The son of one of the greatest linebackers in Penn State history is being coached by one of the greatest linebackers in Penn State history, and Dan Connor talked about Lavar Arrington II in a Zoom call with reporters Thursday morning.
Whether it’s fair or not, most people think of the original Lavar Arrington whenever the younger Arrington is mentioned.
Since Arrington II is only two games into his true freshman season, it will take awhile for him to make his own legacy.
Arrington’s best chance to make a name for himself for now is to impress his coaches throughout the week.
So far, Connor likes what he sees.
WHAT CONNOR SAID
Courtesy Lavar Arrington II
Here’s what Connor said about Arrington II.
“Graduating early is a huge advantage to be able to get those spring reps,” he said. “In a new system and in a system like this that’s a complex system, it’s close to an NFL system, that’s going to take time.”
The most newsworthy thing Connor said in his answer was that Arrington has improved enough to be able to play MIKE linebacker, which is no small feat, especially in coordinator Jim Knowles’ complex scheme.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.“You’re playing quarterback of a tough defensive system,” he said. “He has steadily progressed and really, over the past three weeks in particular, it’s been impressive to watch him operate.”
For Connor, Arrington is a guy who “has all the tools.”
“He’s big, he’s fast, he’s twitchy, he can rush the passer,” Connor said. “He can do pretty much anything. And it’s really encouraging to see him operate now as a level-two linebacker, but not just a level two linebacker, the MIKE linebacker. The main communicator.”
GENETICS ARE JUST A BONUS
National Football Foundation/Josh Hawkins
Although the Penn State connection is obvious with Arrington II, Coach James Franklin made it clear over the winter that Penn State would have recruited him regardless of of genetics.
“Obviously, LaVar Arrington is a name that jumps out to everybody. LaVar, obviously, (has) tremendous genetics and a history with the university,” Franklin said on national signing day in February. “But I would say this: we would recruit LaVar whether he was LaVar’s son or not. I think that’s very, very important. We want LaVar for what he can bring to the table, for what he’s put on tape and the type of athlete he is. You saw in high school, they used him as both a traditional linebacker and as an edge player coming off of the offensive tackle. He’s shown explosiveness there. We think he has a chance to be very, very special.”
No. 2 Penn State host on Villanova Saturday at 3:30 on FS1.
