Tag: Tariq Castro-Fields

2021 Penn State Nittany Lions Profile Card: Tariq Castro-Fields

Penn State’s defensive secondary is in great shape with the return of Tariq Castro-Fields.

Name: Tariq Castro-Fields

Number: 5

Position: Cornerback

Class: Senior+ 3(using the extra year of eligibility from NCAA)

Height: 6′-0″

Weight: 198

Hometown: Upper Marlboro, MD

High School: Riverdale Baptist School

Twitter: @ayeewonton

Overview

Penn State’s defense received great news when Tariq Castro-Fields decided to return for his final year of eligibility in 2021. Taking advantage of the extra year of eligibility granted to all college athletes as a result of the pandemic in 2020, Castro-Fields will have a chance to provide Penn State with a veteran presence in the defensive secondary and boost his own potential NFL draft stock in 2022.

Castro-Fields saw his 2020 season cut short due to injury, so it made sense for him to decide to come back and play one more season of college football. Castro-Fields will be a key starter for the defense this season and he will be the leader of a very talented secondary with plenty of options to work with in a variety of ways. Last season, Castro-Fields started three games and he recorded 12 tackles, six of which were solo tackles.

Despite his brief season, Castro-Fields earned honorable mention by Big Ten media and coaches for All-Big Ten consideration. As a junior in 2019, Castro-Fields was named All-Big Ten third team by the media, with an honorable mention nod from the Big Ten coaches. Castro-Fields started all 13 games for Penn State in 2019 after getting three starts as a sophomore in 2018.

Castro-Fields is already on his way to a big rebound in 2021. Coming out of the spring practice season, Penn State coaches named Castro-Fields one of the two defensive players of the spring (defensive lineman PJ Mustipher being the other).

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Jahan Dotson and Rasheed Walker among Athlon Sports All-Big Ten players for 2021

Penn State had 10 players named to the Athlon Sports preseason All-Big Ten teams for 2021.

We are now officially in preseason mode. In addition to kickoff times being released, the preseason all-conference lists are starting to make the rounds. Athlon Sports released its 2021 All-Big Ten team heading into the upcoming season, and a few Penn State players were scattered throughout.

Penn State wide receiver Jahan Dotson and offensive lineman Rasheed Walker were included on the first-team offense. This is not too surprising given Dotson was among the Big Ten’s best receivers in 2020 and Walker is already being projected as a potential first-round draft pick in the 2022 NFL draft. Jaquan Brisker was the only Nittany Lion to appear on the first-team defense by Athlon Sports.

Offensive lineman Mike Miranda was the only Penn State player to appear on the second team for either offense or defense. Dotson was honored as the second-team punt returner, however.

Running back Noah Cain, defensive lineman P.J. Mustipher, linebacker Brandon Smith, and cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields appear on the third team. Wide receiver Parker Washington made the fourth team.

Penn State’s 10 players making the four all-conference teams by Athlon Sports is tied for the third-most in the Big Ten. Ohio State leads the way with 13 players. Wisconsin and Iowa each had 11 players included. Indiana also had 10 players represented. For what it is worth, Rutgers had nine players and Michigan had seven. Make of that what you will.

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Penn State announces 2021 spring football awards

Freshman Kalen King and veterans Sean Clifford and Tariq Castro-Fields were among the spring winners for Penn State football practices.

Penn State brought their spring football practices to a close on Friday evening in Beaver Stadium in front of a limited number of fans. Before James Franklin and his staff get too deep into their next stages of the offseason schedule, Penn State coaches handed out their post-spring awards to players who stood out this spring.

Freshman Kalen King certainly left a big impact on the coaching staff with an impressive spring, and veteran leaders like Sean Clifford and Tariq Castro-Fields have continued to display their leadership skills on and off the practice field.

Here is a look at the Penn State spring football award winners, as announced by the program on Monday.

 

Penn State football spring cleaning: 5 things the Nittany Lions need to address now for success in 2021

Penn State hopes to wrap up spring football feeling good about the 2021 season but what work could need to be done heading into the summer?

Penn State is in the midst of its spring football practices. A year after not having a chance to go through a typical spring, James Franklin and his Nittany Lions are embracing the opportunity to put in the work to potentially lead to a much stronger start to the 2021 season after last year’s dismal beginning.

After a stretch of three 11-win seasons in four years, highlighted by victories in the Fiesta Bowl and Cotton Bowl, Penn State’s national image took a bit of a bruising after a 4-5 2020 season. Despite lowered expectations on the national radar, there are some good reasons to be optimistic about what Penn State can accomplish in the fall despite having a challenging schedule on its hands.

A new offensive coordinator in Mike Yurcich combined with a third-year starting quarterback figures to put Penn State in a good spot for a solid start on offense. This is especially true with the emergence of one of the Big Ten’s top wide receivers in Jahan Dotson. But now is as good a time as any for Penn State to clean things up a little bit around the roster.

Here are a few things on the spring cleaning to-do list for the Nittany Lions that must be addressed if Penn State is going to be in the mix for a Big Ten championship in the fall.