Penn State's Defense Believes 'We're on the Edge of Greatness'

After three dominant games, the Lions consider themselves trending toward 'elite.'

During a pre-game meal Saturday, Penn State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz discussed Kobe Bryant and playing on the edge of greatness. Penn State's defense is getting there, Diaz insisted, but can it find the switch Bryant had? Can it become elite?

"Coach Manny is a genius," Penn State safety Ji'Ayir Brown said about 10 hours later. "... That was his message today: 'Where's your Black Mamba? Where's your switch?' The guys really enjoyed that and they came out today and they showed it."

The Lions' defense excised a third straight Big Ten team Saturday, overpowering Rutgers 55-10 at SHI Stadium. Penn State was rumpled at first, as the Knights took a 10-7 lead by making a few solid short-field plays. Then Diaz's hyperactive defense set its edges, established its dominance and took over yet another game.

Penn State forced three turnovers, scoring 21 points off them. The defense returned two fumbles for touchdowns. It recorded 15 tackles for loss, marking its sixth consecutive game with at least seven. After collecting 10 points and 74 offensive yards in the first quarter, Rutgers went scoreless with 92 total yards in the remaining three.

Penn State has held each of its last three opponents (Indiana, Maryland, Rutgers) under 200 yards and to 24 total points. Even against Ohio State, the Lions kept the game close before giving up a short-yardage touchdown following an offensive turnover in the fourth quarter.

Further, the Lions are rolling their aggressive play through multiple layers of defenders, several of whom are freshmen and sophomores. True freshman linebacker Abdul Carter leads the team in sacks (4.5) and ranks second in tackles. Sophomore Kalen King is among the nation's leaders in pass breakups (13).

Penn State leads the Big Ten in sacks (34) and tackles for loss (88) and ranks second in turnovers gained (21). An astonishing 17 different players have recorded sacks, and the Lions have 12 more tackles for loss than Ohio State.

This is the language Diaz speaks. And Penn State has responded to it.

"He's had an incredible impact," linebacker Curtis Jacobs said. "The emphasis on turnovers, the emphasis on TFLs, the havoc plays. He'll tell us straight up if it was good enough or not. That's been really important for us, and it's been really encouraging for our guys to really have a new standard for this defense."

Under defensive coordinator Manny Diaz, Penn State leads the Big Ten in sacks and tackles for loss and ranks second in turnovers forced :: Matthew O'Haren/USA Today Sports

Diaz, a semifinalist for the Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant coach, has been setting the standard since last spring. Following one early practice, during which his defense didn't tackle well, Diaz began a meeting near tears.

"I come to Penn State, and we don't want to tackle?" he asked.

After correcting their issues and forcing a few turnovers at their next practice, the Lions found Diaz's improved greatly. He brought snacks to the meeting, played music, and genuinely looked happy.

"I didn't think that I could find a coach that was more intense than Brent Pry," Jacobs said last spring. "And I definitely found one."

Pry, the Virginia Tech head coach, certainly stressed takeaways and splash plays as Penn State's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach for six years. But he did so differently than Diaz.

His approach turned on playing aggressively within more base defensive frameworks, players said. Diaz wants his players to be in ambush mode all the time.

"Coach Pry, I love him to death," Jacobs said after the Rutgers game. "He recruited me, and I kind of look at him as one of the father figures in my life. But when he got going, it really was more base stuff, more base concepts.

"With Manny it’s more aggressive. We want to get downhill, we want to attack. So that’s probably one of the biggest things he emphasizes, and I love that."

Diaz has navigated Penn State's defense through a series of season-long landmines. His defensive line began the year with three players returning from serious 2021 injuries, a transfer linebacker from Maryland and two others out for team reasons. The linebacker position was shallow.

But Diaz had a deep and skilled secondary led by Brown and cornerback Joey Porter Jr., whom he leaned on. Diaz turned Brown into a dynamic three-level defender, left Porter Jr. to rattle opposing receivers. He turned everyone else loose.

End Adisa Isaac, who missed the 2021 season with an injury, leads the team with eight sacks. Chop Robinson made the transition from Maryland's linebacker group to Penn State's defensive line with tenacity. He has 7.5 sacks, including two against his former team.

And Carter, who led Penn State's defense in snaps at Rutgers, quickly has become one of its most dynamic playmakers. As Jacobs noticed quickly, "there was something special about him." So has Diaz.

Of course, Michigan overwhelmed the Lions with 418 yards rushing, and Ohio State's targeted passing game produced 354. Since then, though, the Lions reclaimed their aggressive footing.

Penn State took a calculated risk hiring Diaz, a former head coach. James Franklin surely expects that Diaz won't be in State College long-term. But he nevertheless believed that Diaz's scheme, and approach to coaching it, would fit well in State College.

Which it has. Diaz made that apparent Saturday in New Jersey.

"We're starting to grow," Jacobs said after the win at Rutgers. "Coach actually said it this morning. We're on the edge of greatness. I feel like we're getting to a point where we're practicing better and we're getting to that point where we can call ourselves elite. We have to back it up and prove it before we can start doing that, and I feel like we’re starting to."

Up Next

Penn State hosts Michigan State for its regular-season finale Nov. 26 at Beaver Stadium. Kickoff is at 4 p.m. ET.

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