Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1332070
October. Dotson burned the future Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year for 144 yards and three touchdown on eight catches. The season's culmination proved to be a fitting showcase for the Nittany Lions' emerging star. In a Champions Week matchup against Illinois, Dotson scored on the first play from scrimmage, racing 75 yards for a touchdown, and he later added a 70-yard TD. His final stat line – six catches for 189 yards and two scores, and a 50-yard punt return – was one of the best ever assembled by a Penn State receiver in a single game, and it under- scored just how far he had come in a matter of months. Dotson's transition from promising unknown to presumed early entrant into the NFL Draft hap- pened with head-snapping speed, and among the people who found it revela- tory was Dotson himself. "The thing I learned about myself is that I can make things happen," he said following the Lions' 56-21 victory over the Illini. "I can make plays when the ball is in my hands. I have big-play ca- pability. My confidence is just at an all- time high right now. I just know that every time I touch the ball, I can make something happen." He'll be making things happen for the Nittany Lions in 2021, having an- nounced on Jan. 7 that he will return for his senior season. That was one of the best pieces of news Penn State has re- ceived this off-season. The presumption that Dotson would leave early was based on the increasing prevalence of such decisions. These days, players tend to leave for the NFL at the earliest opportunity. The player who preceded Dotson as Penn State's top re- ceiver, K.J. Hamler, did just that a year earlier, forgoing his last two years of col- lege eligibility to enter the draft. The move paid off for him, as he was taken in the middle of the second round by Den- ver and went on to start four games as a rookie, finishing with 30 catches for 381 yards and three touchdowns. But Dotson made a different call. He may have been motivated in part by the depth of this year's draft class at wide receiver. A recent mock draft by CBS- Sports.com had five wideouts going in the first round alone, a parade led by LSU's Ja'Marr Chase and Alabama's De- vonta Smith. Another factor may have been his desire to firmly establish him- self in the eyes of everyone, not just his coaches, teammates and fans, as one of the Big Ten's top playmakers. Even after leading the conference with 884 receiv- ing yards, he earned only third-team All-Big Ten recognition. Finishing ahead of him on both the coaches' and media teams were Ohio State's Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson, Indiana's Ty Fryfogle and Purdue's David Bell. Dotson didn't elaborate in January on his reasons for returning. As he put it in the tweet announcing his decision, "I'll be back in 2021 to give y'all the sum- mary… Chapter 4." As far as the Nittany Lions and their fans are concerned, that explanation will no doubt suffice. >>