Former Penn State QB discusses NFL potential of Drew Allar

In a recent interview with ESPN’s Jake Trotter, former Penn State quarterback Kerry Collins shared his thoughts on the school’s current starting signal-caller, Drew Allar.

“[Allar is] physically imposing. He’s got an NFL body and skill set. There are other guys that have had tremendous success. But I wouldn’t necessarily say what they had translated into what is needed in the NFL… Drew has that, a hundred percent.”

This is some significant praise for Allar from a guy in Collins, who is easily the most successful NFL quarterback to come out of Penn State.

After an impressive college career with the Nittany Lions, Collins was selected with the fifth overall pick in the 1995 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers. He went on to spend 17 years in the league with multiple teams, and his career passing yardage total still currently ranks 21st all-time in the NFL.

Collins clearly knows what it takes to succeed at the pro level, so his recent comments about Allar shouldn’t be brushed aside.

Allar is in the middle of his second season as Penn State’s starting quarterback, and so far, he’s looked very impressive. In five starts for the 5-0 Nittany Lions this year, Allar has completed 70.9 percent of his passes for 1,101 yards, nine yards, and one interception, in addition to also rushing for 89 yards and three scores.

Compared to Allar’s numbers from 2023, his completion percentage, passing yards per game average, touchdown percentage, yards per pass attempt, and passer rating are all higher this season. If he can continue to play at a high level for Penn State this year, then he’s definitely going to have a bunch of interest from NFL scouts in a few months.

As Collins mentioned, Allar has “an NFL body” at 6-foot-5 and 238 pounds, and he’s got a big arm. ESPN’s Mel Kiper updated his 2025 NFL draft Big Board rankings on Thursday, and he has the Penn State signal-caller ranked as the sixth-best quarterback behind Quinn Ewers of Texas (fifth), Carson Beck of Georgia (fourth), Cam Ward of Miami (third), Jalen Milroe of Alabama (second), and Shedeur Sanders of Colorado (first).

According to NFLMockDraftDatabase.com, Allar is still considered a Day 2 prospect for the 2025 draft, meaning most don’t think he’ll come off the board until the second or third round. There’s still plenty of time for that to change, but unlike the other passing prospects, he also has the history of Penn State quarterbacks struggling in the NFL going against him.

Twelve former Penn State passers have been selected in the NFL Draft during the Super Bowl era (since 1966), and Collins and Jeff Hostetler are the only ones to earn at least one Pro Bowl selection during their time in the league.

Others like Todd Blackledge, Christian Hackenberg, and Tony Sacca were never able to live up to their expectations in the NFL after their college careers with the Nittany Lions came to an end.

Can Allar be the one to break this trend and go on to have a productive pro career like Collins, or will he just prove to be another example of a Penn State quarterback not being able to experience success in the NFL?