STATE COLLEGE — In January, it might have been safe to assume Trent Gordon could push for a starting job on Penn State’s defense.
It made sense. After all, he appeared in 10 games last season as the Nittany Lions’ most experienced backup at cornerback. He made 20 tackles. His five pass breakups were third-most among corners. With senior John Reid graduating, and even with a handful of talented freshmen pushing for playing time as the season went on, Gordon’s name had to be near the top of the list of players who could potentially step into that starting role.
But it’s July now, and it seems unlikely Gordon will push for a starting spot once next season gets under way, primarily because he’s not even a cornerback anymore. That’s all good by him.
As spring practice approached, coaches informed the sophomore from Texas that he’d be moving to safety. There, he’d likely compete for a backup spot behind Lamont Wade and former Lackawanna College standout Jaquan Brisker once camp starts. But he’d also get back to a position where he has always felt most comfortable, a role that ultimately can make the most of his strengths.
“I already played the position in high school, so I’m very comfortable with doing it,” Gordon said. “Then on top of that, being at safety just kind of builds on my skill set as a corner. Now, I can be more physical. Now, I can play a lot more faster because I can see everything more clearly now being at this level of the secondary.
“So, I can pretty much see everything. It allows me to kind of dissect the play and be able to react quicker than I would as a corner. Being at safety enhances my skill set.”
That last statement has always been on the minds of Penn State’s two defensive backs coaches, Gordon’s former position coach Terry Smith, and his new one, safeties coach Tim Banks.
It was Smith, Penn State’s cornerbacks coach, who approached Gordon with the idea earlier this year. While the Nittany Lions are young at that position, they’re also extremely gifted, with sophomores Keaton Ellis and Marquis Wilson expected to push for playing time and freshmen Joey Porter Jr. and Daequan Hardy angling for expanded roles alongside senior Tariq Castro-Fields.
But both of Banks’ starters at safety will be seniors this fall, and there isn’t a stockpile of experienced depth at safety behind Wade and Brisker outside of junior Jonathan Sutherland.
Penn State started the 5-foot-11 Gordon at corner, but Banks recruited him with the thought that, at some point, he could move to safety if he’s ever needed.
“We (recruit) for combo guys, guys that have the skill set of a corner and size of a safety, and he fits that mold,” Banks said. “He just brings an element, obviously from a cornerback perspective, where he has been trained to cover. He has the size, the speed, to be able to fit in a box as a safety.”
Gordon said he has bulked up, from the 185 pounds he played at last season to 202 now, in order to better handle the increased responsibility a safety has in the running game. He’s a work in progress at safety now, and time will tell how much playing time he gets, Banks said.
But as far as comfort goes, Gordon is right where he wants to be anyway.
“There are so many levels to playing safety on the field that’s actually a little overwhelming at times,” Gordon conceded. “Now, it’s pretty much having to know how the defense should be lined up, what everybody should be doing on a certain play call that we called. That was the hardest part for me, and it’s going to be for me next year as well.
“It’s easier the more that I deal with it. So I don’t think that I should be having any problems with the transition to safety from corner anytime soon.”
