STATE COLLEGE | Penn State's James Franklin sounded a bit hoarse Tuesday after practice, which was understandable. The Nittany Lions are rounding the final turn of training camp, and Franklin wants to extract as much as possible before begininng game-week prep Sunday.

Penn State is considered Linebacker U for its long history of outstanding linebackers. With Jack Ham in the late 1960s, Shane Conlan in the late 1980s, LaVar Arrington and Paul Posluzny in the early 2000s, and Micah Parsons just a few years ago. The Nittany Lions have always produced great linebackers.

Many Penn State fans will remember the dramatic departure of former backup quarterback Beau Pribula from Penn State, just before the College Football Playoff began. It sparked national debate about transfer windows and emotional reactions from Nittany Lions coaches and teammates.

The Senior Bowl announced its inaugural Top 300 List of the leading draft-eligible prospects in college football. Formerly, the Senior Bowl released a preseason list of 850 players but this year was more selective to "truly spotlight the top-tier talent across the country,” Senior Bowl Executive Director Drew Fabianich said in a news release.

STATE COLLEGE – Penn State has yet to name a No. 2 quarterback with less than two weeks before the season opener against Nevada. Nittany Lions coach James Franklin said Tuesday night after practice that he’s close to deciding whether redshirt freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer or redshirt sophomore Jaxon Smolik will be the primary backup behind Drew Allar.

Perhaps Jim Knowles was saving one of Penn State’s best for late August. Knowles, the Nittany Lions’ defensive coordinator, has dished out Defender of the Day honors on social media to a number of intriguing players in the preseason.

Penn State opened up a portion of practice Tuesday evening for the final time in fall camp, with head coach James Franklin, assistant coaches and players speaking to the media following the practice. Here are three takeaways from the Nittany Lions’ Tuesday evening practice.

The AVCA First Serve officially kicks off Friday, but the Creighton Bluejays will have to wait until Saturday before they can hit the hardwood in this year’s showcase.

Drew Allar is the established starter, and the backup competition is between Jaxon Smolik and Ethan Grunkemeyer.

The allure of unfinished business outweighed professional prospects for rocket-armed quarterback Drew Allar after Penn State’s down-to-the-wire loss to Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semif

This is The Athletic’s daily sports newsletter. Sign up here to receive The Pulse directly in your inbox. Good morning! Hit the dougie for John Wall today. There is a special, unfortunate place in sports history for the teams and players that almost did it.

Marcus Blaze punctuated a superb tournament in Bulgaria for the Nittany Lions, who won five medals, including two golds.