How Penn State's Audavion Collins Will Lead a Veteran Secondary

The Nittany Lions cornerback was among Matt Campbell's most important retention moves of the offseason.

Penn State Nittany Lions cornerback Audavion Collins (2) celebrates after recovering a fumble on a kickoff return during the second quarter against the Northwestern Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Penn State’s cornerback room has been a strength in recent years, with strong veteran presences like Joey Porter Jr. in 2022, Johnny Dixon in 2023, Jalen Kimber in 2024 and AJ Harris last season.

Up next: Audavion Collins, who’s entering his redshirt senior season as one of Matt Campbell's most important player-retention moves. The cornerback is poised to guide his room, which should be one of Penn State’s best this season, to a major bounceback after an uneven 2025 campaign. 

Audavion Collins

• Position: Cornerback

• Class: Redshirt senior

• Height/weight: 5-11, 183

• From: Covington, Georgia

Penn State Nittany Lions cornerback Audavion Collins prepares to compete in a medicine ball toss during the 23rd annual Lift For Life at Holuba Hall. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Collins, unlike his fellow starters at cornerback Daryus Dixson and Zion Tracy, began his collegiate career elsewhere. A 3-star defensive back in the 2022 recruiting class, Collins committed to Mississippi State before transferring to Happy Valley after redshirting in 2022. 

Collins was a newcomer at Penn State, having received some notable offers from Michigan State, Arizona, Boston College, Cincinnati, Indiana and Tennessee. He was a top-100 according to the 247Sports Composite, which also ranked him as the nation’s 926th overall player and fueled his career.

“I've been an underdog my whole life, so it's not new to me,” Collins said in February. “‘I’ve got something to prove. I always feel like I’ve got something to prove every day.”

Collins proved himself at Penn State, outplaying his recruiting ranking. The redshirt senior was one of Penn State’s best cornerbacks in 2025 and made a lasting impact in several of the team’s College Football Playoff games in 2024. Notably, Collins tied a then-career high five tackles (one for loss) against Boise State in the quarterfinals. 

“It's my room, so therefore I’ve got to do things that I didn't do last year,” Collins said. “Bringing other people along and being more of a leader, I most definitely have to take a step in doing that. Getting on corners and safeties more. Coming in together and working out together, other than me coming in and working by myself to try to pull everybody along.”

As a redshirt junior, Collins started in all 13 games, totaling 47 tackles (most among cornerbacks), 2.5 tackles for loss, one fumble recovery and three pass breakups. He was a bright spot in the secondary, earning All-Big Ten honorable mention from the media voters.

His redshirt sophomore season in 2024 was the only other campaign in which Collins appeared in more than six games, as he played in 16. He posted 26 tackles (two for loss), one interception, one sack and a pass breakup, while primarily playing as a depth piece. 

In his first season at Penn State in 2023, Collins played in six games, recording stats against Delaware and UMass. He recorded three tackles (one for loss) in those contests.

Penn State Nittany Lions cornerback Audavion Collins (2) celebrates after recovering a fumble on a kickoff return during the second quarter against the Northwestern Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Collins is set to be a major contributor for Penn State at cornerback next season. He and Tracy are the upperclassmen to watch out for. It’s also not far out of the picture for Collins to be selected in the 2027 NFL Draft if he musters an impressive 2026 campaign.

During the offseason, Penn State cornerbacks coach Terry Smith said that Collins and Tracy in particular were more vocal in the position's group chat as they took on a larger leadership role. They returned with Daryis Dixson and Jahmir Joseph to form the nucleus of Smith's experienced unit.

"It was big to retain those guys," Smith said. "We feel good in the room that we have so many elite players who played really well in the bowl game, and give us some great insight into what we should expect for in the fall."

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