Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/83706
STEPHON MORRIS BY THE NUMBERS YR 2009 2010 2011 2012 TOTAL John Beale foot-3 McKnight seemed to fuel concerns that Morris's height – he stands 5-8 – would turn out to be a major liability going forward. He was replaced in the starting lineup by Chaz Powell and continued as Powell's backup at the field cornerback position last season. "I definitely think they were going with taller corners," Morris said. "Chaz Powell was definitely athletic as hell, tall, a freak of nature. D'Anton Lynn had like 33 starts in his career. You couldn't bench him. He was a smart kid back there. And I couldn't play safety. So my role was a nickel back, and that's what I had to take it as." He ended up making only one start, and as the Big Ten season went on, his playing time steadily decreased. The low point, he said, was a game against Purdue in which he logged only 11 plays, one of which resulted in an apparent fumble recovery that was waved off by the officials. It seemed Morris couldn't catch a break. "I thought no matter how hard I worked in practice, it just wasn't being noticed," he said. "When I talked to my dad after the game, he said, 'Hang in there.' But I really wasn't listening. I was just out of it. I was like, 'I can't do it no more.' " But then came the coaching change and with it a fresh start. Morris said that once he made up his mind to re- main at Penn State, he didn't waver. Soon after the NCAA sanctions were announced, he texted Butler to tell him, "You don't have to worry about me being here." He hurt his ankle in the opener against Ohio, but he started the fol- lowing week against Virginia and said it felt fine during the game. "It's not an issue anymore," he said. Now that the Big Ten season is nearly here, Morris is eager to give the Nittany Lions a lift. "I started off my career here with a bang," he said. "My soph- omore year was kind of up and down. My junior year, people say I had a down season, but I didn't really have a down season because every time I got graded after the game, I always had the highest grade. I just got fewer plays. I wasn't in there in big situations, like two-minute drives, things like that. Stephon Morris wasn't out there, so you kind of forgot about me. "So this is definitely a big season, not just for myself but for the team. Personally, I feel like I've got so much to prove. I finally get to play the defense that I thought I was going to be playing when I first came here. I'm just ready to show everybody I'm still here. I'm better than I ever was." TK 30 39 19 15 103 SOLO 24 28 12 11 75 ASST 6 11 7 4 28 FR 0 0 0 0 0 FC 0 0 0 0 0 I 1 0 0 0 1 SACK 1-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-1 TFL 2-3 0.5-1 1-3 1-2 4.5-9 AVAILABLE NOW in State College stores………… www.409rallytowels.com Our goal behind STAND UP 4 PENN STATE is to have a massive display of support for our team, past teams and Joe Paterno. We want to build support to a peak at the October 27th "white out"! WE STAND UP 4 PENN STATE! It's about time … Look for us on Facebook – 409 Rally Towels Follow us on Twitter @SU4PS #409rallytowels