Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1390373
LEGEND OF THE FALL After a breakthrough performance last year, standout receiver Jahan Dotson has his sights set even higher in 2021 hen you're a draft-worthy un- derclassman and you're getting set to make one of the most consequential decisions of your life, you tend to get advice. You tend to get a lot of advice. Jahan Dotson was no exception. Dotson had been thinking for a few weeks about whether to forgo his senior season at Penn State to enter the NFL Draft. As De- cember turned to January, the urgency steadily increased, and so did the outside speculation about what he was going to do in the wake of a dazzling junior season. There were many factors to consider, opin- ions to sift through. But Dotson was fortu- nate. As he was weighing the various recommendations, suggestions, admoni- tions and hot takes, he received a piece of advice that snapped everything into focus. It came from K.J. Hamler, the former Nit- tany Lion wideout who had left early in 2020 and was later drafted by the Denver Broncos. "Listen to your mom," Hamler told him. "Your mom knows best." It made sense that Hamler would empha- size the maternal connection. His mother writes songs about him and posts perform- ance videos on Twitter. The Hamlers are famously tight-knit. The Dotsons are tight-knit, too, if not quite as famous, and K.J.'s words clarified everything for his former teammate. "I really thought about that," Dotson said. "When has my mom ever steered me in the wrong direction? When has she been wrong about anything?" Robin Dotson's advice to her son had been to think about every aspect of his de- cision, not just the prospect of an NFL payday. She told him to think about his ed- ucation and about what would make him happiest. Would he be happier out in the real world or would he rather spend one more year playing college football, work- ing toward his degree and being with his friends? After looking at it that way, Dotson's de- cision became a lot easier: He was going to put the NFL on hold and return for one more year at Penn State. The next part is going to be more difficult. With his final season approaching, Dotson | W FAST FACTS LETTERMEN RETURNING 6 (Jahan Dotson, Daniel George, KeAndre Lambert-Smith, Cam Sullivan-Brown, Parker Washington, Benjamin Wilson) LETTERMEN LOST 2 (T.J. Jones, Isaac Lutz) STARTERS RETURNING 3 (Dotson, Lambert-Smith, Washington) STARTERS LOST None OTHERS WITH STARTING EXPERIENCE 2 (George, 6 career starts; Sullivan-Brown, 1) WHAT THEY'RE SAYING COACHING STAFF "Parker and KeAndre ended up playing a lot of football for us last year, and based on targets, they both had a pretty decent amount of success. It's going to be interesting for them. … Can they take that next step in their careers now, understanding what it takes?" James Franklin // "Spring was a great opportunity to try different things. It was a great opportunity to move guys around. That's what we're trying to do. We're trying to build some depth. You've got Daniel George, who was steady in the lineup, he started some. KeAndre Lambert, he started to show up a little bit at the end of the season." Taylor Stubblefield PRESEASON MAGS "Jahan Dot- ston is one of the best receivers in the Big Ten." The Sporting News // "Wideouts Jahan Dotson and Parker Washington came up big last fall." Athlon // "[Penn State] will be solidly improved with Dot- son turning down the NFL." Phil Steele >> S P O T L I G H T W I D E R E C E I V E R S >>