Penn State Sports Magazine
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KEY PERSONNEL CB: Tariq Castro-
Fields*, Keaton Ellis*, Daequan Hardy,
Donovan Johnson, Joseph Johnson III,
Joey Porter Jr., Marquis Wilson; Saf.:
Jaquan Brisker, Ji'Ayir Brown, Trent
Gordon, Drew Hartlaub, Enzo Jennings,
Tyler Rudolph, Jonathan Sutherland,
Lamont Wade*
LOSSES CB: D.J. Brown, John Reid*;
Saf.: C.J. Holmes, Garrett Taylor*
RISING STAR Wilson's outlook got a bit
more complicated in early July due to
two misdemeanor marijuana possession
charges stemming
from a February tra>c
stop. It remains to be
seen how the coach-
ing sta= handles that
situation. But no mat-
ter when he gets back
on the ;eld, he's going
to be a di=erence-
maker. In fact, he al-
ready is. Wilson made
one of the biggest plays of the Cotton
Bowl last year, coming up with a fourth-
quarter interception in the red zone to all
but seal the Lions' victory over Mem-
phis.
BIGGEST LOSS Reid ;nished his Nit-
tany Lion career as a three-time honor-
able mention All-Big Ten choice. He
ranks 11th in school history in passes de-
fended (30 breakups, seven intercep-
tions) and in April was taken in the
fourth round of the NFL Dra? by Hous-
ton.
NUMBERS GAME Penn State ;nished
100th in the Football Bowl Subdivision
in pass defense last season, as oppo-
nents totaled 251.5 yards per game. But
despite allowing plenty of yards, the
Nittany Lions didn't surrender many
touchdowns. Opponents passed for only
10 TDs in 13 games. Only two teams in
the country fared better: Ohio State and
Kentucky, which surrendered nine
touchdown passes apiece.
OUTLOOK Penn State wants more in-
terceptions from its secondary. A year
ago, opponents attempted 451 passes in
13 games, and the Nittany Lions' defense
pulled in only 10 picks. Two came in
PSU's 53-39 Cotton Bowl win over
Memphis, maybe none more important
than Taylor's 15-yard interception return
for a touchdown to create a nine-point
cushion late in the third quarter. For the
season, though, the lack of interceptions
proved to be a sticking point for a pass
defense that had its share of opportuni-
ties. The Nittany Lions came up with
takeaways on only 2.12 percent of oppo-
nents' passes, ranking 88th in the coun-
try. They intend to improve on that
number this season, and they'll be lean-
ing on an in