Penn State entered the season with several of its veteran players viewed as early-round selections in next spring’s 2026 NFL draft.
Fourth-year quarterback Drew Allar was seen as a potential first-round pick.
That was back in August.
It’s mid-November and the 3-6 Nittany Lions, losers of six consecutive games, are one of the most disappointing teams in the sport with a few weeks left.
But one Penn State player remains in the first-round conversation in the eyes of a prominent NFL draft expert.
It is not Allar, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury in PSU’s 22-21 home loss to Northwestern on Nov. 11.
Fourth-year guard Vega Ioane has impressed Dane Brugler, a draft analyst for The Athletic.
The 6-4, 328-pound Ioane, a second-team All-Big selection in 2024, is Brugler’s No. 28 overall player on his list of top 50 board of draft-available players published on Nov. 11.
No other PSU player is in Brugler’s top 50.
Brugler, who has Ioane as his top interior offensive lineman, writes: “Ioane has been one of the few bright spots on a beleaguered Penn State offense. Along with good movement skills for a 335-pounder, the redshirt junior is stout in pass protection and a mauler in the run game.”
It’s interesting to note Penn State has faced several players in Brugler’s top 12 this season: Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese (No. 1), Ohio State safety Caleb Downs (No. 3), Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza (No. 7), Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate (No. 10) and Oregon quarterback Dante Moore (No. 12).
PSU plays Michigan State (3-6, 0-6) on Saturday in East Lansing.
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