Blue White Illustrated

| P E N N S T A T E F O O T B A L L >> WITHIN REACH he first name that James Franklin mentioned in his press conference following the Blue-White Game was that of a rising redshirt sophomore who suited up for the White team. Playing at one of the deepest positions on Penn State's defense, cornerback Zech McPhearson said he wasn't disappointed when the rosters were released a few days before the spring game. Six cornerbacks were listed on the Blue team and McP- hearson wasn't one of them. Instead of feeling bitter, however, the redshirt soph- omore from Columbia, Md., took it as a challenge – one that he embraced and to which he arose. Wearing a white jersey meant that he was required to play most of the first half against starting quarterback Trace Mc- Sorley, while the cornerbacks in blue jer- seys were facing off against the third- and fourth-team QBs. It was a daunting as- signment, since a potential Heisman Tro- phy candidate would be slinging the passes, but McPhearson knew the matchup would give him an opportunity to shine. "I wanted that. Trace is really good and he gets me better every day. He's a smart quarterback. He can detect what kind of coverage you're in like that," McPherson said, snapping his fingers. "I love going against Trace, who is a really good quar- terback. I feel like that'll help me get ready for the season, going against a Heisman candidate." The Lions are deep at cornerback even after losing starters Grant Haley and Christian Campbell to graduation. Last year's interception leader, Amani Oruwariye, is expected to step into a full- time starting role this fall, and he'll likely be joined by former starter John Reid, who is healthy again after missing last season with a knee injury. Also in the mix for playing time are Abeliene Christian transfer Jabari Butler and a number of promising younger players including Tariq Castro-Fields, Donovan Johnson, D.J. Brown and Trent Gordon. But McPhearson clearly caught his coach's attention in the spring game. He finished with a game-high three pass breakups, including two in the first quar- ter. While there were one or two passes completed in his vicinity, he made more plays on the ball than any other corner- back on the field. "The guy who kind of stood out to me was Zech McPhearson," Franklin said un- prompted during his opening statement. "I thought he made bunch of plays and played with a lot of confidence. It was great to see that." T Zech McPhearson aims to make a contribution at cornerback this coming fall MOVING UP McPhearson has had a strong off- season, as evidenced by a perform- ance in the Blue-White Game in which he broke up three passes. Photo by Nate Bauer

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