There was a lot to soak in from Penn State’s spring practice on Saturday, with fans in the stands of Beaver Stadium and the media getting a chance to see some new things from above. One notable development from Penn State’s spring practice was one player playing a completely new position, on the other side of the field.
Marquis Wilson, a sophomore cornerback in 2020, lined up and played some wide receiver with the Penn State offense on Saturday. While it came as a surprise to many watching the spring action, it was apparently something that has been on the table since Penn State initially recruited Wilson to Happy Valley.
“With Marquis, he was a guy that we’ve been really talking about, since we recruited him, the possibility of playing both ways,” head coach James Franklin said in his post-practice media session on Saturday. “My philosophy is, once you really have established yourself on one side of the ball, I’m open to discussing, you know, playing both ways.”
Wilson’s potential shift to either playing wide receiver full time or going both ways could be a product of the depth Penn State has in the secondary. Penn State is already returning Jaquan Brisker and Tariq Castro-Fields for two starting spots in the secondary (Brisker at safety and Castro-Fields at cornerback). Jonathan Sutherland is a candidate to lock down a starting job at the other safety position.
And the brilliant spring debut of Kalen King could be enough to give the freshman a realistic shot for a starting job, or at least a role in the defense. Joey Porter Jr. is also a top candidate for a starting job at corner, and Penn State has added Johnny Dixon as a transfer from South Carolina.
The point here is Penn State’s depth in the secondary is pretty deep. The wide receivers, on the other hand, could benefit from having another playmaker.
The wide receivers at Penn State are not in a bad spot, actually. Jahan Dotson‘s return gives Penn State one of the top wide receivers right out of the gates. The growth of players like Parker Washington and Daniel Georgia and KeAndre Lambert-Smith also could blossom under new offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich.
But adding a player with the ball skills like Wilson could add a dynamic that may be lacking for now. Franklin said Wilson was open to the opportunity.
He’s got tremendous confidence in himself and we’re looking for a few more playmakers at the wide receiver position. So, we made this change about a week ago. It’s something we’ve probably been discussing for about a week-and-a-half and then we made the change, brought Marquis in and we don’t ever tell a kid where to go. But you know, we bring them in and talk about what we’re thinking and see if he’s open to it and he was, he was awesome. He’s still figuring it out right now, but he’s already shown some flashes in practice and done some really good things. So, we’ll continue to build there.
Wilson could have a full summer to continue to develop a role in the Penn State offense. But having someone with flexibility to fill multiple positions on both sides of the football is always nice to have on the roster.
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