Manny Diaz Raises Expectations for Penn State's Linebackers
A year ago, Penn State defensive coordinator Manny Diaz admitted that his linebacker group was a question mark. In fact, he acknowledged "all the talk" outside the program that linebacker represented a "weak point" on defense.
"I hit them with that the very first day of spring practice," Diaz said last year, "that that’s simply not acceptable at a place with our tradition. If we’re going to call ourselves 'LBU,' there’s no way the linebackers can be the weak link of our football team."
Now, Penn State returns four linebackers with starting experience and two All-Big Ten players, one of whom was a freshman All-American. Not to mention a group of true freshmen that prompted head coach James Franklin to call linebacker "a fun position to watch."
As a result, Diaz upgraded his message during his second year as defensive coordinator.
"We told the guys, this time last year the linebacker room was the big weakness. Now, funny how things change in 12 months time," Diaz told reporters in State College during spring drills. "So we really have to take our game to another level of expectation."
Penn State returns All-America freshman Abdul Carter, all-Big Ten selection Curtis Jacobs and experienced starters Kobe King and Tyler Elsdon to a highly competitive linebacker room. In addition, Diaz said that true freshmen Ta'Mere Robinson and Tony Rojas have shown glimpses of their potential taking second-team reps for players who have been limited in spring practices. Rojas was particularly impressive during the spring Blue-White Game, leading the team with nine tackles and demonstrating that he'll get plenty of early playing time.
Strength coach Chuck Losey said Rojas is "basically a different human being" from the person who enrolled in January. He has gained more than 30 pounds and shown an ability to maintain it. Rojas might be the freshman who gets the most screen time this fall.
"It's one thing for guys to make this big jump in weight throughout the winter, but then you get the ball in hand in spring and they start running around the field and they have a hard time holding onto that body weight," Losey said. "He’s doing a really good job of maintaining that body weight. He was able to hold onto it through spring and he continued to build off it in the summer."
Perhaps the highest praise Diaz offered of the freshmen, in fact all of his first-year defensive players, was this.
"Of all the freshmen we have on defense, we’d recruit them all over again," Diaz said. "We’re happy we have all those guys here. They have all already made some sort of flash play or plays to say, 'Yeah, that’s the guy we envisioned. That’s why we brought them here.'"
Carter remains Penn State's most interesting linebacker after leading the defense in sacks (6.5) and tackles for loss (9.5) as a true freshman. He's 16 pounds heavier, at 249, this spring than he was on the Rose Bowl roster but hasn't lost quickness. Franklin called that combination of speed and size "a weapon."
Carter, who arrived on campus last June, is participating in spring drills for the first time. Diaz called that an opportunity to continue building his knowledge of the defense.
"Most great players are obsessed with improving," Diaz said. "Abdul can obviously make a play. ... Now, it's about being where you're supposed to be and understanding the ins and outs of the defense and playing multiple positions. Abdul will be the first to tell you he has a lot of room to grow."
Jacobs, who returned for his fourth season, is Penn State's most experienced linebacker with plenty of position versatility. He played both outside spots last year, has big-game experience and, as Diaz said, is "less of an unknown quality."
With that, Jacobs has raised his expectations, just as the entire position did.
"We told him, 'Hey Curt, you did not come back to be good,'" Diaz said. "'You came back to be great, and that's the hardest step usually to take.'"
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