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now, obviously, that gives us the ability to put Brandon Smith into the boundary, which also creates some flexibility be- cause now Brandon can do a lot of things, and we're going to try to start training Curtis the same way. It creates some flex- ibility. We've been pleased with his ath- leticism in space, and he seems to continue to get more confident out there on the field. I've been very, very pleased with him, and if we were playing this Sat- urday, those two guys would be starting at either outside 'backer spot based on today." Count Pry among the optimistic, too. Welcoming the ascent of Jacobs and the move of Smith, the Nittany Lions' defen- sive coordinator said that the attributes and skill sets of each fit better into what he would like to bring to the positions this fall. "I'm excited about the transition. I think Curtis brings some things to the Sam position that we didn't have. Athlet- ically, he's a very fluid, good space player. He was a wide receiver at times in high school. He's got great ball skills," Pry said. "Then Brandon, putting him in the boundary at Micah's spot, he's very long and physical. I just think those two guys are owning those spots, and I think we've improved in both areas." Setting the groundwork for a progres- sion at linebacker that affords the best players the least amount of scheme to un- derstand and responsibilities to uphold at the beginning of their careers, Franklin is convinced that the moves will produce dividends this fall. With Penn State's spring practice now in the books, Jacobs's budding confi- dence in his performance has helped set the table for a summer in which he's de- termined to continue making gains at the position. "I'm just a guy who can use his athleti- cism most of the time and just get to the ball. I pride myself on how I cover and how I use that within my abilities, so I feel like that can be another part of it that can help us out," Jacobs said. "But I just want to continue to get better every day on stuff that I'm not good at." ■ Sutherland views experience as asset in safety battle J onathan Sutherland wants to keep his objectives simple this off-season. En- tering his fifth year at Penn State, the veteran safety can lean on his experience where plenty of others can't, especially after the cancellation of spring football in 2020. His mental map for this time of year leads to the basics, and that's where his focus lies as he competes for one of the start- ing safety spots. "As a safety, you can always get better in your coverage, you can always become better in your tackling, and you can al- ways become better in your communication," Sutherland said. Improving one's communi- cation, especially at the safety SAFETY FIRST Sutherland (left) is the most expe- rienced of the candidates for the vacant free safety spot. Photo by Mark Selders/Penn State Athletics |

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