Penn State's Quinton Martin Jr., Corey Smith Seek to Stand Out in a Crowded Backfield

Penn State’s running backs room will look very familiar in 2025, with one notable exception. Stan Drayton has replaced Ja’Juan Seider as the Nittany Lions’ position coach, stepping into what Penn State football coach James Franklin called “arguably the most attractive” running backs job in the country. With 1,000-yard rushers Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen returning, that might be true.

However, Penn State’s younger backs, notably Quinton Martin Jr. and Corey Smith, might have to wait in the wings for another season. Meanwhile, the position is stacked with seven scholarship backs scheduled to be on the roster for 2025. How will that shake out? It’s one of the intriguing questions surrounding Penn State’s offense next season.

Martin, Smith reflect on freshman seasons at Penn State

Allen and Singleton accounted for 392 carries of Penn State’s 615 rushing attempts last season, while Drew Allar, Beau Pribula and Tyler Warren combined for 160. So opportunities were hard to come by for the team’s younger running backs. But Martin and Smith both were able to redshirt, as each appeared in four regular-season games. Smith logged 22 carries for 152 yards, including a 78-yard run against Washington, while Martin took his 13 carries for 32 yards. The two consensus 4-star recruits from Penn State’s 2024 class got some limited opportunities while adjusting to the college game.

“One of the biggest challenges from high school to college, I feel, was the physical aspect and everything moving fast,” Smith said during a recent media availability. “A lot of people that [are] stronger than you and quicker. So it's definitely not like high school, when you're the best player on the field.”

For Martin, the biggest lessons came from adjusting to “hardcore” practices and consistent training. “[Practices] were fast-paced,” he said. “You're constantly moving, and the competition was just so much better. Like, everybody at the college level is just as good as you. In high school, I mean, I had a routine, but it never really had to be as on point as it has to be in college. … Because if you're not doing that, somebody else is.”

Another year behind Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen

Playing behind the country’s most talented backfield duo in 2025 will be a blessing and a curse for the rest of the Nittany Lions’ backs. The benefits are obvious: Singleton and Allen, who both topped 1,000 rushing yards and 10 total touchdowns in 2024, are NFL prospects whom young players should want to learn from at every opportunity.

“Nick and Kaytron are incredible running backs. They've been here three years, they’re veterans, they know a lot about the game,” Martin said. “I'm happy I get to just learn and critique my game in every way I can by watching them, watching what they do to prepare.”

But Singleton and Allen’s returns also mean players like Martin and Smith could spend another season as situational backs. While Martin emphasized his excitement to learn more from the dominant rushing duo, he also admitted “it can be frustrating at times” to have a ceiling on his playing time. 

Originally, the general expectation was that Penn State could potentially bring back either Singleton or Allen, but likely not both. Instead, they both opted to stick around in pursuit of a national championship, announcing their returns on the same day in January. While Smith said he wasn’t surprised by Singleton and Allen’s decisions because he was “prepared to live with both situations,” Martin thought at least one of the two backs would declare for the NFL Draft.

“I was surprised. Honestly, they're both fantastic backs, I definitely thought one of them [was] going to end up [declaring],” Martin said. “They just decided to stay. They thought that's best for them, so I want to be by their side.”

Repercussions of Ja’Juan Seider’s move

The other major news regarding Penn State’s running backs was Seider’s departure for Notre Dame, an unexpected decision as he took the same role in South Bend. Soon after, Franklin brought in Drayton to replace Seider, calling the former Temple head coach an "important addition" to Penn State's staff.

“We wish [Seider] nothing but the best,” Franklin said recently. “He gave our program and our community seven years and did a really good job for us, so we're appreciative of that.”

Martin and Smith both said they were surprised at the news Seider was joining the Fighting Irish, with Smith first finding out through social media. “[I saw] an Instagram post. We didn't know about it, so we didn't say anything about it, and then we received a call,” Smith said. “At the end of the day, it's a business, and people have got to do what's best for themselves. I know he recruited us, I appreciate him for recruiting us and stuff, but at the end of the day, he’s got to do what he got to do, what's best for his family.”

The loss of Seider, who had been with the Nittany Lions since 2018 and helped recruit all of the team’s current running backs, could have ripple effects. Especially with Singleton and Allen standing in the way of 2025 snaps, there are clear reasons for younger backs like Martin and Smith to consider entering the spring transfer portal, which opens in April. In early February, both said they planned to stay at Penn State. 

“I didn't have any thoughts on being in the portal,” Smith said. “Regardless of the situation, I'm gonna be me, and I'm gonna ball out to my highest expectations, and I feel like it's gonna be at Penn State. So, yeah I'm good.”

With seven scholarship running backs currently on Penn State’s roster, it wouldn’t be shocking to see a shakeup before August, though. Seider’s departure also bleeds into future Nittany Lions recruiting classes: 2026 commit Messiah Mickens, the No. 11 running back in the classaccording to the 247Sports Composite, is now “exploring” his options, per On3, although Rivals reported that Mickens has spoken with Drayton. Mickens, who committed to Penn State in 2023, announced that he will take an official visit to State College in late May.