Led By Veterans, Banks Expecting Continued Summer Development from Safeties

In his third season in charge of Penn State’s safeties, the Nittany Lions' defensive backs produced their best pass defense numbers yet for assistant coach Tim Banks.

Holding opponents to 181.5 yards per game through the air, and a team passing efficiency rating of just 106.1, the Nittany Lions finished 15th and eighth nationally in the categories, respectively.

With the departures of key veterans, notably Nick Scott at safety and Amani Oruwariye at corner, however, Penn State’s defensive backs will experience a relative changing of the guard this offseason. As such, Banks is hoping to see one particular development take place for his group through the summer months.

“Ownership. Those guys owning their program,” said Banks. “I'm in the box, and even when I was the play-caller as a coordinator, I would tell my guys, ‘I’m not gonna make any more tackles. I did make a lot of them, but I'm not gonna make any more.’

“So I love for my guys to take ownership. When we break down, I say what I need to say, but ultimately it is (Garrett Taylor) or one of the seniors, they break them down. So this is the time for those guys to bond and truly take ownership of their development.”

Coming off his first season as a starter, Taylor is in line to round out his college eligibility continuing to own one of the two starting safety spots. His 717 defensive snaps during the 2018 season were fourth on the team behind Scott, Oruwariye, and linebacker Cam Brown, and his 71 tackles were third on the defense.

Having worked his way into the position, developing patiently through a redshirt and two seasons as a backup before emerging last year, Banks said he’s got high hopes for the senior’s final season at Penn State.

“GT has come up the hard way, nothing was given to them, everything was earned,” said Banks. “He started off as a corner, made the transition to safety, worked his way up through the ladder, from a three to a two to a one, and obviously capitalized on his opportunity that he had last season. I'm expecting him to pick up where you left off.”

Taylor still has room to grow, though, Banks continued. Owning a relatively quiet demeanor, part of his development this summer will include taking on a more vocal role among his teammates.

“That's the next step for him,” said Banks. “Everyone respects him because of his work ethic, but at some point, you still have to be able to communicate with guys from a football perspective.”

Taylor won’t be alone in that pursuit this summer.

Given the return of Lamont Wade for his junior season following a potential transfer situation this winter, rising fifth-year senior John Petrishen, plus that of Jonathan Sutherland coming off a debut campaign in which he had 204 snaps and finished with 38 tackles, the Nittany Lion safeties will feature ample experience in the coming season.

Speaking with reporters this summer, Banks touted the potential for both players.

“I’m excited about Lamont. He had a really good winter conditioning and he backed it right back up with having a really good spring,” said Banks. “So everything I'm hearing in summer sounds like he's working his tail off. He's going to have an opportunity to go out there and continue to build on what he established in the spring, so I'm excited about that.”

And, of Sutherland, the combination of youth and experience left Banks feeling optimistic about the redshirt sophomore’s future.

“He's a worker. He's extremely smart. He understands some of the liabilities that he has and he's working to strengthen those,” said Banks. “He has a bright future here. We expect him to continue to help this program in years to come.”

In combination, its continued development through the summer months have Banks confident about the prospects for the group moving forward.

“I know that's getting done because I know we have a good group of upperclassmen whether it's GT, Lamont Wade, even Jon Sutherland, guys that are veterans,” said Banks. “Those guys are leading and showing the young guys what our standards are in our room. And I don't worry about that because I know they understand what it takes for the summer.”