UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — When Demeioun “Chop” Robinson officially became a member of Penn State’s program in June, he turned into more than just a Maryland native venturing 3 ½ hours north for college.
Robinson’s decision to come to Happy Valley was the latest in an ongoing trend of high school players departing the Old Line State for State College. But unlike his new teammates, Robinson’s career didn’t start at Penn State, as he played his first year of college ball for Maryland before entering the transfer portal.
When the Nittany Lions host the Terrapins this Saturday, it’ll be more than just a homecoming game for Robinson.
“I think this will be a big game for him,” said defensive tackle and fellow Maryland native Dvon Ellies. “Facing off against some of his old teammates, being with his new teammates, I think it’ll be a really special moment for him because he can go out there and showcase his talents some more.”
The start to Robinson’s Penn State career has included flashes of his impact, like the pair of sacks to his name. It’s also been hampered by injuries, which forced him to miss the Minnesota game.
Still, James Franklin believes Robinson has been disruptive in both the run and pass game despite the results on the stat sheet not always indicating as much.
“We’ve been pleased with him,” Franklin said. “I think part of it, too, is he missed some time from injury. I think he’s one of those guys which we deal with a decent amount, guys that really have never been injured before, how to handle that, be able to come back from it not only physically, but also mentally.”
In total, the Nittany Lions have 14 players on their roster who either hail from Maryland or played high school football there, the largest representation from any state that isn’t Pennsylvania. The majority of those players are featured on the defensive side of the ball, including notables like linebacker Curtis Jacobs, defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton and defensive tackle PJ Mustipher.
As recently as Saturday’s win against Indiana, more Maryland-born players on the defensive line were significant contributors; Ellies and fellow defensive tackle Coziah Izzard each had sacks, with Ellies’ being his first one of the year.
“They’re both really unique players for their size. Their burst and quickness is very deceptive and it catches you off guard, and the power of just their overall play,” defensive end Adisa Isaac said of Ellies and Izzard. “Those two guys right there, when they get rolling and they get comfortable in their rushes, they turn into something very special.”
When the defensive tackles are able to generate pressure in the manner that they were this past Saturday, it makes the defensive ends’ jobs much easier, according to Isaac. And against a Maryland team that features a mobile quarterback in Taulia Tagovailoa, eliminating escape routes with an effective and calculated pass rush will be critical to the Nittany Lions’ success.
The key for players like Ellies is to replicate performances like the one he turned in against Indiana in what he called one of his “better” games.
“As far as moving forward, it’s taking it a step at a time every day, building on what I did last week and continuing to build on the skills that I have and refining them to a point where it’s evident on the field,” Ellies said.
The defensive line was a bit of a question mark entering this season, considering the Nittany Lions lost their leading sack man in defensive end Arnold Ebiketie and no returner had more than three sacks in 2021. With four games left in the 2022 campaign (assuming Penn State accepts a bid to whatever bowl game it is chosen for), the defense has just three fewer sacks than it did a year ago.
That production has certainly been skewed by a seven-sack effort against Auburn and with six more last weekend against Indiana, but the Nittany Lions have more effectively brought down the opposing team’s quarterback nonetheless. But on a team with countless Maryland-born players who have been instrumental to Penn State’s success on defense, perhaps no addition has been as important as that of Robinson.
“He definitely adds great value to this team. He adds great excitement to the team, especially the D-line,” Isaac said of Robinson. “I’m just glad we have him on our team. I’m just glad that we can move forward and develop and keep creating that chemistry with him as he’s here with us. I try not to even look at the ‘if he wasn’t here.’ I’m just glad that he’s with us right now.”
From the Fashanu front
On Tuesday, Franklin said left tackle Olu Fashanu was week-to-week in light of the injury he sustained in the second half of Penn State’s loss to Ohio State.
Fashanu, who has been projected by some NFL Draft experts as a potential first-round selection, hasn’t played since facing the Buckeyes, did not travel for the Nittany Lions’ last game and was not on the practice field Wednesday night for the portion of practice media members could watch.
Franklin said that Fashanu being held out of action is not related to any external factors beyond his health.
“Right now, it’s strictly a medical decision based on where our doctors and trainers feel like he is,” Franklin said.
Andrew Destin: adestin@post-gazette.com and Twitter @AndrewDestin1.
First Published: November 9, 2022, 7:14 p.m.
