Blue White Illustrated

CHANGE IN THE AIR A year ago, PSU often struggled to stop opponents from throwing for big yardage. This fall, the Nittany Lions are hoping that an experienced returnee and a contingent of young cornerbacks will make their skies a lot less friendly s is always the case at Penn State, the in- jury that Tariq Castro-Fields suffered midway through the 2019 season was not detailed, explained or otherwise elaborated upon, beyond an belated acknowledgement that it had happened. Both the coaching staff and Castro- Fields himself declined to get into the specifics, and even though nearly a year has since passed, their reticence has barely changed. During the Nittany Lions' virtual media days a few weeks ago, the senior cornerback was reluctant even to admit that his on-field performance had been impacted all that much. "The injury was the injury," he said. "Some things happened. I'm not going to say how much it affected me, because to me there are no excuses. I still was on the field. I wouldn't say it hindered things; it's just the way life goes." His position coach, Terry Smith, was more forthcoming this past spring, conceding that there was a before-and-after aspect to Castro-Fields' junior campaign. "The first half of the season, he came out of the gate looking like a first-round draft pick," Smith said. "He played very well, and then he suffered an injury. And from that in- jury on, he was a different player. He wasn't as confident. He wasn't as sure of himself." Castro-Fields' defensive team- mates didn't look entirely sure of themselves either at times. The Nit- tany Lions suffered a series of late- season breakdowns that led to big plays in the passing game, particularly in a 31-26 loss to Min- nesota that derailed their College Football Playoff hopes. They finished the year ranked 13th in the Big Ten and 100th in the Football Bowl Subdivi- sion, having allowed 251.5 passing yards per game. Those numbers led to much off-season specu- lation among fans and media about how the Nit- tany Lions might improve, and similar conversations were taking place behind the scenes. As defensive coordinator Brent Pry re- cently conceded, "There are some areas where we feel like we have to do a little bit more, take a few more chances, whether it's to minimize points against a high-flying offense or be a little bit more aggressive in some areas where we haven't been in the past." If the Nittany Lions' pass defense is to improve during this abbreviated season, several factors will have to dovetail, one of the most important being Castro-Fields' return to full health. Fortu- nately for PSU, it doesn't look as though that's going to be a concern. "I feel great right now," he said. "I'm flying around. I feel great, feeling better than ever." Having played in 37 games during his first three seasons at Penn State, the 6-foot-0, 191-pound Castro- Fields is the veteran in an otherwise youthful cornerback group. Sopho- mores Keaton Ellis and Marquis Wilson and redshirt freshmen Joey | EYES ON THE BALL Castro-Fields pulls in an interception during Penn State's 28-21 victory over Michigan last sea- son. The Lions fin- ished with 10 interceptions as a team in 2019. Photo by Steve Manuel A

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