Blue White Illustrated

Your family has known Franklin for years, and he coached your brother while he was at Maryland. However, we haven't talked about your rela- tionship with Terry Smith as much. I know he was the one you were talking with the most, so how important was that relationship in getting you to commit to Penn State? It was very important. For all of the schools that were recruiting me, I got to know their defensive back coaches. With Coach Smith, we connected pretty quickly. The more we talked, it became very comfortable for me. You can tell he's a good guy, and I know his players love him. He's a player's coach, for sure. Your brother walked on at Penn State in January. How important was that for you? Do you think you would have ended up at Penn State regard- less? Or was that something that put it over the top? It's nice having him there, but I don't think it was very important. I think I would have probably ended up at Penn State anyway. One thing I really like about having him there is that he'll be able to help me get used to everything pretty quickly. He's been there long enough now to know where everything is and things like that. Also, he's been pushing me ever since we were little kids, so having someone there, someone who can push me every day, especially on days where I may not be 100 per- cent – I like that. I know he'll keep me on my toes. So, how tough was this decision? You had some very good o(ers from schools like Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Wisconsin and a few others. Well, whenever you make a decision like that, you're going to go back and forth a little bit. You want to make sure that you don't miss anything about the other schools. But with Penn State, they recruited me harder than anyone. They always made me feel like a priority. Like I mentioned, I also like the way things set up for me at cornerback. I think I have a good chance to play, as long as I perform like I can. It was de0nitely the school that I felt the most comfortable with. So, I'd say it was a pretty easy decision. Every time I did think about it a lot, Penn State had the combination that I was really looking for. You started playing high school ball as a sophomore, correct? I know cor- nerback is your main position, but what other positions do you play? Yeah, I didn't play football my fresh- man year. I started playing my sopho- more year and I played varsity right away. Cornerback has always been my main position. I've played on both the weak- and strong-side for cornerback, so I'm pretty versatile. I've also played a couple spots on o1ense. My sophomore year, I played a little running back and slot [re- ceiver]. This past year, I mainly played wide receiver, but I lined up in the back- 0eld at times. I know I had 10 touch- downs this season and I had around 1,010 all-purpose yards. On defense, I had six interceptions and 19 pass breakups. What are some of your strengths and weaknesses right now? Going forward, are there a few things you'd like to improve on this season, before you enroll at Penn State? One thing I really want to improve on is making plays in the back0eld. I had a couple opportunities to make plays be- hind the line this year and for whatever reason, I wasn't able to make the stop. That's something I really want to im- prove on because I feel like my ball skills are pretty good. I always see the ball well. I know how to read the play and make the play overtop of the receiver. That stu1 kind of comes naturally for me, so I really want to work on the things that I sometimes second-guess myself about, like making plays in the back0eld. I just think too much, you know? I just need to let my athleticism do the work. But another thing I think I'm good at is pressing guys and man- to-man coverage. What is your workout schedule like? I know you're currently playing base- ball. Do you still work out with your football team while playing baseball? I li2 year-round. I still work out every day, even during baseball season. I also work with a personal trainer on the weekends. I use him for speed and agili- ty, stu1 like that. But, for the most part, we li2 and work out as a team every day a2er school. Maybe on Friday, we'll just play a game of basketball or something like that to have fun, but we do all the weight training and running and stu1 like that as a team. I also go to the 0elds on the weekend when I can to run routes. There are a few local guys who I work out with. I want to hit on your baseball career a little bit. You've talked about poten- tially playing baseball at Penn State. Is that de'nite? Also, what position do you play? There is a pretty good chance that I end up playing at Penn State. We just still have to work it out with the coaches, mainly just the schedule and things like that. We have to organize classes di1er- ently for each sport and things like that, but I would like to at least try and play up there. I love baseball. I'm a center 0elder and I'm a leado1 hitter. Right now, I'm batting around .310 and I also have around 18 or 19 stolen bases. Do you have any idea what you want to major in? Also, is there any chance you could be an early enrollee? I want to do something with com- mercial real estate or real estate in gen- eral. I have to look into that more. I don't know yet about enrolling early. I have to talk that over with my parents. I've got to see where I stand with that kind of stuff. I haven't looked into it much. Is there anything else you want to say to Penn State fans, maybe some- thing that you want them to know about you? I would just say that I hope Penn State fans are ready. I can't wait to make my debut. As a team, we're going to be spe- cial. ■

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