Tag: Kevin Winston Jr.

Best photos from Penn State’s win over Indiana

Here are the best photos from Penn State’s home win against Indiana in Week 9.

Penn State had to dig deep in the final minutes of a rough outing to find a way to a victory on Saturday afternoon against Indiana. Despite being a 31-point favorite, Penn State needed a long touchdown pass and a defensive safety to help seal the fate of this particular home game, a 33-24 victory.

Penn State’s defense gave up more points in a game than it has all season long, and the offense had their rough moments for a second consecutive week. But in the end, the Nittany Lions managed to come out on top and toss aside quite a gritty effort from the visiting Hoosiers.

Here are some of the best photos available from Penn State’s win over Indiana.

2023 Penn State football snapshot profile: No. 21 Kevin Winston Jr.

A snapshot look at Penn State safety Kevin Winston Jr. heading into the 2023 season.

Going into the 2023 football season, Nittany Lions Wire will be looking at each scholarship player listed on the Penn State roster. Over the preseason, each profile will cover where the player is from, how recruiting websites rated them coming out of high school, and what role they will play for James Franklin.

Continuing this effort is a look at one of Penn State’s rising stars for the upcoming season, sophomore [autotag]Kevin Winston Jr[/autotag]. There is a lot of attention being paid to the Penn State defensive backs this season. Winston could find himself being an impactful player in the upcoming 2023 season.

Top 5 position battles heading into Penn State’s spring practices

These position battles will be heating up when Penn State opens spring football practices.

Penn State football is in a very good position overall with the way that James Franklin has this team constructed. Of course, there are a few positions that need to be sorted out still.

The position battles going on this spring will be what solidify the starting lineup. The team is very deep and whoever loses these battles shouldn’t be seen as someone not of the quality you expect from Penn State. Rather, it will speak volumes as to what the starters should be seen as which is top-level quality players.

Here are the top five position battles to monitor this spring.

2022 Penn State football: Nittany Lions’ safety preview

Ji’Ayir Brown’s return highlights the safety position overview for Penn State in 2022. Position overview…

Penn State is prepping for a season in which the program hopes to redeem itself on the national stage. After back-to-back seasons of mediocre results, Penn State is aiming to bounce back and prove themselves worthy of being in the Big Ten championship hunt, if not a little bit more.

Penn State kicks off the 2022 season with a Thursday night primetime matchup at Purdue on September 1. And for the second straight year, the depth and quality of the defensive secondary appears to be a strength for Penn State. The safety position loses a big-time player in Jaquan Brisker but the return of Ji’Ayir Brown coming off his breakout season is a big plus for the defense this fall.

Here is a look at the safeties on the roster for Penn State coming into the 2022 season.

Penn State’s Kevin Winston Jr. named Maryland player of the year

Mr. Football in Ohio? Check! Mr. Football in Pennsylvania? Check! Now Penn State has the Maryland player of the year in its Class of 2022 haul.

The state of Maryland has always been a key recruiting area for Penn State over the years, and now it has the top player from the state as a member of its Class of 2022. Kevin Winston Jr. was named the DC Touchdown Club’s Maryland high school player of the year.

Winston had previously been named the state’s defensive player of the year by The Washington Post. He is scheduled to join Penn State over the summer after not being one of the early enrollees this spring.

Winston Jr. will be honored by the DC Touchdown Club at an awards banquet later this month, on April 21, just two days before the Penn State Blue-White spring game. He will be honored along with one of Penn State head coach James Franklin’s former bosses, former Maryland head coach Ralph Friedgen. At one point, Franklin was expected to succeed Friedgen at Maryland, but he ended up taking a head coaching position at Vanderbilt instead, which eventually led to Franklin’s arrival in Happy Valley. Former Washignton Redskin Joe Jacoby, Pro Player of the Year Trevon Diggs, and College Player of the Year Jordan Addison (Pitt wide receiver) will also be honored at the banquet.

Winston is the third player joining Penn State in 2022 to be coming off such a high honor from their home state. Quarterback [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] was named Mr. Football in the state of Ohio and running back [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] was named Mr. PA Football in Pennsylvania.

Three top players from three key recruiting states in one recruiting class? Yeah, that will work.

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Penn State adds safety from Maryland to incredible Class of 2022

Penn State’s already impressive Class of 2022 added another player on Saturday form the state of Maryland

Penn State beat out a nearby Big Ten rival for the commitment of safety Kevin Winston on Saturday. Winston announced his decision, which came down to the Nittany Lions and the Maryland Terrapins, on Saturday.

Winston is a 6′-2″ safety from DeMatha Catholic in Maryland. He is the latest of a group of four safeties to be included in Penn State’s Class of 2022, joining JUCO transfer Tyrece Mills, Jordan Allen from Louisiana, and four-star commit Cristian Driver, the son of former Pro Bowl wide receiver Donald Driver. Driver committed to Penn State days prior to Winston’s decision being announced.

Penn State has done well in focusing on defensive depth in this current recruiting cycle. Penn State’s Class of 2022 currently includes 11 players on the defensive side of the football, including the four previously mentioned safties and four-star cornerback Cam Miller, who also committed to Penn State last week. The secondary appears to be a strength for the Nittany Lions heading into the 2021 season, and the future of the position looks to be in good shape with these pending additions and the quick rise of players like Kalen King from the Class of 2021.

Penn State was on an absolute roll in the month of July, picking up 12 commitments from players for the Class of 2022, as well as one for 2023. One of those commits, Tyreese Fearbry of Pittsburgh, backed off of his early-July commitment to Penn State and is now expected to commit to another school (Pitt is the current crystal ball favorite on 247 Sports).

Penn State still is holding on firmly to a No. 2 national ranking in the recruiting cycle for 2022, with only Ohio State sitting ahead of them. Alabama is surging up the national rankings and beginning to close the gap with Penn State, but James Franklin is easily on track to signing his top-rated recruiting class since his arrival in Happy Valley. Even if Penn State doesn’t end with the No. 2 ranking, Penn State’s Class of 2022 will impressively set the bar high for Penn State recruiting and be a significant factor in Penn State’s future for the next few years.

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Crystal ball predictions forecast another Penn State commit next week

Will Penn State beat Maryland for the commitment of a three-star safety next weekend?

Penn State has absolutely been crushing it on the recruiting trail in the Class of 2022. And a week from now, another player could be joining the pack.

Maryland safety Kevin Winston has announced he will decide between his final two schools next Saturday, July 31. Winston previously announced his final two schools were Penn State and Maryland, meaning he will choose between the Nittany Lions and a chance to stay a bit closer to home while still competing in the Big Ten.

Only a small handful of predictions have been made on the 247 Sports crystal ball, but they are all in favor of Penn State landing the commitment from Winston. We’ll find out a week from now whether the crystal ball picks were on the money or not.

Winston made his most recent official visit to Penn State’s campus back on June 11, a week after he made a visit to Michigan State. Winston visited Maryland a week after his trip to Happy Valley.

247 Sports ranks Winston as a three-star recruit and the 13th top player from the state of Maryland.

Penn State is also hoping to hear some good news on Monday afternoon. Four-star cornerback Cam Miller is set to make his decision known on Monday at 12:00 p.m. ET. Miller will reportedly decide between Penn State and Virginia Tech.

Penn State’s Class of 2022 is currently ranked No. 2 in the nation. Only Ohio State is ranked ahead of the Nittany Lions at this point in the recruiting cycle.

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