How ready is Ta’Quan Roberson?

The third-year, 21-year-old freshman (eligibility-wise) could rise from obscurity to center stage in front of 100,000-plus in the blink of an eye this year. For Penn State’s sake, its No. 2 quarterback by default better be ready.

Starter Sean Clifford, like Trace McSorley before him, has been incredibly durable so far, and the Nittany Lions will ride their leader until the wheels fall off.

If the wheels do fall off, new offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich’s options are limited. There’s Roberson, true freshman 3-star recruit Chistian Veilleux and second-year walk-on Mason Stahl. Beyond that, it’d be a first-year walk-on who’s not yet listed on the official roster or an emergency fill-in from another position group.

If Clifford can’t go the distance, either a Cinderella story or a real mess is in the offing for the Lions.

After a few early August workouts, Yurcich described Roberson and Veilleux as inconsistent but trending in the right direction.

“They both have the talent necessary … the maturity is there on both the young men,” Penn State’s 3rd OC in as many years said. “This will be a big fall camp for them.” Yurcich added that he’s working to help the backup QBs “be tougher, better thinkers, clearer thinkers,” continuing a process that began in the spring.

With the countdown clock to Sept. 4 at Wisconsin ticking, here’s where things stand at quarterback in Happy Valley:

QB1: Sean Clifford

Vitals: 6-2, 219; from Cincinnati, Ohio

Glass half full: He won his first 8 starts to open 2019 and his final 4 of 2020, putting up solid dual-threat stats. A few of the games qualify as spectacular: 3 games with 340 or more yards passing and 8 outings among his 20 starts with 3-plus TD throws.

Half empty: Lost the starting job for a week during the Lions’ 0-5 start in 2020, throwing 8 INTs and fumbling into a scoop-and-score twice during the worst start to a season in PSU history.

Yurcich, the offensive guru who arrived on campus this year after one-season stops at Ohio State and Texas, needs Clifford to find the top end of the spectrum laid out above. For the offense to be what Yurcich and James Franklin want it to be, Clifford — a 4-star recruit in 2017 — can’t simply play the game-manager role he did in sweeping 4 inferior foes to close last season.

Given the (lack of) depth chart, it’s hard to imagine the 23-year-old Clifford playing poorly enough to get pulled. But injury and illness are always a worry, especially given that Covid-19 isn’t completely in the rearview mirror yet. If a couple dominos fall the wrong way, Penn State could be facing a situation akin to last year when Wisconsin nearly had to start cool-named former walk-on Danny Vanden Boom.

QB2: Ta’Quan Roberson

Vitals: 5-11, 197; from Orange, N.J.

Roberson has thrown 1 pass (an incompletion) and lost a yard on his lone carry for the Nittany Lions. He’s taken a handful of other snaps, including the Lions’ final 4 plays (all handoffs) last year. That’s the extent of his game action over the past 2 seasons.

That’s not much to go on. His high school stats suggest he is a passer who can also run, rather than the other way around. Over his final 2 seasons at DePaul Catholic, he threw for 4,898 yards with 59 TDs and 11 INTs, while rushing for 887 yards. A 4-star recruit, he was rated the 8th-best dual threat QB and 17th-best overall QB in 247Sports’ 2019 class rankings.

Because of the NCAA’s rule to not count the Covid-plagued 2020 season against anyone’s eligibility, Roberson can continue to be patient. He’s already waited out the transfers of Will Levis, Micah Bowens and his 2019 classmate, Michael Johnson Jr. Even if Clifford plays 2 more seasons, Roberson would be in line to start as a junior in 2023 if he maintains his spot on the depth chart. On the other hand, if he doesn’t soon start getting some meaningful reps, he might not be able to hold off Veilleux or the 2 solid QB recruits in PSU’s currently No. 1-ranked 2022 class.

QB3: Christian Veilleux

Vitals: 6-4, 202; from Ottawa, Ontario

The 3-star true freshman (feature photo) made high school stops in his native Canada and Buffalo, N.Y., before finishing up at The Bullis School in Potomac, Md. He’s all the more a wildcard because his school didn’t play a 2020 season because of Covid. As a junior at Bullis, he threw for 2,006 yards and 29 TDs; he added 147 yards and 5 TDs on the ground. Most recruiting services list him as a pro-style quarterback, rather than a dual threat.

QB4: Mason Stahl

Vitals: 6-0, 202; from Pittsburgh

A walk-on last season, Stahl earned Developmental Squad Offensive Player of the Week honors 3 times. His high school stats at Baldwin suggest he is a true dual-threat QB. As a senior, he threw for 1,062 yards and 8 TDs and ran for 837 yards and 13 scores. Still, he didn’t even merit a recruiting rating on 247, so it’ll be a made-for-TV, home-state-guy-gets-his-shot drama if he somehow gets into a real game.

QB5: Evan Clark

Vitals: 6-3, 215; from Lancaster, Pa.

Reportedly, his name officially will be added to the roster at the conclusion of fall camp, when he’ll join the program as a preferred walk-on recruited by Yurcich. In an abbreviated senior season at Manheim Township, he connected on 70 percent of his throws for 1,505 yards and 18 TDs (with no INTs) in 7 games. He added 339 yards and  4 scores on the ground.