Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1201503
F A S T F O R W A R D >> A N E A R L Y L O O K A T marvelous performance from their con- sensus All-America outside linebacker. They'll probably get more of the same in 2020. Parsons built up a lot of momentum in the second half of his sophomore sea- son. Of his team-high 109 tackles, he made 78 in Penn State's final seven games. In addition, six of his 14 tackles for loss came in the Lions' last three games. Suffice it to say, he is on track for a huge junior season. Parsons is the only starting linebacker set to return, as the Lions are graduating Brown and Johnson, who finished third and fifth on the team in tackles, respectively, in 2019. That might seem like a problem, but Penn State has built up plenty of depth at this position group. Brooks saw substantial action behind Johnson at middle line- backer during his redshirt sophomore sea- son, finishing with 39 stops to rank 10th on the team. Luketa backed up Parsons and was also listed third behind Johnson and Brooks in the middle, so he's likely to see more action in his junior season. At the opposite outside linebacker spot, Smith and Katshir are re- turning and will vie for Brown's vacated starting position. Smith made a big first impression as a true freshman this past August when he flat- tened an Idaho receiver after a short gain in the Lions' season opener. He finished his debut season with 14 tackles in limited duty. At 6-3, 240 pounds, he's a little bit more compact than the rangy Brown, but he's just as fast and athletic as his prede- cessor. The former four-star prospect is expected to battle Katshir this spring, but he figures to make a big impact next fall. A starting trio that consists of Parsons, Brooks and Smith could be formidable in- deed. QUOTABLE Parsons on wearing jersey No. 11: "The guys who came before me, I hold something inside of me about how much it means to the program and how much it means to me just trying to be the next guy out of here. You see the progress that the previous players made, the num- ber, the legacy. You keep passing it on. It's something to build off of when you come to a school like this. You have great guys all over, prestigious. This number is just as prestigious. When you come into a program like this, the opportunity to do something like this is truly amazing." SECONDARY KEY RETURNEES CB: D.J. Brown, Tariq Castro-Fields, Keaton Ellis, Trent Gor- don, Daequan Hardy, Donovan Johnson, Joey Porter Jr., Marquis Wilson; Saf.: Jaquan Brisker, Drew Hartlaub, C.J. Holmes, Tyler Rudolph, Jonathan Sutherland, Lamont Wade KEY LOSSES CB: John Reid; Saf.: Gar- rett Taylor NEWCOMERS Ji'Ayir Brown, Enzo Jen- nings, Joseph Johnson OUTLOOK Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi put it about as succinctly as anyone last season. A few days after his team's 17-10 loss to the Nittany Lions in September, a game in which Kenny Pickett threw for 372 yards, CB CONTENDER Ellis is expected to vie for a starting corner- back spot after seeing action in 13 games as a true freshman. Photo by Steve Manuel