(93.7 The Fan) - Terry Smith knows WPIAL football as well as any college coach. The Penn State assistant head coach/cornerbacks was a standout player at Gateway High School before starring for the Nittany Lions 30 years ago. He later had a successful run as the Gators head coach from 2002-2012, winning more than 100 games.
Smith, now in his seventh season on James Franklin's staff, has a cornerbacks room filled with young talent. Former WPIAL stars Joey Porter Jr from North Allegheny and Daequan Hardy from Penn Hills are joined by Keaton Ellis, who played in all 13 games as a freshman, and Marquis Wilson, who appeared in ten. Porter, the son of the former Steelers linebacker, played in four games, the maximum allowed and still be redshirted.
"He brings great length, great athleticism," Smith said of the 6-foot-2 Porter. "I'm excited to see his growth from freshman redshirt season to now. He's done a great job off the field. He's picked up the system. I think he's in the mix for a starting position. We played him in the four games we were allowed to play him and he showed up and made some plays."
The 5-foot-9 Hardy arrived on campus weighing under 170 pounds. He also brought great speed and athleticism. He appeared in only two games, but made his mark on the practice fields.
"He was one of our scout team players of the year," Smith said. "He had a great off-season. He picked up 15 pounds. He's bigger, stronger, faster. He's super-smart. If he continues to develop, he's going to have an opportunity to play some at our star position."
Senior Tariq Castro-Fields is all but certain to start at one corner position this season, but with John Reid headed to the NFL the other starting spot is open. The "star" or nickel back position will also be up for grabs.
"Whether they're the starter or not, there are going to be guys that are going to play a lot of football," Smith said. "I tend to rotate my guys quite a bit from past history, so those guys are going to see the field quite a bit."
With Clairton's Lamont Wade and Gateway's Jaquan Brisker the likely starters at safety, it is conceivable there could be four former WPIAL players in the secondary at the same time.
Wade arrived at Penn State in 2017 as a five-star cornerback. While Smith is no longer his position coach, he knows his value to the defense.
"Lamont has grown tremendously from the time he walked in as a freshman, playing right away," Smith said. "His maturity is at a different level. His leadership is at a different level. He's truly the leader of the entire secondary. Lamont is probably going to be a captain of our team."
Smith admits to missing "the great family feeling" and everything community-related that goes into being a high school coach. But when he looks at the Nittany Lions secondary group he knows the WPIAL isn't very far away.