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P E N N S T A T E F O O T B A L L >> ohn Reid's transition to college football could hardly have gone more smoothly. Well, actually it could have gone a lit- tle more smoothly. His new team could have won its 2015 season opener instead of suf- fering a series of offensive breakdowns in a 27-10 loss to Temple. But as for Reid's per- formance in the Penn State secondary, where he started at cornerback in place of the injured Grant Haley? That part went pretty well, as the true freshman made five tackles at Lincoln Financial Field, a stadium located only about a 20-minute drive from St. Joseph's Prep, where he won first-team All-State honors and played on two PIAA Class AAAA championship teams before joining the Nittany Lions. "My first game was like another high school game," Reid recalled. "I was back in Philly at Temple. All my friends were there. It's different for everybody, but for me, I felt like I was back at St. Joe's Prep playing. I was just on a different team now. I knew a lot of the guys at Temple and maybe practiced at the Temple place when I was in high school. "I think my first game was a little bit unique," he added, "just because it was in an environment I was used to, so I was just ready to compete. In front of the hometown, pretty much like the hometown team al- most, I just wanted to show what I could do and play, so it kind of felt like high school to me again." The Nittany Lions haven't been back to Philadelphia in the years since, but Reid's comfort level has only increased. Heading into the team's visit to Michigan State in late October, he had started 34 games for the Nittany Lions and he's now part of a corner- back tandem that has been one of the strengths of Penn State's defense. Through seven games this season, the fifth-year sen- ior had two of the Lions' five interceptions, one of which he returned for game-changing third-quarter touchdown against Buffalo. And he had made 25 tackles and broken up five passes. Meanwhile, Reid's partner in the starting lineup, Tariq Cas- tro-Fields was one of the team's top tacklers, ranking fifth with 31 stops. He, too, had a game-changing intercep- tion, picking off Maryland's Josh Jackson at the goal line in the second quarter to thwart the Terrapins' best drive of the night. The game hadn't gotten away from the Terps at that point, but it soon would, as the Nittany Lions used picks by Castro-Fields and linebacker Jan Johnson, as well as a slew of big plays on of- fense, to thrash their longtime rivals, 59-0. Castro-Fields also had a pick against Michi- gan that set up a Nittany Lion touchdown. Penn State's defense had been billed as a THE UNFRIENDLY SKIES Starting cornerbacks John Reid and Tariq Castro-Fields have teamed up to create major problems for opponents hoping to pass on the Nittany LIons | J COVER CORNER Reid breaks up a pass intended for David Bell during Penn State's 35-7 victory over Purdue. The Nittany Lions held the Boilermak- ers to 123 passing yards. Photo by Steve Manuel

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