Penn State Snapshot Profile: No. 28 Devyn Ford
Going into the 2022 football season, Nittany Lions Wire will be looking at each scholarship player listed on the Penn State roster.
Over the preseason, each profile will cover where the player is from, how recruiting websites rated them coming out of high school, and what role they will play for James Franklin this season.
Devyn Ford has been a running back who has seemingly fallen under the radar a bit the past two seasons. But Ford has the potential to be a key contributor to the Penn State offense in 2022. Here’s a snapshot profile look at the Penn State running back entering his fourth season with the program.
Preseason Player Profile
Scott Taetsch/Getty Images
Hometown: Stafford, VA
Ht: 5′-11″
Wt: 190 lb
247Sports Composite Ranking
Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports
[4 stars] | [No. 2 overall in Virginia] | [No. 5 running back in nation]
Class in 2021: Sophomore
Career Stats
Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
Year | G | Att | Yards | YPA | Rec | Yards | Total TDs |
2019 | 12 | 52 | 294 | 5.7 | 5 | 30 | 3 |
2020 | 6 | 67 | 274 | 4.1 | 7 | 24 | 3 |
2021 | 8 | 13 | 57 | 4.4 | 3 | 18 | 0 |
Depth Chart Overview
AP Photo/Barry Reeger
Penn State appeared to have a loaded running back position going into the 2021 season. With three running backs appearing on the preseason Doak Walker Award watch list — [autotag]Noah Cain[/autotag], [autotag]John Lovett[/autotag], and [autotag]Keyvone Lee[/autotag] — Penn State’s expectations on the ground were incredibly optimistic heading into the 2021 season. As a result, Devyn Ford was reduced in his role on the team after being thrown into a big spot at the start of the 2020 season following a sudden retirement of [autotag]Journey Brown[/autotag] and an early season-ending injury to Lee.
Ford should see his role increase to some degree in 2022 with the departures of Cain and Lovett. Lee could be the team’s top running back to start the season, with Ford taking on a backup role at the beginning of the season, although with some opportunity to be involved in the game plan. But the arrival of [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] has many envisioning a big splash for the freshman coming off an incredible high school career. Singleton was named the Gatorade National High School Football Player of the Year and his future at Penn State could be incredible to watch unfold.
What kind of role this all leaves for Ford remains to be seen, but he will certainly be a nice veteran option to have in the mix. It should be expected that Ford is used in the offense, but the leading rushers may still end up being Lee and Singleton.
Photo Gallery
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