STATE COLLEGE - He doesn't have an experienced quarterback. His star running back is coming off a broken wrist. His defensive line is painfully thin depth-wise, and he's even worse off at linebacker.
For Bill O'Brien, and Penn State's football program, that's not exactly a reason to panic.
A year after the Jerry Sandusky child sex-abuse scandal, NCAA sanctions and a murky future were the talk of the team's annual media day, they concurred it was good to get back to football.
Even if the Lions have their share of question marks after a surprising 2012 run.
"I feel like, even last year, we did a good job as a staff, and our players did a good job, of really being focused," Penn State's second-year head coach said. "We're a focused bunch of guys. These guys are focused and attentive in meetings, and when they go out on the practice field, they're practicing hard. They're having some fun.
"All we're concerned about now is finishing up (summer classes) strong, and then really getting going with this training camp and focusing all of our attention on playing Syracuse."
That's not to say there aren't some signs of the NCAA sanctions that rocked the program after the release of the now-disputed Freeh report still lingering.
Penn State will be limited to 65 scholarships by the start of the 2014 season. But it appears as if the Nittany Lions roster will at least approach that number this season. Part of the reason there is so little experience at quarterback is because sophomore Steven Bench took advantage of the NCAA's transfer leniency when it came to Penn State players, leaving the program in May to transfer to South Florida.
The expiration of that controversial transfer rule when practice started Monday - players who want to leave now must do so through traditional methods, which include sitting out a season at another Football Bowl Subdivision school - marked a bit of a milestone for Penn State fans trying to navigate through the sanctions. But O'Brien said it meant little to him or the staff.
"Once last season started, we weren't even thinking about that transfer rule anymore," he said. "We felt like these guys were committed to us. Of course, a couple guys left, and that was more of their own volition. But that's what they decided to do, and we respect that.''
Banged up
Three days into practice and Penn State already has some injury issues.
The biggest seems to lie with linebacker Ben Kline, a sophomore expected to serve as the primary depth to both starters - Mike Hull and Valley View's Nyeem Wartman - at outside linebacker.
O'Brien said Kline has been "in and out" with lingering shoulder issues following his offseason surgery, and that he'd have to be monitored in practice.
It also appears the Nittany Lions will be without tight end Brent Wilkerson "for a while" because of back issues. The redshirt freshman was slated to be part of the deep and talented tight end rotation.
Freshman receiver DaeSean Hamilton, a three-star prospect out of Virginia, is out for the season with a wrist injury he suffered in high school, O'Brien said.
Give it a wrist
Speaking of injuries, the one running back Zach Zwinak sustained to his wrist during the Blue-White Game remains a bit of a mystery.
O'Brien said Zwinak is "fine" when asked about his condition during his press conference. But the 1,000-yard rusher from last season wouldn't discuss the injury when asked later, referring questions about whether he has been cleared to play to the medical staff. Zwinak has been wearing a red jersey during practice, which means defenders aren't allowed to make contact with him.