howard can expect to see an uptick in playing time as the season progresses, as both impressed him while competing against his cornerback room throughout the offseason and early season.

“I know what they’re capable of, so I’m gonna give them a shot,” Smith said.

Injury information

Quarterback Jaxon Smolik, who was elevated to the backup role following Drew Allar’s season-ending injury, saw playing time against the Hawkeyes before leaving the game with an injury himself.

Smith said there’s no timeline for his return at the moment, but that freshman Bekkem Kritza, who’s been unavailable all season, has returned from injury and will be available, providing some depth at the position.

Freshman defensive end Chaz Coleman, who’s played just three snaps across the last two games after seeing ample time to open the season, was dealing with sickness, according to Smith.

He added that Coleman was “just getting healthy” before the Iowa game, but the Hawkeyes’ run-heavy offense didn’t fit Coleman’s strengths as a pass-rusher, so he saw just two snaps in the loss while fellow freshman Yvan Kemajou saw increased playing time.

Also in the defensive end room, Zuriah Fisher left in the second quarter against Iowa with an apparent injury, while Jaylen Harvey didn’t see the field for the first time this season.

Neither were seen at practice on Tuesday, but Smith said he “fully anticipates those guys will be back at some point.”