Penn State’s players and coaches were finally able to get back to football on Monday when the team opened fall practice. Monday also was the deadline for players to transfer prior to the start of the 2012 season, meaning everyone who suited up for the morning practice was committed to the team for at least one more season following last month’s NCAA sanctions.

Overall, the football team stands at 109 members, or about 92.3% of the roster as of July 23, according to the school’s athletic communications department. A comprehensive list of the team’s nine transfers can be found here.

Below is a look at how the defections will impact the team on the field this season and how it is responding.

Offense: With junior running back Silas Redd (1,241 yds, seven TDs) and senior receiver Justin Brown (35 catches, 517 yards, two TDs) transferring, the offense must replace its two biggest weapons. Coach Bill O’Brien said he won’t retool the offense as a result of defections and the team must find talent on the depth chart to take their places. Sophomore running back Bill Belton, who starred as the team’s wildcat quarterback last season, switched his position in the spring and is expected to be a focal point of the offense. The 5-foot-10, 206-pounder was recruited by Oregon and Florida. “It's Billy Belton's time to shine,” O’Brien told the Harrisburg Patriot-News following his first fall practice. “He came out here today ready to go and I expect him to do that every day.”

Defense: This unit has been hurt the least by transfers. Only three defensive players left the team following the NCAA sanctions and none were starters. The defense is led by seniors and potential first-round NFL draft picks in defensive tackle Jordan Hill and linebacker Gerald Hodges. The unit finished 20th nationally in total yards last season (323.9 ypg). The secondary, expected to be the team’s weakness, intercepted four passes in a 10-minute span during Monday’s practice, including a pair by backup safety Stephen Obeng-Agyapong. "It wasn't great, it wasn't all pretty but there were some good plays out here and we just gotta keep getting better,” O’Brien told the newspaper.

Special teams: Anthony Fera transferred to Texas to be closer to a sick family member, leaving a gaping hole in the kicking game. Fera, who made 14 of 17 field goals last season, was slated to start at kicker and punter. The incumbents are sophomore Sam Ficken, who went 1 of 2 FG last season, and junior Alex Butterworth, who averaged 38.5 yards on eight boots last year. "But I think we've gotta start focusing, like I've said all along, on the kids that are here,” O’Brien added.

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