[autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and his coaching staff knew he could have to replace three starting cornerbacks from this last year’s team and went into the transfer portal to address some of those concerns.
The player who could be an immediate plug-and-play guy is [autotag]Jalen Kimber[/autotag] who is coming over from Florida as a redshirt senior.
But it’s the other transfer corner in [autotag]A.J. Harris[/autotag] who has been turning heads throughout spring according to Tyler Donohue of 247Sports (subscription required).
The former five-star recruit is coming off a freshman season at Georgia where he played in seven games as a reserve and recorded eight tackles.
With three years of eligibility remaining, Franklin and his staff envision Harris being a major part of this secondary for years to come and could be a factor as early as this season.
He’s an extremely physical cornerback who is billed as “super aggressive and super confident,” gaining status as a favorite of teammates and coaches alike.
It will be interesting to see how he factors into [autotag]Tom Allen[/autotag]’s defense this season since the Nittany Lions need to replace the production from three starters.
However, Harris isn’t the only one in the cornerback room turning heads this spring, either.
Donohue also notes that previous transfer [autotag]Audavion Collins[/autotag] has also earned some rave reviews from the coaching staff after being described by [autotag]Terry Smith[/autotag] as “a night-and-day different player.”
Collins is a largely unknown commodity after not logging any games for Mississippi State before transferring to Penn State last summer. In his first season with the Nittany Lions he only appeared in six games and logged eight defensive snaps.
Still, Donohue notes that the coaching staff told him they have been impressed with the corner’s attention to detail and tenacity this spring.
Whether that is enough to get him playing time in a room that features Kimber, Harris, [autotag]Cam Miller[/autotag], [autotag]Zion Tracy[/autotag], and [autotag]Elliot Washington[/autotag] will be seen, but Penn State seems to be in a great spot with this position group despite losing three starters.