P
enn State has sent its share of line-
backers, running backs and linemen
to the NFL over the years, but one posi-
tion that hasn't been quite so well-rep-
resented is the cornerback spot. The
most recent Nittany Lion cornerback to
be dra?ed was Justin King, who was
taken by the St. Louis Rams in the fourth
round of the 2008 dra?. Before that, you
have to go back to Alan Zemaitis, a
fourth-round pick by Tampa Bay in
2006, and Rich Gardner, a third-
rounder by Tennessee in 2004.
Is that trend about to change? Corner-
backs coach Terry Smith thinks it might.
While declining to get too far ahead of
himself – "I don't want to be Nos-
tradamus," he said – he noted that he
believes Penn State has four veteran cor-
nerbacks on the team right now who
could have a future in professional foot-
ball. The players to whom he was refer-
ring were starters Grant Haley and
Christian Campbell, backup Amani
Oruwariye, and John Reid, who has been
sitting out this season while recovering
from an injury he su>ered in spring
practice.
Haley and Campbell are both seniors
who are getting set to wrap up their alo, 1992) and David Macklin
(third round, Indianapolis, 2000). Bha-
woh Jue, was taken in the third round of
the 2001 dra? by Green Bay, but while he
played cornerback at Penn State, he was
moved to safety by the Packers. Jue
ended up playing eight seasons in the
NFL with Green Bay, San Diego, St.
Louis and Arizona.
During the Paterno era, the Nittany
Lions were much more proerent types of techniques."
Haley has quickly become one of Penn
State's best cover corners, but his athleti-
cism also makes him capable of the ex-
plosive play. As a freshman, he registered
the team's fastest 40-yard dash time. He
has since been surpassed in that category
by Saquon Barkley, but Haley still ranks
among the team's most athletic players.
In the eyes of Franklin, however, Haley's
most striking attribute remains his con-
sistency.
"There aren't a whole lot of highs and
lows and dips and valleys in his game,"
Franklin said. "He's very mature, and ob-
viously he's a talented guy. There's a lot of
value in that from a coaching perspective
when you know what you're going to get
every single day and you know what
you're going to get on Saturdays."
Those intangibles also make Haley an
important presence in Penn State's locker
room. Despite his introverted nature, he
was named a captain this season and is
seen as a natural leader by his teammates.
Fellow defensive back Nick Scott, who
transitioned to the secondary a?er com-
ing to Penn State as a running back, listed
Haley as one of his most important role
models throughout the process.
"He's a guy who's started for four years
now, basically," Scott said. "So his lead-
ership role is huge in terms of experience
and teaching the young guys like Lamont
[Wade] and Tariq [Castro-Fields] how to
approach the game."
With young defensive backs such as
Castro-Fields
and Wade poised to step
into bigger roles in the coming years, the
senior captain has a chance to leave an-
other legacy in the form of those who will
succeed him. But Haley said he's focused
on the present. The Lions are busy trying
to boost their postseason outlook, and as
they strive for more wins in the season's
