Penn State Football: Tariq Castro-Fields brings starter reps to defense
Two-year rotational cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields returns starting production and reps to the Penn State football defense.
A reloading of the Penn State football secondary will occur in 2019, despite losing Amani Oruwariye to graduation/the NFL. Sure, Oruwariye provided a lot that makes him in some ways irreplaceable in terms of size, production and an elite skill set that earned him a fifth round selection by the Detroit Lions. But just like many other position groups on this top-tier defense, there’s depth to absorb losses – that’s where junior cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields comes in.
Castro-Fields played in a reserve role for each of the last two years, appearing in 25 games and starting three of them. He rolled up 42 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, 10 passes defended, one interception and one forced fumble. Most of that came last year with an increase of snaps as a sophomore.
He’s a taller corner much like Oruwariye, but a tad shorter and lighter standing at 6-feet, 181 pounds to the latter’s 6-foot-1, 203-pound frame. Regardless, he’s a tough tackler and one that’s not afraid to make plays in the run game.
He attacks downhill on backs and doesn’t avoid contact. His game is almost fashioned more after a safety. Castro-Fields can make tackles inside the box on big backs and one-on-one out wide on a receiver.
In the passing game, he doesn’t have the interceptions numbers but his seven passes defended last season stood out, especially off the bench. He tied senior two-year starter and three-year contributor John Reid in passes defended with seven (Video Courtesy of Nittany Nation).
His two seasons off the bench aid his movement into the starting lineup. It’s a loaded secondary that includes two returning starters and four rotational players back from a year ago. A lot of hype surrounds this defense because of players like Castro-Fields. He’s someone that hasn’t started a full season, but when analysts go to preview Penn State football’s season they’ll see him and know he’s almost the equivalent of a returning starter.
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In fact, VBR wrote about Bleacher Report writer Kerry Miller, saying the unit could be the second best in the country. Our own Barry Leonard listed Castro-Fields and other returning DBs as reasons to look at the secondary with a positive eye despite losing two starters.