Sophomore CB picks a good spot to stop old friends

King’s interception finished Spartans

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Kalen King had already recorded one interception in his Penn State career, but the sophomore cornerback was looking for more.

The Nittany Lions had upped their lead against Michigan State to 28-16 with less than five minutes to go in regulation Saturday thanks to an 11-play, 75-yard touchdown drive by sixth-year quarterback Sean Clifford and the rest of the offense. The Spartans, who entered the game with a 5-6 mark and were looking to become bowl eligible, needed quarterback Payton Thorne to make some plays to keep their season alive.

On a 3rd-and-7, Thorne threw a jump ball off his back foot in the direction of tight end Daniel Barker. What Thorne didn’t account for was King being in the same vicinity, and the cornerback had no problems making the gamesealing interception.

“It meant a lot, man, because we needed a stop,” King said. “The game was too close for my comfort, so I just felt like I needed to make a play and I did.”

King’s interception set the stage for Clifford to throw a long touchdown pass to receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith on the very next play, which changed the score to its final of 35-16 in favor of Penn State.

The interception wasn’t the first time Thorne targeted King, however.

With cornerback Joey Porter Jr. back after his two-game absence because of appendicitis, Thorne mostly avoided the potential first- round draft choice’s side of the field.

Instead, he threw in the direction of King a whopping 10 times, which accounted for more than 23% of Thorne’s passing attempts.

Thorne completed only four of those throws for 26 yards; King, meanwhile, had a game-best five pass breakups to go along with his interception.

“I take it as a challenge,” King said of Thorne frequently throwing at him. “It only gives me more opportunities to make plays. I’m grateful for those opportunities.”

King also said he understood Michigan State’s strategy, given that six of the 10 passing attempts were to the Spartans’ leading receivers in Keon Coleman and Jayden Reed.

“If I were them, I would go to my best guys,” King said. “I just took the challenge and just competed all day today.”

Even without King’s stellar performance in mind, James Franklin has been impressed by the young defensive back, noting that he’s been “consistent” all year with his play.

The return of Porter to Penn State’s secondary was certainly an impactful one, but in Franklin’s eyes, it’s the combination of him and King that is most significant to Penn State’s defensive game plans.

“When Kalen’s in there and Joey’s playing the way he’s capable of playing when he’s healthy, it allows us to do a lot of things defensively: load the box, stop the run, challenge throws,” Franklin said.

The head coach also said an argument could be made that Penn State has two of the best cornerbacks in the country in King and Porter. It’s hard to argue with his point when evaluating the duo on statistics such as passes defended, a category that King is tied for the national lead in with 18 on the year.

But the performance King turned in on Saturday may have meant a little more to him than what he and the team have done during the rest of the season.

After the game, he caught up with some Michigan State players who he played against and went to camps with while growing up in Detroit in tight end Maliq Carr, receiver Antonio Gates Jr. and defensive tackle Derrick Harmon.

It should come as no surprise that King is glad to have bragging rights over those he’s known long before he started playing college football.

After all, even his former head coach at Detroit’s Cass Technical High School, Thomas Wilcher, was pacing the sideline for the Spartans on Saturday.

“It means a lot, man, especially because we all

come from the same place,” King said of the win. “Once you come out on top against people you’ve been competing with your whole life, you always got the edge from that moment until y’all see each other again.”

King believes he deserves the success he had this season based on his offseason work and the increased attention he’s directed toward facets of the game like studying opposing teams’ route concepts and formations.

Now, he’s reaping the benefits of his enhanced game preparation, much to his and cornerbacks coach Terry Smith’s satisfaction.

“He was just telling me at practice, like, ‘You’re good, you’re good right now, but imagine how much better you would be if you actually understood the game and knew what was coming at you,’” King said of Smith’s instruction. “‘You wouldmake way more plays.’”