Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545007
J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 2 6 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M T he Penn State defense is undergo- ing a metamorphosis this offseason with the introduction of new co- ordinator D'Anton Lynn. The Nittany Lions worked through that process dur- ing spring practice, and we came away from their open session on April 25 with a better understanding of how they will deploy certain players. Earlier this offseason, head coach Matt Campbell expressed confidence in several players from the back seven — senior defensive back Zion Tracy, junior safety Marcus Neal Jr. and red- shirt junior linebacker Tony Rojas were at the head of the list. Campbell also mentioned the defensive front but did not cite anyone by name. Instead, he referenced redshirt senior linebacker Caleb Bacon as one of the players with the necessary versatility to play on the defensive line. Presumably, at that point in the off- season, the staff needed to gain more information on the defensive front, with many of the players being foreign to both Lynn and Campbell. Coming out of spring drills, we have a few more players to add to this list. The Blue-White Practice brought more visibility, along with our first offense- versus-defense interactions. From a schematic perspective, several of the Nittany Lions' defensive ends will need to play with a certain level of flexibility. During the inside-run por- tion of practice, sophomore Alexander McPherson lined up inside of the offen- sive tackle, flanked by Bacon as an edge rusher. Their alignment confirmed that the Nittany Lions have been installing five-man fronts this spring. Lynn mentioned that the Lions weren't doing exotic things during passing drills when it came to the de- fensive line. Instead, the focus was on learning more about the players' skill sets. "There's just a big emphasis on what we're trying to get done this spring, and trying to figure out, really, who can rush," Lynn said. "We want to see who can rush, who can win." Among the players being assessed were a couple of newcomers to the edge-rushing corps. Earlier this offsea- son, we learned that former linebacker LaVar Arrington II was moving to de- fensive end. And during spring football, we also discovered that defensive tackle Liam Andrews was sliding over into more of an edge-rushing role, though he's still listed as a defensive tackle on the team's official roster. Both players will have sophomore eligibility in 2026. How can the 6-foot-3, 216-pound Arrington and the 6-4, 290-pound An- drews both play the same position? The answer is complex but boils down to the kind of situations in which the coaching staff plans to put each player. Andrews stood up and rushed the passer from a two-point stance in the Blue-White Practice, while Arrington played with his hand in the dirt, face- up with a blocking tight end. Predomi- nantly, Penn State will be putting those two players in different situations more often than not. Arrington dropped into coverage on at least one play, and later in the practice Andrews was aligned head-up with an offensive tackle, sim- ilar to McPherson. What Arrington and Andrews have in common is that they don't fully fit at their previous positions. We only saw brief flashes of Arrington last year, but he has never shown dominant instincts for playing in space. Meanwhile, Andrews has struggled to crack 300 pounds and didn't look very natural rushing from inside last year during mop-up duty. However, both players are very ath- letic for their body types and can find roles in the defense within the margins. For Andrews, it wouldn't be shocking to hear he's dropped weight and will try to play closer to 280 or 275 pounds. Arrington will need to beef up and play as close to 240 as he can this year, with the goal of getting close to 250 later in his career. The real question is whether either of these players will actually factor into the rotation this year. The Nittany Lions are desperately unproven off the edge and need to add manpower of any size and shape to the room. Mov- ing Arrington and Andrews takes them from their former positions where they weren't perfect fits for the jobs asked of them and puts them in a situation where they could contribute as role players. The best bet is to assume that McPherson, sophomore Yvan Kemajou and redshirt senior Ikenna Ezeogu will be the Nittany Lions' top three defen- sive ends this year, with redshirt soph- omore Max Granville being a potential wild card as a zone-dropping hybrid if he's healthy. ■ PSU's Edge-Rushing Corps Needs To Develop Depth LaVar Arrington II has moved from linebacker to defen- sive end, though at 216 pounds he's expected to be a role player this fall. MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS Upon Further Review O P I N I O N THOMAS FRANK CARR T F R A N K .C A R R @ O N 3 .C O M