Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1525333
S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 4 3 9 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Moved from defensive end to line- backer, Parsons started only one game as a true freshman but still led the team in tackles with 83. His sophomore year was even better. He totaled 109 tack- les, including 14 for loss and 5 sacks, and he won consensus All-America honors. Against Memphis in the Cotton Bowl, Parsons turned in a tour de force per- formance, totaling 14 stops, 3 tackles for loss, 2 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. The only knock on Parsons is that his career was brief. He skipped the COVID- shortened 2020 season to prepare for the NFL Draft and was taken 12th overall by Dallas the following April. He's now a three-time All-Pro linebacker for the Cowboys. 2 . C H O P R O B I N S O N | D E | 2 0 2 2-2 3 Robinson was a late addition to Penn State's 2022 roster, transferring from Maryland at the conclusion of spring practice. Like Parsons, he was a two-year team member and a one-year starter. And like Parsons, both of Robinson's seasons in Happy Valley were dazzling. There's a strong argument to be made that he's been the team's most impactful acquisi- tion since the start of the portal era. Robinson didn't compile an over- whelming statistical portfolio, amass- ing 11.5 sacks and 20 tackles for loss, but his speed and relentlessness impacted passers and forced incompletions. He received a 92.4 pass-rush grade from Pro Football Focus in 2022 and a 92.3 mark last fall, winning second-team All- America honors from PFF and USA To- day as a junior. This past April, Robinson was chosen by Miami with the 21st overall pick in the NFL Draft. 3 . M A R C U S A L L E N | S | 2 0 1 4 -17 Allen played a starring role on two of the most critical snaps of Penn State's 2016 season. Against second-ranked Ohio State, he batted down a late field goal attempt, with cornerback Grant Haley returning the loose ball for the winning touchdown. Against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game, Al- len and Haley teamed up again to stop Badgers running back Corey Clement on fourth-and-1 late in the fourth quarter, clinching a 38-31 victory. A third-team All-American as a se- nior, Allen finished his career with 321 tackles to rank fifth in school history. That total was helped significantly by a 22-tackle performance against Minne- sota in 2016, the team's highest single- game total since Paul Posluszny had 22 stops versus Northwestern in 2005. 4 . J O E Y P O RT E R J R . | C B | 2 0 1 9 -2 2 Opponents were wary of testing the lanky Porter, and his numbers reflected their reticence. In three seasons as a starting cornerback, he totaled 21 passes defended and just 1 interception. Porter still was a second-team All- American and first-team All-Big Ten choice as a senior, and he later became a second-round draft pick of the Pitts- burgh Steelers, the team for which his father had starred. He is getting ready for his second pro season after last year win- ning the Joe Greene Great Performance Award, which goes to the Steelers' top rookie. 5 . A D I SA I SA AC | D E | 2 0 1 9 -2 3 A serious Achilles injury suffered in the summer of 2021 couldn't stop Isaac from becoming one of the top defensive ends of the Franklin era. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native shined in his last two sea- sons at Penn State, starting all 26 games and compiling 11.5 sacks and 27 tackles for loss. He was a first-team All-Big Ten choice as a senior. Isaac was chosen by Baltimore in the third round of the 2024 draft and will begin his NFL career this fall as part of a defensive front that includes another standout Franklin-era edge rusher, Odafe Oweh. Linebacker Micah Parsons was a consensus All-American after totaling 109 tackles as a sophomore in 2019. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL Defensive end Carl Nassib turned in one of the greatest single- season performances in Penn State history in 2015 when he totaled a school-record 15.5 sacks. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL