ALTOONA, Pa. -- There's pretty much always a strong Pittsburgh connection in the Penn State football program, and that certainly will be the case this year.
There are eight players from Pittsburgh and the surrounding area on the Nittany Lions' roster, including two of the most promising overall players on the team -- safety Jaquan Brisker and cornerback Joey Porter Jr.
Before we get into the players, though, let's highlight perhaps the most important Pittsburgh connection at Penn State. That would be cornerbacks coach and associate head coach Terry Smith, who epitomizes everything Penn State is all about.
The Aliquippa native played at PSU from 1988-91 as a wide receiver, catching 108 passes for 1,825 yards and 15 touchdowns during his career. This is from his PSU bio page about his playing days:
Smith was a three-year starter at wide receiver for Penn State
He still dots the Penn State record books, ranking tied for 10th in career receiving touchdowns (15), 13th in career receiving yardage (1,825) and 14th in career receptions (108).
He helped Penn State play in three consecutive bowl games, including wins over BYU in the 1989 Holiday Bowl and Tennessee in the 1991 Fiesta Bowl, compiling an 11-2 record and No. 3 final ranking in the polls.
Smith’s professional career spanned the NFL, Arena Football League and Canadian Football League.
Smith then made a huge impact as the head coach at Gateway High School in Monroeville from 2002-12. There, he coached his stepson, Justin King, who was one of the most important recruits Penn State landed in the early part of this century, along with Derrick Williams. Those two chose PSU after the dark years in 2003-04 and helped turn the program around, and no doubt Smith's ties to the Lions helped in King's decision.
Smith coached the receivers at Temple in 2013, then was hired by James Franklin when he took over at PSU in 2014. Franklin knew exactly what he was doing in hiring Smith, who has strong PSU and western PA ties, both of which Franklin knew would help him.
"I got to know Terry years ago from recruiting and going into Gateway High School and was always so impressed with him," Franklin said when Smith was hired, per PennLive. "The fact that he was able to leave the high school ranks and get some college experience was very important, as well. Then for us to be able to get a guy with really strong Penn State ties on our staff I thought was very important and excited about what he's going to bring to the table."
Franklin has done nothing but speak highly of Smith ever since then.
Franklin was asked last season how he felt about Smith, and the coach was full of praise.
"I think Terry's been one of our more important hires," Franklin said.
"When you take a job, obviously you want to have familiarity with the state, which I did growing up in Pennsylvania. You want to have familiarity with the conference and the style of play and the different venues. But at the end of the day, there's also that community knowledge, the historical knowledge that’s so important here at Penn State. And being able to bridge some of those generations. Terry has been instrumental in that."
Franklin added that Smith is "a really good sounding board for me and the players" and noted his deep ties to Penn State.
"You gotta remember, too, another thing that’s cool about Terry, he's three generations," Franklin said. "His dad went to school here, Terry went to school here, and then his son (Justin King) came here as one of the most highly recruited defensive backs in the country, came here and had a great career, then went on to the NFL and had a great career there, and then we hired him back and was working for us. And Terry's daughter just graduated from LifeLink program as well. There's obviously deep roots and deep connections."
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
Here are the Pittsburgh-area players on this year's team, starting with another Gateway High School product.
* S Jaquan Brisker (Gateway HS): He was named first-team All-American last year by Pro Football Focus, which wrote this about him: "No FBS safety recorded a better PFF grade while in the box, and Brisker quite easily displayed the best tackling of any player at the position, as he missed just one of his 60 tackle attempts on the year." The senior is a preseason second-team All-American this year by The Associated Press.
* CB Joey Porter Jr. (North Allegheny HS): The son of former Steelers linebacker and assistant coach Joey, the younger Porter has a chance to be a superstar in both college and the pros. The sophomore is in his third season at PSU and was third-team all-Big Ten last year. He has the size (6-2, 192) and speed to be an excellent shutdown corner, and he will only get better and better with more experience.
* TE Khalil Dinkins (North Allegheny HS): A true freshman on this year's team. His father, Darnell, played tight end at Pitt (1997-99) before playing nine years in the NFL.
* QB Mason Stahl (Baldwin HS): He's a redshirt freshman walk-on who was named developmental squad offensive player of the week three times last year.
* CB Daequan Hardy (Penn Hills HS): A redshirt sophomore, he played in all nine games last season and made 10 tackles. He should see a good bit of playing time this year as a backup cornerback.
* RB Tank Smith (Penn Hills HS): He not only has the best name on the team, the redshirt sophomore also part of an outstanding group of running backs. In one of PSU's open spring scrimmages at Beaver Stadium, he had a 30-yard carry and two TDs -- a 2-yard run and a 4-yard reception. He's behind a bunch of other quality running backs, but his size (231 pounds) and hard running style might give him a chance at some carries.
* DE Zuriah Fisher (Aliquippa HS): He was a 4-star prospect out of high school, where he played linebacker, and is expected to have a very bright future with the Lions. He'll be a redshirt freshman, and with the depth issues at defensive end, could have a chance to work his way into the rotation.
* WR Benjamin Wilson (Uniontown HS): He played basketball, baseball and ran track and cross country at Penn State Fayette before going to the University Park campus in 2019. He played seven games on special teams last year, for the first game action of his college career. The senior likely be on special teams a good bit this season.
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
Here's a look at my preseason top 25 in college football. Just about everyone has Indiana ahead of Penn State, but I think the Nittany Lions will be better and will beat the Hoosiers in week five, so I put PSU ahead.
1 Alabama
2 Oklahoma
3 Clemson
4 Ohio State
5 Georgia
6 Texas A&M
7 Notre Dame
8 Iowa State
9 North Carolina
10 Cincinnati
11 Oregon
12 Florida
13 LSU
14 USC
15 Wisconsin
16 Miami
17 Iowa
18 Penn State
19 Indiana
20 Texas
21 Washington
22 Oklahoma State
23 Louisiana
24 Utah
25 Auburn
Out of this group, Penn State will play 4 Ohio State, 15 Wisconsin, 17 Iowa, 19 Indiana and 25 Auburn.
