Penn State played seven different true freshmen in Saturday’s 45-38 win over Appalachian State. Those freshman were K Rafael Checa, LB Jesse Luketa, DT PJ Mustipher, LB Micah Parsons, K Jake Pinegar TE Pat Friermuth and RB Ricky Slade.
In the past, that would mean that these eight freshmen would have burned their redshirt eligibility and, therefore, no matter how much more they played this season, they would have already used a year of eligibility. Starting in 2018, however, is the NCAA’s newest rule allowing players to play up to four games without burning a year of eligibility.