Jeff

It all makes sense now. I truly believe that had Levi Haines received his 5th year with the Nittany Lions, the religious mission involving Cole and Henckel would have been a trip for 3—with Mitchell joining them. I couldn’t quite understand what Mitchell meant in his recent interview, but this possibility puts his comments in a different light. Keep in mind, Mitchell redshirted at Cal Baptist during the 2022–23 season before transferring to Penn State. After competing for 3 seasons at Penn State, he has 1 season of eligibility remaining. Because he already used his redshirt year at Cal Baptist, he doesn’t fit into “5 for 5.” When asked about the lineup possibilities if Levi returned, Mitchell said (parentheses added for clarity): “There’s possibilities that he (Levi) gets his year (a 5th year), he sits out. I (Mitchell) get a year and I sit out, right? Like there’s so many things and I think it’s just again being very solidified.” What caught my attention was: “I get a year and I sit out,” leaving open the possibility of sitting out a season himself. I realize Mitchell is a character, and you can’t always take everything he says literally. But this theory fits. Had Levi returned, I think 1 of the 3—Kasak, Duke, or Mesenbrink—would have been joining that religious mission. You’re not going to ask Kasak to sacrifice another season of eligibility after how last year played out. He was asked to redshirt rather than have Duke sit out—or at least let them compete for the spot. That decision ultimately left Kasak with 4 seasons to compete rather than 5. You’re certainly not going to waste a year of PJ Duke’s eligibility either. To be clear, this is my theory, not something anyone has confirmed. I’m really curious what you all think, so leave a comment. Before you say “no way,” ask yourself: What exactly would the plan have been had Levi come back? There had to be a plan, and my guess is that this was it. Maybe it was originally intended for Mitchell, with Cole and Henckel joining afterward. Who knows? I guess my only remaining question is: Why wasn’t Joe Sealey invited? 👀 One last thing: This is not an attack on Penn State, so there’s no reason to get defensive. I’m simply making an observation. If preserving a year for Henckel and Cole warrants taking this route, it stands to reason that the same option would be considered for Mesenbrink, Duke, or Kasak—a group that includes a 2x NCAA champion, a 2x NCAA 3rd-place finisher, and another NCAA 3rd-place finisher—if Levi’s return left 1 of them out of the lineup.