A storyline that was spotlighted all season was the amount of freshmen players that made contributions for Penn State football. On offense, KJ Hamler and Pat Freiermuth led the passing game in most receiving categories. On defense, linebackers Micah Parsons expected to fit into the rotation, and he did, leading he team in tackles. However, freshman linebacker Ellis Brooks found his way into the second rotation at linebacker as well and made his fair share of plays.
Parsons got a lot of attention because his recruitment was well-documented and the elite production started from year one.