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>> pay off in the fall, this is one position group where the Nittany Lions can't af- ford any injuries. Expect to see them use a 4-2-5 alignment with increasing fre- quency. The team's personnel situation and the prevalence of spread offenses throughout college football all but de- mand it. SECONDARY With starters Tariq Cas- tro-Fields and Joey Porter Jr. both return- ing, along with backups Keaton Ellis, Marquis Wilson and Daequan Hardy, and with January enrollees Kalen King and Jeffrey Davis Jr. joining them this spring, the Nittany Lions might have seemed deep enough that they didn't need to add anyone via the transfer portal. But that's just what they did, bringing in former South Carolina cornerback Johnny Dixon. What did Dixon's arrival say to the re- turnees? "It says that you've got to compete for a spot. Nothing is given, nothing is handed out," Ellis said. "You've got to work." Apparently, that's exactly what hap- pened this spring. Dixon, who started nine games the past two seasons with the Gamecocks, has enhanced one of the team's deeper areas and looks to be in great shape to earn a spot on the two- deep this coming fall. "He's a great talent. He's been playing well, and it just pushes all of us in the room to be better and be at our best at all times," Ellis said. "So he's been a great addition to the room." Another great addition has been King. Franklin called the January enrollee "probably the most advanced freshman that we've had since we've been here [at Penn State], in terms of his ability to practice and compete, both physically and mentally." As if to confirm that as- sessment, the four-star recruit from De- troit intercepted two passes in the Lions' April 17 practice. There have also been some subtrac- tions. Wilson was given a tryout at wide receiver this spring, and while it was un- clear as of this writing whether that move will turn out to be permanent, he was listed as an athlete, not a cornerback, on the team's most recent roster. Also, fresh- man cornerback Joseph Johnson III en- tered the transfer portal in late April. A member of the Nittany Lions' Class of 2020, Johnson didn't get on the field in his lone season in University Park. One other potential change would have Ellis moving to safety. That's where he played in the April 23 scrimmage, but he was still listed as a cornerback on the team's roster as of this writing. SPECIAL TEAMS The Lions' field goal accuracy dipped substantially last year, so it's no surprise that Jake Pinegar and Jor- dan Stout focused this spring on improv- ing their 61.1 percent success rate, which ranked 12th in the Big Ten. Pinegar went 9 of 13 in 2020 after hitting all but one of his 12 attempts in 2019. He said recently that can't point to a tech- nique problem or an injury that would ex- plain why he wasn't as successful as he had been the year before. Said Pinegar, "I just think it comes down to me missing kicks. There were kicks last season and moments last season that 10 times out of 10 I need to make, I do make, and that did- n't happen. I've thought about it. There's no real logical explanation. It's not even an excuse. I just didn't make those kicks, and some of them need to be made every sin- gle time. That's my job." Stout went 2 for 5 on field goals last year. He's handled long-range attempts for the past two seasons, as well as kick- offs, and last year he took over the punt- ing duties, too, averaging 38.9 yards. This spring, he worked on developing more consistency, particularly on field goals. "I have the leg strength and the speed," he said, "I just need to be more consistent. If I can get more consistent, I feel like that's going to take me to the next level." ■ JOE KRENTZMAN & SON, INC. • Buyers and Brokers of Steel, Iron and Nonferrous Metals • Industrial Scrap Buyers • Container Service Available • Large Service Territory Since 1903 Lewistown, PA • Hollidaysburg, PA • DuBois, PA (800) 543-2000 • www.krentzman.net F irst i n S cra p

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