A Penn State defender plans to enter the transfer portal.
On the afternoon of Monday, Dec. 9– the first day the portal opened— T.A. Cunningham told Hayes Fawcett of On3Sports that he plans on entering the portal after one season with Penn State.
Like most true freshman, Cunningham didn’t get a much playing time in Year 1. He didn’t appear in any of Penn State’s 12 regular season games or the Big Ten Championship against Oregon this past Saturday.
Penn State’s defensive tackles have been solid most of the season, led by starters Zane Durant and Dvon J-Thomas.
A BLUE-CHIP RECRUIT
These days, the word “dawg” is thrown around in a lot of descriptions of football players but Penn State football’s latest commit doesn’t seem himself as a “dawg.”
So how does Cunningham see himself?
“I would say, ‘A wolf’ because I like to eat dogs,” he told Nittany Sports Now the night before he announced his commitment. “So when I step on the field, regardless of the condition I’m in, whatever, I’m going to give it 100 percent of what I have. So I’m going to leave it all out on the field.”
Cunningham announced his commitment to Penn State July 22, 2023. He had 62 offers per 247Sports, and told NSN about how Penn State saw his versatility.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.“When talking to the coaches and talking to everybody on the coaching staff, they look at T.A. Cunningham; they don’t look at a defensive tackle or a defensive end,” he said. “They see a defensive lineman. And, I feel like, especially with the direction the game’s heading towards, a lot of these players, everyone’s starting to kind of become some type of hybrid. You kind of have to be able to do multiple things on the field in order to be successful. So, I feel like, just having that athletic skillset to where I’m physical enough to play inside and athletic enough to make a twist outside or start outside and twist inside, I feel like those traits really make me different.”
NOT IDEAL
Photo by Matt Lynch, Nittany Sports Now: Deion Barnes
Penn State’s situation at defensive tackle already isn’t ideal. It’s going to become even more challenging next season. This year, Penn State lost sixth-year DT Hakeem Beamon(no longer with program) and fifth-year Alonzo Ford (injury) within two weeks. After this season, Penn State’s projected to lose Zane Durant (NFL Draft) and a pair of sixth-years in Dvon J-Thomas and Coziah Izzard (out of eligibility). So, Cunningham going the transfer portal isn’t ideal for Penn State.
Penn State plays SMU in its first-ever College Football Playoff game Saturday, Dec. 21. Kickoff is scheduled for noon on TNT at Beaver Stadium.
