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Column: More in store for LB Parsons following standout sophomore season

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Micah Parsons sounded like he was complaining.

Sitting in the upstairs lobby of the Lasch Building last summer, a few weeks ahead of the start of his sophomore season as a Nittany Lion, the linebacker endured some light hassling by his defensive coordinator and position coach, Brent Pry. Interrupting the interview, Pry wanted to know how anyone could be so interested in the thoughts and opinions of a player who, to that point in his career, had only started one game.

Parsons, feigning indignation, waited until Pry left the room to air his grievances.

“Man, the standard is so high. He wants everything perfect with me. Everything,” Parsons said. “I did have a sack where he actually gave me a deduction on our grading sheet because I could have had two. That's the standard with him. He's like, ‘You could have had it if you could just be as athletic as I know you are.’ He was mad at me.”

How did Parsons respond to the critique?

In his true freshman season as a Nittany Lion, his first playing the position, the feedback was predictably unwelcome.

“I was angry.”

Knowing as much, Pry asked his energetic, opinionated, youthful pupil if “the standard” should be lowered.

“No, Coach Pry, keep the standard,” Parsons replied. “You know what, I will just work at it more.”

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The message resonated.

Announced Monday afternoon, Parsons was named as a first-team selection to the Associated Press and ESPN All-American teams. The honors built on a regular-season performance that also garnered Parsons the Big Ten’s Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year.

His 95 tackles, 11.0 tackles for a loss, three sacks, three pass breakups, three quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery were Parsons’ statistics for the year. But the honors bestowed upon Parsons for the effort represented something much more significant.

The first sophomore to win the conference’s linebacker of the year award, the first sophomore at Penn State to be named an AP first-team All-American since LaVar Arrington in 1998, and the Nittany Lions’ 101st first-teamer overall, Parsons has officially entered a rarified territory.

According to Pro Football Focus’ premium stats, Parsons graded out this season as the second-highest Power Five conference linebacker, notching a mark of 90.9 overall behind Missouri’s Nick Bolton (91.1). The height of Parsons’ performance on PFF’s grading scale is his defense against the run, topping out as No. 1 overall with a grade of 94.8. His tackling was similarly impressive by PFF’s standards, finishing fifth among his peers with a grade of 86.8.

The reality for Parsons, however, is that Franklin’s razzing during the same interview this past summer remains founded in truth.

Traversing the upstairs lobby with Pry as the interview was still taking place, Franklin wanted to know if Parsons had discussed the number of interceptions he’d made as a freshman; that number, of course, is zero. A quick look at Parsons’ sophomore campaign shows that the number remains at zero heading into the Nittany Lions’ Cotton Bowl appearance against Memphis later this month.

Parsons did note in the interview that he’d made an interception on tight end Pat Freiermuth during the team’s spring practices, but Franklin wasn’t swayed by the argument then and likely isn’t now.

For Penn State to get where it wants to go as a program, Parsons’ continued development in pass rush and pass coverage is essential. This past season, he finished with three sacks and three quarterback hurries, so for as consistent as he has been with improving instincts to match, the potential for Parsons to upend the course of any given game by getting to the quarterback more consistently, creating more fumbles, and nabbing the first of what Penn State hopes will be multiple interceptions is immeasurable.

“When it comes to Micah, I think he's getting more comfortable and more confident every day and taking more control,” Franklin told reporters this season. “I think the exciting thing for us and Micah is I think he's got a lot of room for growth… I think fundamentally, he can get a lot better I think in terms of commanding the defense and leadership. He can get a lot better.

“He is nowhere near his ceiling, he really isn't, and he's improved dramatically. But the exciting thing is there's a lot more left in the tank.”

Already a first-team All-American as a sophomore, that Parsons still has room to grow beyond his consistently great performance demonstrates even more enticing possibilities for his future.

An iconic playmaker through his two-year Penn State career? Not yet, but by generating more sacks, clutch stops, or gamebreaking interceptions, Parsons can, and likely will, reach new heights.

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