Even though Penn State has the best quality depth at CB in the 38 years I've been covering the Penn State football program, I'm convinced that it would be a major mistake to believe that replacing John Reid at the Field CB position is going to be easy.
I'm not questioning the quality of the depth Penn State has on its spring roster at the CB position. Penn State has some impressive scholarship CBs on its 2017 spring roster. That list includes Sr. Grant Haley [5-9, 193], Sr. Christian Campbell [6-1, 191], Rs.Jr. Amani Oruwariye [6-1, 211], Rs. Fr. Zach McPhearson [5-11, 180], Rs. Fr. T.J. Johnson [6-2, 188] and finally January enrollee Lamont Wade [5-9, 193].
Plus, when the rest of Penn State's class of 2017 in June three additional CBs will dot Penn State's 2017 roster. That list includes two 4-star CBs in Tariq Castro-Fields [6-1, 185] and Donovan Johnson [5-9, 172], plus 3-star CB D.J. Brown [5-10, 175]. That's nine CBs on Penn State's roster for the upcoming 2017 season on Penn State's fall scholarship roster.
The one thing that makes Reid's injury a little more concerning despite the fact Penn State has excellent depth at the CB position in the secondary is the role John Reid played when Penn State went to its 4-2-5 defensive scheme on third down and long passing situations this past season.
Reid in those instances moved to the nickelback position in the secondary to cover the slot-WR because he more than anyone else possessed the best press man-to-man coverage ability of any player in Penn State's secondary. Reid was the leading tackler in Penn State's secondary last fall with 36 tackles, 5.0 TFL for 19 yards and 0.5 sacks for three yards, but what was more important Reid led Penn State's secondary with nine passes defended and recorded one interception.
Even though Reid stands just 5-10, 189 he's projected to end up being an NFL CB. Personally, in all the years I've covered the Penn State program I've never seen a CB prepare better for playing the game each Saturday. He always seems to be in the film room studying opponent's wide receiver's tendencies. It's not a cliche when you say Reid is a real student of the game.
He combines that with a competitive spirit that results in Reid becoming the perfect fit to go back and forth between his Field CB position and playing at the nickelback position when Penn State goes to its 4-2-5 defensive set in third down and long passing situations.
It will be interesting to see how that aspect of Reid's play will be addressed preparing for the upcoming 2017 season. It would seem that Lamont Wade's [5-9, 193] chances of seeing important quality playing time starting with the opening game against Akron, particularly at the nickelback position in Penn State's 4-2-5 defensive setup is now a possibility.
Right now I'm not sure there is another CB on Penn State's spring roster that can fill that role as well as Reid can. Lamont Wade has had an impressive spring practice session so far, but it's presumptuous on anyone's part to assume that Wade is ready right now to take over for Reid and immediately become the leader and fill Reid's shoes at the same level of performance.
Don't get me wrong, Penn State's defense will survive the loss of Reid this fall, but don't make the mistake of thinking Reid won't be difficult to replace. That's because he perfectly fills a special role in Penn State's secondary. Don't diminish the talents of John Reid.
I'm not questioning the quality of the depth Penn State has on its spring roster at the CB position. Penn State has some impressive scholarship CBs on its 2017 spring roster. That list includes Sr. Grant Haley [5-9, 193], Sr. Christian Campbell [6-1, 191], Rs.Jr. Amani Oruwariye [6-1, 211], Rs. Fr. Zach McPhearson [5-11, 180], Rs. Fr. T.J. Johnson [6-2, 188] and finally January enrollee Lamont Wade [5-9, 193].
Plus, when the rest of Penn State's class of 2017 in June three additional CBs will dot Penn State's 2017 roster. That list includes two 4-star CBs in Tariq Castro-Fields [6-1, 185] and Donovan Johnson [5-9, 172], plus 3-star CB D.J. Brown [5-10, 175]. That's nine CBs on Penn State's roster for the upcoming 2017 season on Penn State's fall scholarship roster.
The one thing that makes Reid's injury a little more concerning despite the fact Penn State has excellent depth at the CB position in the secondary is the role John Reid played when Penn State went to its 4-2-5 defensive scheme on third down and long passing situations this past season.
Reid in those instances moved to the nickelback position in the secondary to cover the slot-WR because he more than anyone else possessed the best press man-to-man coverage ability of any player in Penn State's secondary. Reid was the leading tackler in Penn State's secondary last fall with 36 tackles, 5.0 TFL for 19 yards and 0.5 sacks for three yards, but what was more important Reid led Penn State's secondary with nine passes defended and recorded one interception.
Even though Reid stands just 5-10, 189 he's projected to end up being an NFL CB. Personally, in all the years I've covered the Penn State program I've never seen a CB prepare better for playing the game each Saturday. He always seems to be in the film room studying opponent's wide receiver's tendencies. It's not a cliche when you say Reid is a real student of the game.
He combines that with a competitive spirit that results in Reid becoming the perfect fit to go back and forth between his Field CB position and playing at the nickelback position when Penn State goes to its 4-2-5 defensive set in third down and long passing situations.
It will be interesting to see how that aspect of Reid's play will be addressed preparing for the upcoming 2017 season. It would seem that Lamont Wade's [5-9, 193] chances of seeing important quality playing time starting with the opening game against Akron, particularly at the nickelback position in Penn State's 4-2-5 defensive setup is now a possibility.
Right now I'm not sure there is another CB on Penn State's spring roster that can fill that role as well as Reid can. Lamont Wade has had an impressive spring practice session so far, but it's presumptuous on anyone's part to assume that Wade is ready right now to take over for Reid and immediately become the leader and fill Reid's shoes at the same level of performance.
Don't get me wrong, Penn State's defense will survive the loss of Reid this fall, but don't make the mistake of thinking Reid won't be difficult to replace. That's because he perfectly fills a special role in Penn State's secondary. Don't diminish the talents of John Reid.
