FILE - Penn State offensive lineman Olaivavega Ioane (71) blocks during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Minnesota, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr, File)

Some pregame notes before finally lifting the curtain on the 2025 season:

One of the things James Franklin has proven during his Penn State tenure is that he’s a players’ coach.

Which means he puts team chemistry high on his priority list.

That’s a reason the transfer portal, while used to plug specific needs, hasn’t created a steady turnstile in the Lasch Building like is needed in other programs.

With that in mind, it wasn’t surprising to hear Franklin declare a goal for today vs. Nevada (3:30 p.m., CBS) — and the early portion of the season — is to “play a lot of guys.”

Franklin sees it as a way to build depth and morale.

“That’s something I’m pretty adamant about, especially early on in the year, is trying to get these guys on the field so we can evaluate them, know what we have, know what the strengths are, know areas we need to work on in a weakness standpoint or deficiency standpoint,” he said. “We need to figure out who is ready and who still needs some time developing before we get into the conference play.”

It also makes sense in that teams aspiring for deep runs in the College Football Playoff want to stay as fresh as possible.

In the NBA, it’s called load management.

Backup QB watch

Franklin named a backup quarterback on Wednesday by confirming Ethan Grunkemeyer would be QB2 behind Drew Allar.

That was pretty much expected since Grunk was the backup after Beau Pribula left, managed the second unit during CFP preparation and attempted a couple passes vs. SMU.

Third-teamer Jaxon Smolik, who was hurt last year, has yet to appear in a game.

Teams typically don’t use more than two during the season, but with Nevada, Florida International and Villanova as the first three opponents, this is an ideal time to also get a look at Smolik.

Keep eye on …

Beyond the established standouts and the anticipated wide receivers who transferred in, here are a few players to keep an eye on:

CB-PR Zion Tracy, the fastest player on the team whose role grew last year, CB King Mack, who transferred back from Alabama and is slated to return kickoffs with Nick Singleton, true freshman DE Chaz Coleman and LB Amare Campbell, a transfer from North Carolina.

Campbell and Dom DeLuca will share the duties of calling defensive signals. Only one player at a time is permitted in-helmet communication with the coaching staff (Jim Knowles).

Key year for Pry

Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry, an Altoona native and the Nittany Lions’ former defensive coordinator, is about to begin his fourth season with the Hokies.

Tech was picked as a darkhorse to win the ACC last year but stumbled to a disappointing 6-7 record, making Pry 16-21.

Here’s hoping things improve in 2025.

Big game Saturday

Today is the best season-opening weekend in memory with a bunch of marquee matchups.

Penn State-Nevada, we know, is not one of them.

Forgive those arriving late because they were watching Texas vs. Ohio State in the parking lot, or leaving early to catch Alabama vs. Florida State, which precedes Clemson-LSU.

Then on Sunday night, Notre Dame visits Miami followed by TCU’s visit to North Carolina for the Hoodie’s debut on Monday night.

Lee Corso, at 90 years old, wraps up his amazing career with his final appearance this morning on ESPN Gameday.

Corso launched from a player at Florida State — his fullback, by the way, was Altoonan Al Pacifico — to a multi-stop coach to an all-time TV character whose promotion for college football was unmatched.

New capacity

Capacity at Beaver Stadium this year will be 106,304 – just 268 fewer than previous seasons despite ongoing renovations (until 2027) and temporary seating.

The press box, for those wondering, will now be on the East side in what used to be the president’s quarters. A tour this week showed bigger TVs and better air flow but 70 fewer seats, which will make the biggest games tight.

Presumably, though, it won’t shake like its predecessor.

Neil Rudel covers Penn State football. He can be reached at nrudel@altoonamirror.com.