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RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW After considering a transfer during the off-season, Lamont Wade decided that he could still fulfill his goals at Penn State. As he enters his junior season, he's determined to do just that L amont Wade didn't play nearly as much football as he wanted or expected to play for Penn State last season. He made 18 tackles – some on defense, some on special teams. He had a sack against Kent State. He broke up three passes and caused a fumble. To a lot of players, those kind of numbers might have seemed, if not desirable, then at least satisfactory, part of the dues-pay- ing phase of a typical major-college career. To Wade, a player with an ambitious streak and an elite high school pedigree, they were a big disappointment. Something needed to change, but what? The scenery? For a while, Wade thought that a new school might be the solution to his problem. He entered the transfer portal in January, joining a parade of players nationally, including more than a dozen from Penn State, all of whom were seeking to take advantage of the NCAA's liberalized transfer rules. Then Wade thought some more. He thought about those other schools that wanted him. Were they really of- fering a better fit? He thought about his young son back home in Clairton, Pa. Wade was willing to go farther from home than Penn State if necessary – "Sometimes you have to make short-term sacrifices for long-term goals," he said – but was it really necessary? As he took stock of his situation, Wade began to realize that he needed to look inside himself rather than gazing off at the horizon in search of answers. "I've always been a guy who just puts my head down and works," he said. "After a while, it gets a little bit tough. But at the end of the day, when you look at it, you really can't put the blame on nobody but your- self. So I just continued to work. Looking into other schools, of course I was opening my op- tions with that, seeing how that was working out. I just came to the conclusion that this was the best choice for me. This was the best spot to be. … I had the best oppor- tunity to play here. It was all about what I did, how I took advantage of the opportunity. So I figured I would better myself and not worry about anyone else." Wade announced in late January that he was removing his name from the portal, noting that he was only three semesters away from earning his diploma and that he was eager to get "back to work with my brothers." His deci- sion to stick around looks as though it's going to pay div- idends this fall – both for himself and for the Nittany Lions. The former Rivals.com five-star prospect is "playing his best football right now," defensive coordinator Brent Pry said at Penn State's media day earlier this month. "He had a great winter, really good spring, had a good sum- mer," Pry added. "He's closer than he's ever been to reaching his potential. He's an enthusias- tic player. He brings a lot of en- ergy to practice, and so I'm super excited about what Lamont is doing right now." The Nittany Lions need some- one to step into the starting lineup this year following Nick Scott's graduation, and Wade looks to be the leading candidate as he enters his junior season. He's been on campus for more than two and a half years and has been appearing sporadically in the Lions' secondary since 2017, his true freshman sea- son. He was an honorable mention Big Ten All-Freshman choice by BTN.com that year after making 31 tackles. And while his tackling numbers declined in 2018, he has an opportunity this year to make the impact that he's been envisioning for himself ever since helping lead Clairton High to three consecutive WPIAL championships and an | 38 SPECIAL Wade has seen in- termittent action at safety for the Nittany Lions the past two seasons, and he's also made an impact on special teams. Three of his 18 tackles as a soph- omore were on punt returns. Photo by Steve Manuel 2 0 1 9 K I C K O F F S P E C I A L

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