Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1472993
4 4 A U G U S T 2 0 2 2 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M WIDE RECEIVERS "There's a lot to be excited about in his future," head coach James Franklin said following the Outback Bowl, in which Washington led the Lions with 7 catches for 98 yards. "He's got tremendous ball skills, he's smart, he can make people miss. He's built more like a tailback than he is a receiver, which I think helps him in a lot of different situations. "To see Parker and KeAndre do some good things [against Arkansas], that's go- ing to be important, because we're losing a lot of production in Jahan Dotson." Washington's single-mindedness has manifested itself in multiple ways over the course of his career. When he was a true freshman, he started his very first game even though he didn't have a normal off- season in which to work with quarterback Sean Clifford ahead of the team's opener at Indiana. Washington caught a 9-yard touch- down pass in overtime in that game. He didn't know the offense in detail due to the practice constraints that the pan- demic had imposed, but the parts that he did know, he understood thoroughly. "We put in what we could put in," Washington recalled. "So, I was locked in on what we had. We didn't have every- thing we wanted to have for Game 1, but at that moment I felt like I was pretty locked in with what we had in." Even the parts of Washington's back- story that might seem impulsive have a purposeful aspect to them. The Sugar Land, Texas, native was strongly considering Duke during his re- cruitment but gravitated to Penn State and ended up signing with the Nittany Lions in their 2020 class. It might have seemed like an abrupt change of heart, but Washington had his reasons. He had met a young Blue Devils as- sistant coach named Gerad Parker while playing for William B. Travis High. Parker had come to Texas to scout another Travis player, but Washington had a big game that night, and he remembers Parker ap- proaching him afterward and offering him a scholarship on the spot. In January 2019, Parker was hired by Penn State to take charge of its wide re- ceivers. Washington had developed a good relationship with the well-traveled as- sistant coach and began looking at the Nittany Lions after Parker changed jobs. The more he learned, the more he came to favor PSU. The decision to join Parker in State College "was a no-brainer," Wash- ington said. "I want play with the best. I want to be the best that I can be, so why not be around the best?" By the time he arrived on campus in the summer of 2020, his lead recruiter was already gone, having been hired away to become West Virginia's offensive coordi- nator. Washington was unfazed. "It's a business at the end of the day," he said. Though Parker was gone, Washington had no reason to feel restless. He enjoyed a strong season as a true freshman, start- ing all nine games and finishing with 36 catches for 489 yards and 6 touchdowns. Then he nearly doubled those numbers last year, catching 64 passes for 820 yards and 5 scores. Now comes a different kind of chal- lenge for the 5-10, 212-pound wideout. With Dotson gone, he's being called upon to assume a leadership role in Penn State's receivers room. He's got the numbers to back up the on-field aspect of that tran- sition, and he's working on the off-field aspect, which will require him to have a stronger voice than in previous years. "I'm getting more involved," Wash- ington said. "It feels more natural, but I would say I'm still working on it. I love to improve. I started to talk more [during the offseason] and help my guys out as much as I can. It's starting to feel natural." That video clip from the Outback Bowl might seem to give him all the credibility he needs as a player whose approach to the game is worth emulating. Even though Washington doesn't like to dwell on it — "I've kind of moved on," he insisted — it's tangible evidence that he knows exactly what he's doing. Penn State's receivers would surely do well to listen to him, and that includes Washington himself. His career has shown that the right mindset is the key to everything, and a big part of creating that mindset is to internalize an expectation of success. "It's a confidence thing," Washington said. "Being able to see that catch and knowing that I can make those, it's a big confidence booster." ■ "It comes down to just being laser-focused. The biggest thing in my mind is, just make the catch. I feel like that helps with my hand-eye coordination, being able to focus on nothing but the football no matter who the defender is, no matter how loud it is. I feel like when guys do that, they're able to make those tough catches." W A S H I N G T O N Washington has been the Nittany Lions' second-leading pass catcher each of the past two seasons, totaling 36 recep- tions for 489 yards as a true freshman and 64 for 820 yards last year. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL