Blue White Illustrated

H ailing from West Bloom6eld, Mich., a Detroit suburb nestled between the two in-state schools – Ann Arbor some 30 miles to the east, East Lansing some 70 to the west – Lance Dixon is now getting comfortable with his new surroundings at Penn State. When he took the 6eld at Beaver Sta- dium last month for the annual spring game, he did so wearing a blue jersey as the only early-enrollee freshman on the 6rst-unit defense. He's already making moves toward a signi6cant role with the Nittany Lions, a team that he once seemed destined to square o7 against, wearing ei- ther green and white or maize and blue. Michigan State was the 6rst major pro- gram to o7er Dixon a scholarship. Then he developed close connections to Michi- gan. He was quite literally being groomed for a role within the Wolverines' defense during the latter portion of his high school career. A8er beginning as a safety, Dixon switched to outside linebacker, the position for which he was recruited, ahead of his junior season. Under head coach Ron Bellamy, who played for Michigan in the early 2000s, West Bloom6eld ran a replica of the Wolver- ines' defense. Dixon was his Viper. "You could move him around, blitz him, cover him, let him do whatever he's doing," Bellamy said. "When he learned the nu- ances of playing linebacker – reading the inside guard if it's a run play or [noticing that] a tackle blocking down [means] a dif- ferent type of run play – he played so much faster. It was unbelievable." At Michigan, the Viper position has fea- tured the likes of Jabrill Peppers and is now manned by Khaleke Hudson. It gives players the freedom to improvise and make splash plays. Dixon showed at West Bloom6eld that he was a natural 6t at the Viper spot, and he was honored as USA Today's Michigan Defensive Player of the Year following his senior season. On the surface, it seemed likely that he would stay home and play a more ad- vanced version of the position for the Wolverines. But Michigan's coaches didn't see the future quite the same way. At least not initially. "I think that was the most pivotal part of his recruitment: 'You guys are local. You guys have seen me practice. I've been to your camps multiple times, but this school in Pennsylvania o7ered me before you guys did,' " Bellamy said. "We try to tell the kids, don't knock other programs, don't totally disregard them based on who o7ers you 6rst. It's all about a 6t from an aca- demic and social standpoint and football standpoint. When you check the boxes, pros and cons, you 6nd out which school is the best of you, not who o7ered 6rst. We took visits to all three institutions, and Penn State came out on top." While Michigan State extended its o7er at the start of Dixon's junior season, Penn State came through a few months later, followed by Michigan. By that time, Dixon had already attended the Lions' White Out victory over Michigan in Beaver Stadium and had formed a better relationship with James Franklin and de- fensive coordinator Brent Pry, along with safeties coach and fellow Detroit native Tim Banks, than he had with the coaches at the Michigan schools. Convinced that he could play a similar freelancing role in PSU's defense at the Sam outside linebacker spot, Dixon envi- sioned a chance to parlay his high school training into excellence at the college level. He also bought into the potential for classroom achievement and community involvement, staples of Franklin's pro- gram. Dixon gave back in various ways throughout his high school career. He volunteered in two mentor groups within his school district and helped younger students organize their schedules and form strong study habits. He also moni- tored their grades – all while being a friend and o7ering a shoulder to lean on. "This is a kid who is a big-time recruit, who has a lot going for himself, and for him to want to be a part of these programs, it requires time, his time, which is very lit- tle, especially for someone who at the time was early enrolling," Bellamy said. "It speaks volumes about his character." Dixon served as a team captain during his senior year. Bellamy doesn't describe him as a big talker or a rah-rah guy. In fact, the coach and his assistants nick- named Dixon "the Quiet Assassin." During his short tenure at Penn State, he has exhibited that same mindset. It was partly responsible for boosting him into a role with the Blue team in the spring game last month. "That was a blessing for him and it was great," Bellamy said. "That was his goal." It was also just the start. ■ Dixon felt right at home in Penn State's program | CLICK HERE to see video of Dixon in action. THE DIXON FILE STATS Finished senior season with 95 tackles, including 11 tack- les for loss and five sacks... Had 122 tackles and five sacks as a junior, helping lead West Bloomfield to the state title game HONORS Named a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, as well as the No. 11 prospect in Michigan and No. 22 outside linebacker nation- ally... Chosen as Michigan's Defensive Player of the Year by USA Today... Received first-team All-State honors from the Detroit Free Press, Associated Press and USA Today

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