How Deion Barnes Became a Coaching Force at Penn State

The Lions' new defensive line coach makes a complicated game simple. His players love him for that.

Penn State was about to open spring practice, and the defensive linemen had yet to meet their new position coach. Or so they thought. During a team meeting the day before spring drills began, coach James Franklin gathered his players to introduce the new assistant. He feigned hiring a new coach, even opening the meeting room door to build drama, only to spin around and say, "He's already in the room." Then Franklin pointed to Deion Barnes.

"Coach Franklin played mind games with us with the way he did it," defensive tackle Hakeem Beamon said. "... As soon as he said that, everybody went crazy. That was a big moment for us and a big win for us, too."

Since that March introduction, Barnes has proven to be one of the hardest workers and quickest learners on Penn State's coaching staff. Despite being a first-time full-time assistant, Barnes has made an immediate impact on both defense and in recruiting. In June, Franklin broke his disciplined approach to promoting expectations by saying that Penn State has a chance to field "one of the best defensive lines in the country from a depth and talent standpoint." Then this summer, Barnes put a jolt in the Lions' defensive line recruiting by helping secure four commitments, including those from highly valued linemen Liam Andrews and T.A. Cunningham.

Barnes had been building for this moment since he returned to Penn State as a graduate assistant in 2020. The former Penn State defensive end, and the 2012 Big Ten freshman of the year, helped Odafe Oweh, Arnold Ebiketie rise in the NFL Draft, drilled technique relentlessly with PJ Mustipher and helped re-fire Penn State's Philadelphia recruiting strategy. All at his alma mater, where he played on Franklin's first team in 2014.

"I’m passionate as an alumnus to make sure we’re the best we can possibly be," Barnes said. "It’s always been that way since I stepped in the door. … I've been loving this job ever since I got here."

And yet Franklin nearly didn't hire him. The head coach admitted that he interviewed Barnes as a formality but initially expected to go outside the program to replace John Scott, Jr., who left for the NFL.  Barnes had earned the respect of many in the program, notably defensive coordinator Manny Diaz, but Franklin thought Barnes might need to get more coaching experience elsewhere before returning. Then he interviewed Barnes.

"We interviewed him, we interviewed a bunch of established college coaches and we interviewed a bunch of NFL coaches, and he blew them all away," Franklin said. "He dominated the interview, and from that point on I started looking at Deion as a legitimate candidate for the position."

Franklin said that the players "absolutely love" Barnes, which was an important factor in the hiring decision, along with Barnes' institutional knowledge, recruiting relationships and community ties. Why was Barnes such a popular choice among players? First, he was close to the room. As a graduate assistant for three seasons, Barnes tutored linemen daily before and after practice. He worked hand-fighting with Chop Robinson, flipping hips with Coziah Izzard and "creating havoc" with DVon Ellies.

Next, he connected with his players. As the staff's youngest full-time assistant at age 30, Barnes isn't far removed from his college or NFL playing career. "He hasn’t been out of the game that long and he’s just able to connect with us a little bit better than say an older coach would be," Ellies said. 

What's more, he's loyal. When his professional football career ended, Barnes returned to Philadelphia to coach defense at his first alma mater, Northeast High School. Then he returned to Penn State when Franklin noticed him mentoring players as a summer camp volunteer. Franklin hired Barnes in 2020, then offered him a full-time position as a defensive analyst before the assistant's role opened. Franklin interviewed several experienced coaches but returned to Barnes, calling him a "differentiator."

"I'd kind of been pitching myself for the last three years with my work, but [Franklin] got more of a sense of me, what I believe in, my philosophy, how I watch film and how I coach on a daily basis," Barnes said. "He saw how I work and how I think. I was being myself. I didn’t really have a pitch. It’s just me being myself."

Barnes has made the concepts of discipline and consistency the core of his teaching. He also drives simplicity. For instance, Beamon said he understood his position much better when working with Barnes on one idea: to hit half of his opponent. Since defensive tackles usually are smaller than offensive linemen, they often struggle to take on blocks squarely. But they can get offensive linemen off balance by working half their bodies. Those are the concepts Barnes works to instill.

"Deion’s big on saying, 'This is a child’s game,'" Ellies said. "That’s one of those things he says a lot that helps a lot. We take this game very seriously, which may lead to mistakes. But keeping it serious yet understanding that the game itself is as simple as a child’s game does wonders for us, especially mentally. And simplicity equals speed. The objective is to be as aggressive as possible and to get to the ball. That’s how it’s been since we were kids: Get to the person who has the ball. At the heart of it all, it’s just a child’s game."

Robinson might be the player who gains the most from Barnes. Though he played defensive end throughout high school, Robinson lost some of those edge reflexes while playing linebacker as a freshman at Maryland. Upon transferring to Penn State in 2022, Robinson needed to recapture that edge. Barnes facilitated that, starting with Robinson's hands. The two worked diligently after practice last season on handfighting, turning Robinson into one of the Big Ten's most-feared pass rushers.

"When I first got here, and we'd work on my hands technique, I felt like I wasn’t good at it. I was getting frustrated, but he told me, if you work on something every single day and you do something 1 percent better, you’ll eventually get there," Robinson said. "He’s very intentional with those things. Being with him last year, staying after practice and doing all those things, it really paid off. I’m very thankful for coach Barnes."

Barnes said his approach with the players hasn't changed since being promoted to position coach. He still plans to do the "dirty work," as Beamon called it, with players before and after practice. He still plans to work their technical skills at the most fundamental levels. And he still plans to push, because, as Barnes said, "Comfort is competence, and competence is the killer of all athletes."

"I've always been big on hard work and I’ve always been big on trying to get the most out of everybody, because as a player that’s how I was," Barnes said. "I knew I wasn’t the fastest or the strongest but I was going to reach my full potential because I was going to pull everything out of myself. Now I pour that into the players."

Deion Barnes, Penn State's defensive line coach, was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2012. He spent three years as a graduate assistant with the Lions before being promoted in 2023 :: Matthew O'Haren/USA Today Sports

More on Penn State

Penn State Football on SI.com

Penn State Basketball on SI.com

'There is no ceiling here,' Penn State AD Patrick Kraft says of the school's athletics future

Penn State will begin training camp in a 'competition phase' at quarterback, James Franklin says

Penn State stays hot in defensive line recruiting

Former Penn State quarterback Michael Robinson joins NBC's Big Ten broadcast team

Penn State places 11 on Pro Football Focus' preseason All-Big Ten Teams

Olu Fashanu, Penn State's 'elite' offensive tackle, takes the next step

Mike Rhoades and Ace Baldwin, Jr. bring their bond to Penn State

After Penn State's controversial loss to Duke, NCAA expands replay review in men's lacrosse

Expectations are high for Penn State in 2023. But are they realistic?

Emmitt Smith, Jerome Bettis analyze Saquon Barkley contract talks

Talking defense with Penn State's Manny Diaz

Penn State extends recruiting success in Pennsylvania with commitment from 4-star Mylachi Williams

Penn State looks for KeAndre Lambert-Smith to be a No. 1

Breaking down Penn State's 2023 football schedule

Penn State adds two receivers to 2024 recruiting class

Former Oregon commit Tyseer Denmark changes course to Penn State

Why Penn State having no Big Ten rivalry games might be a good thing for the Lions

AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich. And consider subscribing (button's on the home page) for more great content across the SI.com network.