Tariq Castro-Fields, Penn State Football News: Draft Scout Player News

04/15/20 - CB Tariq Castro-Fields, rSr/2022, Penn State

Penn State's secondary is going to look very different next year without John Reid, who exhausted his eligibility after five years with the Nittany Lions. Reid played inside and outside at cornerback and often faced the opponent's best wide receiver because he was the team's best cornerback. With the former Nittany Lion headed to the NFL draft, Penn State cornerbacks coach Terry Smith has a replacement in mind to step up as the unit's best player - senior Tariq Castro-Fields. "(Castro-Fields) is the leader of the corner room," Smith said in a teleconference with the media Wednesday morning. "Tariq, not to put pressure on him, needs to have a great year for us. We need a lock-down corner that can handle the best receiver of whoever our opponent is. We expect Tariq to be that guy."

Penn State will need Castro-Fields and several other cornerbacks to step up next season for the defense to take another step forward and improve its pass coverage. The 6-foot, 190-pound Castro-Fields has all of the measurables to succeed as a shutdown corner. He has the size, length and athleticism to stick with cornerbacks of any size, but needs to find consistency to do it on a weekly basis. He began the 2019 season as if he was the team's best corner, but soon struggled to find success as a defender. "His season last year was almost like two different season," Smith said. "The first half of the season he came out of the gate looking like a first-round draft pick. Then he suffered an injury and from that injury on, he was a different player. He wasn't as confident, he wasn't as sure of himself. ... One of our offseason plans and goals for him is to make sure that he can be more consistent throughout the season." - Centre Times

rSr/2022