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Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK

Lambert-Smith must rise to occasion for Allar, offense to reach potential

Originally posted on DK Pittsburgh Sports | By Cory Giger | Last updated 8/31/23

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- We can talk about Drew Allar all we want. His immense talent. His quick release. His cannon arm. The fact that he's the most heralded new Penn State quarterback since, well, perhaps ever.

You know what Allar cannot do?

He can't catch his own passes. He can't run precise routes. He can't get open downfield against top-flight defensive backs, and then make the game-changing grabs that help lead the Nittany Lions to the College Football Playoff.

Allar needs someone to step up this year and prove that he can do all of those as a legitimate No. 1 wide receiver in the Big Ten.

KeAndre Lambert-Smith is ready to be that guy. Oh man, is he ready.

"This is a year where I’m at No. 1, so everybody else is gonna see what I can do," said the junior receiver, known simply as KLS.

Allar will make the first start of his career Saturday night against West Virginia at 7:30 at Beaver Stadium. The Lions are favored by 20.5 points, and very few people expect this to be a close game.

Penn State should have too much firepower and too good of a defense to worry about the Mountaineers giving them too many issues.

But, as we've pointed out several times already, expectations are so high for this Penn State team, and this season will come down to how the Lions fare against elites Ohio State and Michigan. Both of those teams will have excellent defenses, and for Penn State to win, it will need Allar to be on target and for his wideouts to be at the top of their game.

Nobody on this team, it appears entering the season, has a better chance to be a standout WR1 than KLS.

But he doesn't just want to be the best receiver at Penn State. He wants to get the kind of respect that the standouts at Ohio State have gotten in recent years, including this year's star, Marvin Harrison Jr.

"Honestly, you get tired of hearing Marv, O State receivers in general, all the receivers around the country," Lambert-Smith said. "So I’ve got to be that much focused, because I’m not just competing with guys here. I’m competing with other guys in the country."

James Franklin issued the challenge during the spring about KLS being a No. 1 wide receiver.

"Not just at Penn State," Franklin said in March. "In the conference."

That challenge has been accepted by KLS. Now it's time to see if he can meet it.

"Like Coach Franklin said, I’m gonna be a top guy in the country," Lambert-Smith said during the preseason. "And I’m like, I am. But I just know it comes with work and consistency, habits. I’ve been trying to stick with that."

Right now, all of this is really nothing more than talk. Because with all due respect to Lambert-Smith, he hasn't proven to be anything close to a No. 1 wide receiver yet during his three years at Penn State.

He was inconsistent last year, didn't always run great routes and had the drops at times. He finished the year with 24 catches for 389 yards and four TDs.

Then, this happened.

That's KLS catching an 88-yard TD against Utah, the longest TD ever scored in the illustrious history of the Rose Bowl.

Despite the great finish to his season, Lambert-Smith wasn't guaranteed to be Penn State's No. 1 wide receiver. The Lions went to the transfer portal and got Dante Cephas from Kent State, and there was a lot of speculation that he would emerge as the team's top wideout.

While that still could happen over the course of the season, it's fascinating to note that Cephas doesn't even seem to be a starting wide receiver at this point. That could be a bit of a concern, or maybe it's just taken him some time to get fully acclimated with his new team. Either way, it's opened the door for KLS to be the No. 1 receiver, and for Harrison Wallace III to slide in at No. 2 entering the season.

Lambert-Smith was asked a couple months ago what he thought would constitute a great season for himself.

"I know you’re not supposed to put no stats out there," he said with a laugh. "I will say a great season is me just being able to showcase all my talents. Whether that’s 50 catches, 60 catches, 70, 80, 100-plus, I just want to have opportitunies to make big plays down the field.

"I want to feel like a playmaker, and I want to feel like at the end of the season I showcased my talent to the world."

Part of his process to get there has been spending a lot more time around the Lasch Building this year, trying to do anything and everything he can to learn as much as possible so that he's ready for the opportunity and challenge that await.

"It may just be a maturity thing and knowing it’s my time and just wanting to be like, I don’t want to miss an opportunity," he said of the extra time spent honing his craft. "I’m the No. 1, I’ve been waiting for this opportunity, I’m gonna do everything in my power so I can’t look back and go, awww, I threw away my opportunity."

Part of the maturity he spoke of has meant him also trying to be a better leader for the whole wide receiver room, trying to help everyone get better and not just himself.

The Lions have a whole bunch of talented youngsters who could develop into outstanding receivers over the next few years. They're all unproven at this stage -- as is KLS in many ways -- but there's no doubt they all have great potential.

"I didn’t really pay attention to it, I’m not going to lie," KLS said of helping younger guys earlier in his career. "I do realize how important it is, because those are the same young guys that you want to carry on the legacy that you leave at the room. And I’m starting to realize that.

"I want Penn State’s receiver room to be a dynasty, and I know it doesn’t happen off one year or two years. I want Penn State to be looked at as O State and all of that. Man, we’ve got guys, we’ve got talent just like everywhere else they do in the country."

That talent needs to be on display this season so Allar can maximize his potential. And if that happens with the passing game, to go along with a strong running attack, then Penn State's offense should be fantastic.

But it all starts with No. 1.

This article first appeared on DK Pittsburgh Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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