Penn State star safety Kevin Winston Jr. sidelined with long-term injury, no timetable to return

Penn State junior safety Kevin Winston Jr. left the Nittany Lion’s Week 2 win over Bowling Green in the first quarter with an injury, and after a bye week, Winston will remain on the sidelines for the foreseeable future. Head coach James Franklin announced on Wednesday that Winston would miss Penn State’s Week 4 matchup with Kent State with what Franklin called a “long-term” injury. 

Franklin did not set a timetable for Winston’s return nor did he elaborate on the nature of the injury that Winston suffered against Bowling Green. 

The 6-foot-2 208-pound star defensive back led Penn State in tackles in 2023 with 60 and posted five pass breakups, one interception, and two fumble recoveries. Through a game and a quarter in 2024, Winston had already amassed 13 tackles and a forced fumble, after dominating the season opener at West Virginia. 

This offseason, former Indiana head coach Tom Allen replaced Manny Diaz as Penn State’s defensive coordinator after Diaz took the head coaching job at Duke. Allen preferred to play three safeties with Winston and Zakee Wheatley back deep and Jaylen Reed, Winston’s typical running mate in the defensive backfield, much closer to the line of scrimmage in the nickel cornerback role that Allen coined the “lion” position. 

On Wednesday, Franklin mentioned two freshmen, safety Dejuan Lane and cornerback Antoine Belgrave-Shorter, as the players most likely to see increased playing time in Winton’s absence. 

Allen essentially has two options for his defense without Winston. He can keep Reed in the ‘lion” role where he thrived against West Virginia and trust Lane at deep safety with Wheatley, or he can move Reed into Winston’s spot alongside Wheatley and slide junior cornerback Cam Miller to the “lion” position. 

In Week 2, Allen opted for the latter, but the results of Miller’s performance could be why Lane and Belgrave-Shorter were top of mind for Franklin. Miller took 27 snaps in the slot, nine in the box, and allowed six catches on six targets. He was physically outmatched by Bowling Green tight end Harold Fannin Jr. who finished with 11 catches for 137 yards and a touchdown. 

Kent State is coming off a 71-0 beatdown at the hands of Tennessee, so this is the perfect opportunity for Allen to experiment on defense and find the unit he trusts heading into Big Ten play in Week 5. 

While the Nittany Lions struggled against Bowling Green, with and without Winston on the field, his long-term injury takes a crucial playmaker off the field, and unless the defensive line begins to dominate, the Nittany Lions will be hard-pressed to finish with a top-10 unit on that side of the ball for the second straight season.