Penn State enters preseason camp later this month with a clear dichotomy at quarterback. Returning starter Drew Allar is a known commodity, with 29 starts, 6,302 passing yards and 53 passing touchdowns on his resume heading into his senior campaign.

But behind him are two QBs with next to no game experience at the college level. Current redshirt sophomore Jaxon Smolik appeared in one contest as a true freshman in 2023 and did not attempt a pass, before missing all of 2024 with a left knee injury injury sustained the previous spring.

Current redshirt freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer played in one game last season, going 1-of-2 in mop-up duty in the College Football Playoff blowout of SMU after veteran backup Beau Pribula transferred out of the program earlier that week.

So when I asked Penn State strength coach Chuck Losey about the quarterback position during a media availability Monday, I did so in two parts.

The first was about Allar. Considering how much scouts have already seen of the potential 2026 first-round NFL Draft pick, what can he tell them about Allar that they may not already know?

“I’d say he’s smart,” Losey said. “I’d say … don’t be fooled by, you know, just his quiet nature. He’s tough, he’s tough as nails. He’s durable. And he’s done nothing but get better every year in the program. So I’m a huge Drew Allar fan.

“I think he’s gonna have a huge year this year,” Losey added. “And he’s just one of those guys where his play is going to speak for itself. I don’t think I’m going to have to say much, if anything.”

As for the backups, well, I simply asked where things stand there heading into preseason camp.

“I feel really good about them,” Losey said. “I think they’ve both done a really good job. When you’re talking about Jaxon Smolik and then you’re talking about Ethan Grunkemeyer, as well, both of them understand that they’re only one snap away from being in the game, and they attack every day like that. I know that sounds like coach-speak, but … with what you would want to see out of a guy who is one snap away from leading your program, I’ve got full confidence in both of those guys.

“Jax has rebounded tremendously from that knee, and you wouldn’t know any difference watching him out here on the field,” he added. “Both of them have grown from a leadership standpoint, and their ability to take the reins with the offense and be the commander. So I’m excited for them both.”

Smolik was full go for Penn State’s 2025 spring practice, and according to head coach James Franklin the fight to be QB2 will continue on well into preseason camp.

“I think it’s gonna be a battle, and I truly mean that,” Franklin said following the Blue-White Game.

Penn State’s fourth scholarship quarterback is true freshman Bekkem Kritza, a mid-year enrollee who is expected to redshirt this fall to add bulk to his lanky 6-foot-5, 200-pound frame.