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Defensive back picture becomes more clear

By Audrey Snyder/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 9 years ago

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – James Franklin said he would’ve never moved cornerback Jordan Lucas to safety if Penn State’s senior defensive back wasn’t onboard. 


Indiana wide receiver Dominique Booth (3) is taken down by Penn State cornerback Jordan Lucas (9) during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Bloomington, Ind. (AP Photo/Sam Riche)

Loaded with young talent at corner and needing someone to line up with sophomore safety Marcus Allen, Lucas continues adjusting to his new position this spring. While Lucas hasn’t been made available to the media since last season concluded, former Penn State defensive back Adrian Amos knows a thing or two or three about shifting from corner to safety and the challenges that come with it. What advice does he have for Lucas this spring?

“Just learn,” Amos said following his pro day workout a couple weeks ago. “We as a meeting room we learn a lot, especially with coach [Bob] Shoop he makes us learn everybody’s position. It’s just getting the movements down, getting comfortable learning a new position.”

Lucas, like the rest of Penn State’s defense, raved about working with Shoop last season and Shoop’s players said they watched more film last season than before. Not only did they study more, but many of them also said they enjoyed it and Allen even asked Shoop if he’d watch extra film with him. While the future for Allen remains bright—so much so that Amos said he thinks the sophomore will be one of the conference’s best safeties – teaming up with a veteran can only help.

“He's a physical corner, he's got the body, and as you guys know, he loves to talk, so being back there as a safety and being able to kind of coordinate and tell people where to go and line up is really important," Franklin said Saturday. “You don't make that move unless you feel good about the young corners.” 

Christian Campbell and Grant Haley came on strong as true freshmen last year, appearing in nine and 13 games and were productive when they did so. Add starting corner Trevor Williams to the mix and Penn State will continue spending the spring and summer looking for a fourth corner. Redshirt freshman Daquan Worley is an option and four-star corners John Reid and Garrett Taylor arrive this summer. 

Malik Golden, who dealt with an injury last season but has been practicing this spring, adds depth at safety and so does redshirt freshman Amani Oruwariye. Troy Apke got his feet wet on special teams and briefly on defense last season, experience that bodes well for his future too.

Overcoming the mental hurdle is among the biggest challenges for the young defensive backs, but as this roster shapes up it’s clear there’s no shortage of scholarship players in the secondary and some of the young ones have been exceptional thus far.

If Haley and Campbell continue progressing with Williams next to them and Lucas and Allen behind them there’s reason to believe Penn State’s last line of defense will be a strong point and could be for years to come.

Audrey Snyder: asnyder@post-gazette.com and Twitter @audsnyder4.