Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1539550
2 6 O C T O B E R 2 0 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M I t's been an interesting first three weeks of the 2025 season for the Penn State defense. That's a good thing. It wasn't all that long ago that outside observers were speculating about whether the offense might have to carry the team for a while. Maybe that will be the case when Big Ten play begins, but during the nonconfer- ence portion of the season, first-year coordinator Jim Knowles' unit has performed at a level that matches what came before him. The Nittany Lions have game- wreckers at all three levels, lock- down defenders in the secondary, and interesting young players who are moving into bigger roles. While there were some expected early- season hiccups in Weeks 1 and 2, the Lions came into their own — albeit against an FCS foe — in Week 3 ver- sus Villanova. When the first-team defense was on the field, it was fast, physical, aggressive and overwhelm- ing, which is exactly what was needed heading into a White Out clash with Or- egon on Sept. 27. "I thought our defense took a signifi- cant step this week, just more confidence, more command, more control of the de- fense, especially from our safeties and linebackers who are running the show," coach James Franklin said after the 52-6 win over the Wildcats on Sept. 13. "That was important going into this bye week. I think up till this week, we weren't play- ing as fast and as confident as I think we need to play. It seemed like we took a step in the right direction in terms of running the defense." There will be many more major tests moving forward, starting with the Ducks. Head coach Dan Lanning's team has a lot of new playmakers, but it's still a high-scoring offense that will pressure Knowles' bunch in ways it has yet to ex- perience this season. That will tell us a lot more about the unit heading into the heart of the Big Ten schedule. "We knew after the past two games that we came out kind of flat," junior linebacker Tony Rojas said after the Vil- lanova game. "Coach Knowles and us players knew that, and we knew it wasn't Progress Report: DEFENSE Nittany Lions dominate nonconference foes, but bigger challenges await G R E G P I C K E L | G R E G . P I C K E L @ O N 3 . C O M Linebackers Tony Rojas (left) and Amare Campbell have combined to make 40 tackles through three games. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS