Penn State's Jaylen Reed Says the Nittany Lions Are 'at Our Peak' for the Fiesta Bowl

Reed says the Nittany Lions are "playing great football right now" as they prepare to face Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl.

Penn State Nittany Lions safety Jaylen Reed (1) is congratulated by head coach James Franklin after defeating the USC Trojans in overtime at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Jaylen Reed viewed himself as a leader for Penn State long before fellow safety KJ Winston Jr., considered a top NFL prospect entering the season, was injured before Week 2. That left a No. 1 void in the Nittany Lions’ safety room that’s difficult to overcome. But Reed, prepared to establish himself with or without Winston by his side, has stepped into that role with pride. 

“I was always a leader,” Reed said this week. “Just because K.J. went down didn't mean I had to step up my game. I've always been here.”

Reed, now Penn State’s top safety who leads the team with 84 tackles, has that level of confidence not just in himself but in his entire team. Two wins are a lot at this point in the season, but that’s how many the Nittany Lions need to reach their first College Football Playoff national championship game. Reed is just one player reflecting that sentiment across the roster: that Penn State’s experience through 14 games has prepared it for the spotlight and has it reaching new peaks. 

‘We’re playing great football right now’

Penn State is one of just eight teams left in the playoffs. At this point, it’s a true grind. After all, the Nittany Lions had to practice on Christmas Day in preparation for the Fiesta Bowl vs. Boise State. But to Reed, it’s important to remember that playing consistent, competitive football in the winter means Penn State is still in pursuit of its top goal. 

“It means a lot. It's something that we've been wanting. This is my first time being in the playoffs,” Reed said. “We made a joke last week in practice, we were practicing on Christmas. Everybody was a little mad, but it was a blessing in disguise, that we're able to still practice right now where we have an opportunity to go win a national championship, which we will [attempt to do].”

Bumps and bruises are likely increasing by game 15 of Penn State’s season, but that perspective is keeping the team focused. Offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki said that it’s difficult to balance everything going on at this point in the season, but “that’s what we signed up for.”

“If someone said in July, ‘Hey, we're going to be practicing on Christmas because we're playing for a national championship in the playoffs, people would have signed up immediately, saying ‘Hell yeah,’” Kotelnicki said. “There are a lot of people that aren't doing press conferences today because they're not playing anymore. We're fortunate and blessed to be doing that.”

No matter how confident the Nittany Lions feel entering the Fiesta Bowl, they’re going to have to continue proving themselves against elite teams. That continues against Boise State, which boasts the nation’s top running back in Ashton Jeanty. But between 12 wins and the lessons learned from two losses, Reed believes his team is hitting its stride.

“The resilience that we've had throughout the whole season, we’ve been through every situation,” Reed said. “We've been through adversity. Right now, we're at our peak, where we should be. Going into the playoffs, I feel like we're playing great football right now. We've just got to continue to do it and take it one game at a time.”

Stepping into the spotlight

Reed, a senior, has inserted himself into NFL Draft conversations with his performance this season. Reed's role changed following Winston's injury but also created opportunity. Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen said that he sat down with Reed after Winston’s injury, encouraging him to “take this thing to another level.”

“My challenge to him was, you've got to bring guys with you,” Allen said. “… I said, ‘Your role now is going to be magnified, and not just in your game performance, but practice.’ That leadership is probably the biggest thing where [Reed’s] had to really grow and was forced to because of that situation, and it was awesome to see him do that. Then the production has been what everybody gets to see, the key interceptions at critical times and the key tackles.”

Reed has come up huge for Penn State on multiple occasions, notably his pick-6 at Wisconsin that sparked a second-half comeback win. But Reed’s favorite play came against USC, a game where he said he felt “our season was on the line.” As the Trojans threatened to win the game in the final seconds of regulation, Reed picked off Miller Moss, which allowed the Nittany Lions to complete their win in overtime. When Penn State lost to Oregon in the Big Ten Championship, Allen said Reed took it “personally,” a sign of his accountability within the defense.

“He's one of those guys that’s always texting me, ‘Hey, Coach, put this on me.’ He wants to be the guy. He wants me to know I can count on him and trust him and he's going to have my back and he's going to get the job done,” Allen said. “His leadership, his ability to make plays, and his value to the team has been elevated because of the void that was created there. But also, it's been neat to see him respond to that and embrace that and want to do that.”

Now, Reed will lead Allen’s defense into another win-or-go-home matchup against Boise State, which features Jeanty, the Heisman Trophy runner-up and arguably the toughest player to tackle in the country. But Penn State’s leading tackler is ready for the challenge. 

“I'm going to do whatever the team needs me to do,” Reed said. “He's a great running back, great player. [Jeanty’s] real compact, and he runs very hard. He's not easy to bring down. Going against a guy like that, you've got to wrap up. … [We’ll] just try to win the game in a good-fashioned way. Stop the run, stop the play action pass that they do, and just win the game.”

Penn State will take on Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on Tuesday, with kickoff at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

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Daniel Mader, a May 2024 graduate of Penn State, is an Editorial Intern with The Sporting News. As a student journalist with The Daily Collegian, he served as a sports editor and covered Nittany Lions women’s basketball, men’s volleyball and more. He has also covered Penn State football for NBC Sports and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, with additional work in the Centre Daily Times, Lancaster Online and more. Follow him on X @DanielMader_    or Instagram @dmadersports.