Penn State cornerback [autotag]Joey Porter Jr.[/autotag] had an active season debut against Purdue, and he is being recognized for his performance against the Boilermakers. Porter Jr. was named the National Player of the Week by the Bednarik Award on Tuesday.
Porter Jr. had eight tackles, recovered a fumble, and broke up six passes during Penn State’s Week 1 win at Purdue. He also came close to hauling in his first interception of the year and returning it for a touchdown, but he couldn’t quite finish making the play.
Penn State is home to the most Bednarik Award winners in the history of the award. [autotag]Paul Posluszny[/autotag] is a two-time winner. Other Nittany Lions to win the award include [autotag]Dan Connor[/autotag] and [autotag]LaVar Arrington[/autotag].
Last year’s recipient of the Bednarik Award was Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis. The last Big Ten player to win the award was Chase Young of Ohio State in 2019.
Porter Jr. and Penn State safety [autotag]Ji’Ayir Brown[/autotag] are the two Nittany Lions on the watch list for this year’s Bednarik Award.
Penn State quarterback [autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag] was named the Big Ten’s co-offensive player of the week.
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