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Penn State Football: 3 players to watch against Ohio State

By Alec Whitaker

Penn State players pose for a group photo with the Governor's Victory Bell trophy after defeating Minnesota, 45-17, in a White Out game at Beaver Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022, in State College.Hes Dr 102222 Whiteout
Penn State players pose for a group photo with the Governor's Victory Bell trophy after defeating Minnesota, 45-17, in a White Out game at Beaver Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022, in State College.Hes Dr 102222 Whiteout /
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Sep 18, 2021; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions cornerback Joey Porter Jr. (9) hypes of the fans during the fourth quarter against the Auburn Tigers at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Auburn 28-20. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 18, 2021; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions cornerback Joey Porter Jr. (9) hypes of the fans during the fourth quarter against the Auburn Tigers at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Auburn 28-20. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports /

CB Joey Porter Jr.

Penn State’s defense is headlined by the elite play of its cornerbacks.

This group is led by redshirt junior Joey Porter Jr., who was garnered first-round hype in the 2023 NFL Draft.

While Porter is great, he has not faced any receiver at the level of Ohio State’s so far this season. The Buckeyes have a talented group of wide receivers, led by Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who is expected back from injury this week.

Joining Smith-Njigba are Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka and Julian Fleming. All four of these guys are capable of being the go-to receiver any given Saturday. This makes this group incredibly hard to defend and game plan for.

While Porter cannot obviously shut down all of them, he can at least take away one half of the field. This will allow Manny Diaz to focus more of his attention to the other side of the field. Diaz can give Kalen King and Johnny Dixon safety help if Porter holds his own on his side of the field. This will be the recipe Penn State will need in order to slow down this passing attack.

Porter is one of the best corners in the country, and he will have to show it on Saturday if the Nittany Lions are going to pull off the upset.

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