Penn State football’s offensive line has suffered some bumps and bruises throughout the 2024 season.

For 10 games, “bumps and bruises” were just the extent of these minor injuries. However, in the Nittany Lions’ 26-25 victory in Minnesota on Saturday, right tackle Anthony Donkoh suffered what James Franklin described on Monday as a “long-term” injury.

The redshirt freshman’s injury came with just one game remaining in the regular season and weeks away from Penn State’s first-ever College Football Playoff berth.

The Nittany Lions called on Wisconsin transfer and Pennsylvania native Nolan Rucci to replace Donkoh after his injury on Penn State’s first possession of Saturday’s game. Although Rucci is a redshirt junior and a former five-star recruit, he’s inexperienced as a starter and only appeared in seven games before transferring to Penn State.

“We felt like Rucci played well,” Franklin said. “I think our offensive line, as well as Rucci, I think you could watch 20 plays and be very impressed, and you could watch a couple of plays and be frustrated.”

Rucci has served as a reserve for the starter Donkoh this season, but this wasn’t Rucci’s first in-game experience as a Nittany Lion. He has appeared in numerous games this season, including his homecoming game against Wisconsin. Rucci stepped in for an injured Donkoh and was part of the team’s 28-13 win.

“I think it was a great growing opportunity for me just to get out on that field and do it,” Rucci said after playing Wisconsin. “I think I learned a lot and have a lot of things to improve on in practice in the weeks coming.”

It’s been four weeks since playing the Badgers and this week, Rucci is faced with a starting opportunity against Maryland.

“We’re going to need him to have a really good week this week in preparation, as well as on Saturday, and have a lot of confidence that he will,” Franklin said.

“I have the utmost confidence in him,” center Nick Dawkins said. “On how he’s been attacking practice, he’s been preparing like he’s been a starter since the beginning of the season.”

But Rucci isn’t the only offensive lineman who could see more playing time in the wake of Donkoh’s injury. Franklin said JB Nelson and Cooper Cousins’s roles will increase, and even J’ven Williams and Eagan Boyer could see playing time as well.

Nelson has been with the Nittany Lions since 2022 and has started eight games and appeared in 15 before this season. Nelson has been a rotational player and has experience at multiple positions on the line.

Cousins is a true freshman who has appeared in 10 games and burned his redshirt this season. Like Nelson, Cousins has also been a rotational piece and will likely start in the coming seasons for Penn State.

Boyer and Williams do not have the same experience as Nelson and Cousins yet but have recently received praise from some starters. Both freshmen played against Purdue two weeks ago and after the game, Drew Shelton said Boyer stood out the most.

“He’s been working really hard on his technique. So for him to go out there and play pretty well, I think that’s very impressive, and I’m really proud of him,” the left tackle said.

As for Williams, his mentality, patience, and versatility have stood out to Dawkins.

“He’s been getting so much better this year,” Dawkins said. “You can see flashes of great offensive play from him, both as a guard and a tackle. He can do both.”

The one most affected by Donkoh’s absence is quarterback Drew Allar. With multiple players potentially rotating in, including two true freshmen, Allar said communication will be a key in Saturday’s game against Maryland.

“Overall, it’s going to be a big week for them up front and being on the same page. I have full confidence and belief in coach [Phil] Trautwein that they will be on the same page come the game,” Allar said. “It’s just another opportunity for us to just get better this week, and a big part for me this week will be just to over-emphasize communication upfront with pass pro and run ID in general.”