Offensive lineman Fries won’t return in 2021

Lions add DT from Duke

Penn State redshirt senior offensive lineman Will Fries won’t return for an additional season and will instead prepare for the 2021 NFLDraft, according to a report on Tuesday afternoon from Lions247.

The 6-foot-6, 306-pound Cranford, New Jersey, native started in all nine games this season for the Nittany Lions. After Penn State’s first three losses of the season — to Indiana, Ohio State and Maryland — Fries switched from right tackle to right guard as players were shuffled around on the offensive line. A struggling offensive line eventually found its groove, surrendering eight sacks in the Nittany Lions final four games after giving up 20 during an 0-5 stretch to start the season.

Fries was named second-team All-Big Ten by the conference’s coaches and was given an honorable mention by the media.

For his career, Fries started 42 games — 26 games at right tackle, nine at left tackle and seven at left guard.

Penn State is also expected to lose another starting offensive lineman in redshirt senior Michal Menet to graduation. Redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Rasheed Walker, redshirt junior offensive lineman Mike Miranda and redshirt junior offensive lineman

C.J. Thorpe have yet to make decisions on whether they’ll enter the NFLDraft or return for another season.

Penn State also lost two defensive ends this week when All-Big Ten defensive end Shaka Toney and Jayson Oweh announced their intentions to declare for the NFL Draft.

Lions get another transfer

Penn State nowhas three additions from the transfer portal in the last month with the latest coming along the defensive line. Former Duke defensive tackle Derrick Tangelo will join the Nittany Lions’ defensive tackle group for next season. Tangelo announced his decision to join the program via his personal Twitter account Tuesday afternoon.

The 6-foot-2, 310-pound defensive tackle will help mitigate some of the losses the position has seen since the end of the season. Redshirt sophomore Judge Culpepper reportedly entered the transfer portal Dec. 23 and was joined by redshirt senior Antonio Shelton, who started at defensive tackle this season, later that same day.

Tangelo was a starter at Duke in 2020 after making 17 starts in the previous two seasons. In his final season as a Blue Devil, he tallied 40 total tackles, three forced fumbles and two sacks.

Tangelo was a three-star recruit out of The Bullis School in Maryland and did not hold an offer from Penn State as a recruit.

Tangelo was a senior this year, but has one year of eligibility due to NCAAlegislation that granted an extra year of eligibility for all athletes set to participate in the 2020 season.

He’s the third transfer to join the program since the season ended, alongside former Baylor running back John Lovett and former South Carolina defensive back John Dixon.

Jon Sauber of the Centre Daily Times contributed to this story.

(c)2020 the Centre Daily Times (State College, Pa.)

Visit the Centre Daily Times (State College, Pa.) at www. centredaily.com