Beau Pribula’s been at the center of some serious headlines. A week before Penn State’s huge College Football Playoff game against SMU. Pribula, Penn State’s dynamic backup quarterback, dropped a bombshell: he was going into the transfer portal. It was a classic “no-win situation,” as coach James Franklin called it. The calendar just didn’t give him a fair shake. The primary reason Beau chose to transfer? It wasn’t money, or drama, or not loving Penn State.
It was easy: Penn State QB starter Drew Allar said he’d return for another year. That left Pribula facing another year on the sidelines, and with not many years left to play, he wanted to be a starter. Franklin himself supported Beau’s move, stating the system pushed his hand. But here’s the catch—despite the difficult decision and the scrutiny of his transfer, Beau Pribula never let things get bitter between him and Drew. On the Adam Breneman Show, Beau went out of his way to provide Drew Allar with some genuine, positive praise.
Beau, now at Missouri, is in his hometown of York, Pennsylvania. Discussing football and all the things in between. The talk quickly turned to his Penn State days, and smack-dab in the middle of it, Beau began thinking about his time with Drew Allar in the quarterback room. “I think the way he handled himself coming in, as I mean when he came in, like the whole campus was buzzing,” says Pribula to Adam on the 11th of July.
“He’s just so humble. And I think that was big to learn from because I wasn’t expecting that.” Beau did not hesitate to give Drew his flowers. He was positive and close to being proud while discussing his teammate. He confessed that when he committed to Penn State, he knew Drew Allar was also coming in the same class, but that never bothered him.
“I thought he was going to, you know, be like, oh big ego,’ but that’s like the complete opposite of him,” Pribula adds. Drew came in as one of the top recruits in the country. And when a guy like that steps onto campus, you’d think he’d carry himself like he owns the place. But that wasn’t Drew at all. There was no bitterness, no rivalry drama, just mutual respect. Beau discussed the amount that he learned from Drew. And the things he learned from being around a fellow who was struggling for the same position.
It wasn’t so much about outplaying the other guy. It was about the two of them challenging one another to be their best selves. Beau also spoke about the story that followed him. People told him that he wasn’t a “true quarterback,” or that he was a runner. He said that both Drew and the coaches knew what he was capable of, even if the rest of the world didn’t. That faith and confidence from his teammates, including Drew, meant a lot to him.
Beau Pribula’s emotional weight of leaving Penn State
“I think I really became best friends with the guys who will be in my wedding years down the road. Because, like, it was really just that like the off-the-field culture.” One of the hardest things Beau Pribula ever had to do was leave Penn State, and it wasn’t something he anticipated.
On the Adam Breneman Show, Beau Pribula finally spoke about the actual story of his Penn State departure. He adds, “You know, I was always striving to be the hardest worker in the building, and I think you know guys realized that and guys gain respect for guys who can do that. So I think that’s where kind of the respect came from, and I didn’t even realize it.”
The emotional impact came quickly. He called it “pretty emotional instantly.” Because he knows that he could be forced to leave the team he’d dreamed of playing for as a kid. Coach Franklin was understanding. Franklin even volunteered to contact other coaches and attempted to find a way to keep Beau on the roster in the playoffs, but things were as they were. Bidding his teammates farewell was heartbreaking. He says, “and I remember it was like Zane Durant, Jaylen Reed, Dennis Sutton. I told, I went up to them and I was like, “Guys, like I’m transferring and I have to leave right now. Like, I appreciate you guys for everything. Just want to say goodbye and everything.”
Beau trained with the team on the Sunday of the playoff game, then returned to break the news to the locker room later that afternoon. He was apprehensive about how they would take it, fearing there would be resentment or disappointment. Instead, he found nothing but encouragement and enthusiasm for his future. That was everything to him. He finally understood how much his teammates valued him, and those bonds were even more precious as he got ready to depart.
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