Tag: Smith Vilbert

PJ Mustipher finding other ways to lead while continuing rehab

New Penn State defensive cooridnator Manny Diaz is among those impressed with the leadership of rehabbing PJ Mustipher this spring.

Penn State’s defensive line has been a fairly consistent unit over the years, and one where the ability to create playmakers has been demonstrated routinely. A year removed from sending [autotag]Odafe Oweh[/autotag] off to the first round of the NFL draft, the eyes are on [autotag]Arnold Ebiketie[/autotag] to see if he can sneak into the first round of the 2022 NFL draft. Meanwhile, in State College, [autotag]PJ Mustipher[/autotag] is coming back for one more season with Penn State with the hopes of becoming another early-round draft pick. But before that, he needs to continue rehabbing from a knee injury that has placed him on the sidelines this spring.

Despite being inactive on the practice field, Mustipher has been providing the kind of leadership that he will be relied on in his sixth season of eligibility. And it did not take long for Mustipher to show new defensive coordinator [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] why he will be a valuable asset to the defensive line.

“[Mustipher] is not even practicing but, man, you feel his presence every day,” Diaz said to reporters, according to Lions 247. “And he makes sure that he’s on the defensive lineman. He’s on the defense in general.”

Mustipher has been helping to keep his teammates fired up and driving to improve this spring. Among those benefitting from Mustipher’s leadership and encouragement has been newcomer Zane Durant, who has been raising eyebrows this spring after enrolling early with other members of the Class of 2022.

The defensive line looks to be one of the most exciting position groups for Penn State in 2022, and the eventual return of a healthy Mustipher will be a key part of that equation. The early opportunity for Durant to get involved will be helpful, as will the eventual arrivals of [autotag]Dani Dennis-Sutton[/autotag] (five-star addition in the Class of 2022) and Maryland transfer [autotag]Demeioun Robinson[/autotag].

Despite not having any of those three players in the Blue-White Game, the entire defensive line unit will be worth watching in the Penn State spring game. The unit did lose promising Zuriah Fisher for the 2022 season due to a spring injury recently, but eyes will be on [autotag]Adisa Isaac[/autotag] (who is coming off his own injury from last season) and [autotag]Nick Tarburton[/autotag]. The Blue-White Game should also be a good opportunity for other players to get some good playing time, including [autotag]Smith Vilbert[/autotag], [autotag]Rodney McGraw[/autotag], and [autotag]Amin Vanover[/autotag].

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Five big questions for the Penn State defense

5 big questions for Penn State’s defense this spring.

Penn State’s defense was a strength in 2021 but faces some big questions this spring ahead of the 2022 season. With a number of notable departures to the NFL and a new defensive coordinator, this spring has plenty to be watching in Happy Valley on the defensive side of the football.

Penn State’s biggest change this season is the addition of defensive coordinator Manny Diaz. The former Miami head coach comes to State College to replace Brent Pry, who has left the program to become the head coach at Virginia Tech. Diaz brings a solid reputation as a defensive coordinator and Penn State appears to have found a terrific replacement for Pry. But Diaz will have some work to do in shaping the defense with a number of key starting jobs up for grabs this spring.

Penn State is set to open spring football practices on March 21, with the annual Blue-White Game currently scheduled for Saturday, April 23.

Here are five questions I have for Penn State’s offense that may be addressed this spring (we addressed the questions for the offense last week).

Where are they now? Penn State football’s Class of 2019

Here is where every player from Penn State’s Class of 2019 sits today, four years later

The 2022 college football season will mark the fourth year since the Class of 2019 was signed by Penn State. One of the top classes in the Big Ten, coming in at No. 2 in the conference according to 247 Sports, Penn State’s recruiting haul for 2019 was certainly full of potential for big things. And entering 2022, some of those players signed by the Nittany Lions are living the dream while others are looking for some clean starts, and others remain in Happy Valley hoping to end their college careers on a high note.

With so much happening in the offseason, we thought it would be a good idea to take a look back at Penn State’s Class of 2019 to see where everyone is currently stands.

Smith Vilbert may be Penn State’s rising star on defense in 2022

Smith Vilbert emerged as Penn State’s rising defensive player to watch after a strong showing in the Outback Bowl

Penn State tried its best to replace six defensive starters in the Outback Bowl to close out the 2021 season, but the effort simply ran out of gas as Arkansas overpowered them on the ground in the second half. But there were some bright spots to pay close attention to during the game from some of the new faces expected to step into some key roles in 2022. Among those taking advantage of the opportunity to play was Smith Vilbert.

The former three-star recruit out of New Jersey showed tremendous pursuit and aggression on the line of scrimmage to break through and create some pressure on Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson. Vilbert recorded three sacks in the game, setting the Outback Bowl record and moving into second on the Penn State defense in total sacks for the 2021 season (Arnold Ebiketie, who opted out, led the team with 9.5 sacks during the regular season).

“I didn’t even know about that,” Vilbert told a reporter when asked about tying the Outback Bowl record for most sacks in a game. “Thank you!””

“I knew he had a couple sacks. I didn’t know he had three,” Penn State head coach James Franklin said after the game. “It’s an Outback Bowl record. Obviously that is promising for our future. It’s going to be really, really important that he continues to grow and develop.”

Smith is the latest in a line of defensive linemen to come to Penn State who fairly could be assessed as project players to a certain degree. Like former defensive standout Odafe Oweh, Smith Vilbert doesn’t have a tremendous amount of football background, but he already has shown he has some good potential to be doing some big things for the Nittany Lions in 2022.

“Obviously coming to Penn State he was a new-to-football guy, being mainly a basketball player,” Franklin said after the Outback Bowl loss to Arkansas. “Excited about his development. That will be something to build on, for sure.”

Smith may have put his name in the spotlight for the first time in the Outback Bowl but he had already won the respect of his teammates, including Jesse Luketa, who declared for the NFL draft shortly after the bowl game.

“I’m not surprised at all, you know. This is exactly who Smith is going to be moving forward,” Luketa said. “He’s an extremely talented player and he’s finally going to be able to come into himself and display that. He can be as dominant as anyone in the country.”

Vilbert seems to take pride in knowing the support he has around the program.

“It felt good because all of these guys have faith in me. At practice and stuff like that, they can see how consistent I’ve been,” Vilbert said after the Outback Bowl, where he made his first career start. “And it felt good that Coach believes in me enough to keep me out there. Most of the guys knew it was my first time starting so I just appreciated Coach believing in me and telling me I could start this game. I went out and did the best I could do.”

If the best he can do in his first start is tie an Outback Bowl record, that is certainly a good sign for things to come on the defensive line for the Nittany Lions in 2022 after Vilbert gets a full offseason to improve his technique and approach while being a projected starter next fall.

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