Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1138762
2 0 1 9 S E A S O N P R E V I E W TAKING THE NEXT STEP D E F E N S I V E B A C K S After two seasons as an understudy at cornerback, Tariq Castro-Fields is ready to assume a much bigger role in a partially revamped Nittany Lion secondary cornerback knows better than just about anyone that assumptions can be costly. Assume you know which way a receiver is about to cut, get caught leaning the wrong way, and just like that, you're the dude slipping helplessly on the turf as your man streaks toward the end zone. For those who play the most isolated, unforgiving position on the field, anticipation and preparation are key, but there's no room for thinking you know what's about to happen before it actually does. It's a mindset that has served Tariq Castro- Fields well coming into the 2019 Penn State football season. Although he started only three games in his first two seasons in Happy Valley, Castro- Fields entered the 2019 off-season as the pre- sumed starter opposite John Reid at one of the Nittany Lions' cornerback spots. As assump- tions go, it seemed like a safe one to make: The 6-foot-0, 180-pound junior from Upper Marlboro, Md., has appeared in 25 of the 26 games Penn State has played since he arrived on campus in 2017. Just three games into his true fresh- man season, he picked off his first pass in the Lions' 56-0 throttling of Georgia State, then established himself further last fall with 32 total tackles, seven passes defensed and a sack. Given those numbers, it's no surprise that Castro-Fields was the first name James Franklin mentioned this past spring when he highlighted the defensive players whose expe- rience would be relied on this fall. As the Nit- tany Lions' sixth-year head coach put it, "Tariq Castro-Fields, I think it's hard to not consider him a starter." All of which brings us back to assumptions. With 2018 starter Amani Oruwariye gone to the NFL, it was clear the Lions would see a new face lining up opposite Reid at the other cornerback spot. On paper, Castro-Fields is the obvious re- placement. And while Franklin and his staff have understandably said that spot, like most starting jobs, would remain open through preseason camp, Castro-Fields could be excused for ex- pecting that he'll be on the field for the first de- fensive snap against Idaho. The difference is that, for the player himself, no assumptions are necessary. Regardless of whether or not he's at the top of the depth chart, Castro-Fields has been preparing the same way since (at least) last season. "I don't think my mentality is too much different, just be- | NEXT MAN UP Al- though he's only started three games to date, Castro-Fields has seen extensive action the past two years, fin- ishing his sophomore season with 32 tackles and seven passes de- fensed. Photo by Steve Manuel A