Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1529598
2 4 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 4 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M W hen you're forced to sit out as long as Alonzo Ford Jr. sat out last year, even the mediocre parts of the student-athlete experience start to look pretty good. A stocky defensive tackle from Rich- mond, Va., Ford had transferred to Penn State in 2023 after winning honorable mention All-Sun Belt Conference notice during his sophomore year at Old Do- minion. He was looking forward to testing himself against Big Ten-level competi- tion, but those plans quickly went awry. Before he even had a chance to take the field in a Penn State uniform, Ford suf- fered an unspecified injury that forced him to miss the entire 2023 campaign. Watching his new teammates carry on with their season, he couldn't help but feel envious. Even the most seemingly mundane aspects of football life inspired pangs of regret. "The pregame meal, stuff like that," he said. "Week to week, it's pretty much the same meal. By your third or fourth year of college, you might be like, 'I'm tired of eating this food.' But when you get that taken away from you, you'll recognize real quick that it's a blessing. It's a true blessing to have that family atmosphere, that team bonding. Getting that same meal? It's the best meal you'll ever eat." Ford is back in action this year as a redshirt senior, and while he may have missed out on a few meals, he's still tak- ing up a lot of space in the middle of Penn State's defensive line. He played 22 snaps in the Nittany Lions' season opener at West Virginia, showing right away that he had the potential to be a significant part of position coach Deion Barnes' ro- tation. Barnes said he could tell during pre- season camp that the veteran lineman had the tools to become a contributor once he was healthy. "When he came back from that [in- jury], he showed in those first couple of practices … that he knew how to play ball," Barnes said, "and that he was a good football player." Ford hit a midseason lull, but he's been seeing more action again lately — 13 snaps at Wisconsin, 20 against Ohio State, 29 versus Washington and 19 in the Lions' 49-10 romp over Purdue. His emergence couldn't have come at a more opportune time. With super senior defensive tackle Hakeem Beamon opting to leave the team in early November, Ford will need to play a bigger role. The analytics indicate he's ready for that challenge. Heading into the Nit- tany Lions' visit to Minnesota on Nov. 23, Ford boasted the team's fourth- best overall defensive grade from Pro BUILT UILT F FORD ORD T TOUGH OUGH Alonzo Ford Jr. has become a key part of Penn State's rugged defensive front M AT T H E R B | M AT T. H E R B @ O N 3 . C O M Ford played 13 snaps in Penn State's 28-13 win at Wisconsin on Oct. 26, earning his highest defensive grade of the season from Pro Football Focus (84.3). PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS