It’ll be a different team on Saturday, folks.

A plethora of talent will not be competing in the Pinstripe Bowl against Clemson, including 11 starters and 17 total athletes.

As of Friday, the most recent wave of opt-outs has come from the offensive line. With Vega Ione declaring for the NFL draft earlier this month, three other starting offensive linemen, Nick Dawkins, Drew Shelton, and Nolan Rucci, have decided not to suit up for the Pinstripe Bowl.

The massive gaps in Penn State’s offensive front will need to be filled by younger, less-experienced talent. Sophomores Cooper Cousins, TJ Shanahan, and Junior Dominic Rulli were mentioned as replacements up to the challenge in interim head coach Terry Smith’s press conference on Friday.

“Yeah, a lot of those guys, Cooper, T.J., Rulli, those guys have played significant snaps for us throughout the year. We expect the same results. It’s a next man up, and with the experience that those guys provide, we don’t expect a drop-off at all,” Smith said.

Early in the season, the Nittany Lions ran a rotation of offensive linemen before settling in on the best combination. With four of the starting guys out, Anthony Donkoh becomes the new leader of the Nittany Lion offensive line for the bowl game, a role he will continue into the 2026 season.

Despite the massive change in personnel, Smith is still determined to establish the run with Kaytron Allen on Saturday.

“The run game is still going to be critical to our success. I won’t pinpoint a number of touches for the backs, but we’re going to have to run the football and establish that run game to have some success for tomorrow,” Smith said.

The struggles with opt-outs continue on the Penn State defensive line as well. The Nittany Lions lost Chaz Coleman and Daniel Jennings to the transfer portal. They will also play without NFL hopefuls Zane Durant and Zuriah Fisher, as the two decided to skip the final game of the season.

“Yeah, Jaylen Harvey and Yvan [Kemajou] have to step up. Yvan has played a lot of football for us here down the stretch. Looking forward to him continuing to progress and continuing to get better, and an opportunity for Jaylen Harvey to step into the forefront of the team.”

The two freshmen defensive ends are going to be a much-needed addition to the defensive line opposite of Dani Dennis-Sutton on Saturday.

Kemajou ended the regular season with 12 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and a pass deflection in 10 appearances.

Harvey has appeared in 15 games in his first two seasons with the program, tallying nine total tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss.

Smith noted that Harvey has shown significant strides this season and in bowl prep.

“Yeah, he’s an athletic defensive end. He can really create havoc off the edge. The biggest thing of growth for him is just his attention to detail and being consistent. He’s had a good month of bowl prep. Hopefully, it translates tomorrow, and he’ll be consistently good each play, no highs or lows, but just consistent effort is the key.”

The Nittany Lions will also be without the veteran presence of Zakee Wheatley, who declared for the NFL Draft earlier this month, as well as cornerbacks A.J. Harris and Elliot Washington II, who entered the transfer portal this past week.

In their place, Smith will look to freshmen corners Daryus Dixon and Jahmir Joseph to fill the needs at the perimeter.

Joseph most notably has a pick-six this season, an interception he returned 49 yards for a touchdown against Villanova. He also has two tackles in four appearances.

Dixon has made 12 appearances with one start in his true freshman season. He tallied 22 total tackles, two tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, a sack, and three pass breakups.

Although Penn State will have a massive change in personnel, Smith is determined to finish the season the right way.

“Well, we’re not disappointed. We have a tremendous opportunity to finish this season off the way the last three games have gone, and here’s a moment and an opportunity for these guys to step forward.

“It’s the next man up. This is today’s college football. We’re adapting and adjusting, and we have a game to play tomorrow, and that’s all that matters, and a result will come from that, and we’re going to play hard and get after it like we’ve done the past four or five weeks.”