(93.7 The Fan) - Micah Parsons will enter his junior season at Penn State as one of the top players in college football. The All-American linebacker will lead what figures to be a very strong defense. And for good measure, Parsons is a projected early first round pick in the 2021 draft.
"I just play the game and just so happen to be good at it," Parsons said during a video conference Monday. "I just take every day for what it is. I go out there and give my 100 percent and do what I do best. There's no more pressure to it."
With so much riding on this season, the Harrisburg native has had a lot of time to think since campus was shut down and spring practice cancelled in March.
"Just hoping that we were going to come back to a season, putting the work in so I can get the results I want this year," said Parsons. "Just thinking about my family there was extra motivation. Seeing what we were going through. My mom going through struggles, my father going through struggles, obviously with Covid. It was just extra fuel for me, and I was able to keep giong. From the football team and my family they gave me all the support and motivation I need to get through these couple months."
Parsons did not go into detail about his parents' "struggles," saying "my family's doing well."
In a surprise, Parsons revealed that he hasn't yet joined his teammates on campus, remaining at his Harrisburg home a week after most scholarship players returned.
"I'm coming in stage two," Parsons said. "I just knew it would be my last week at home and I wanted to spend Father's Day with my son and with my father for the last time before I headed back to campus. I'm going to come back next Monday."
And when he gets back on campus?
"We can't control what happened with this pandemic, we can't control what's been going on in the world right now, but we can control how we come back after this pandemic and how we move forward. We're going to control the things we can control now, we're going to get better from it."
Parsons is excited and relieved with the news that students are scheduled to return to campus in August. He said he prefers interacting with his teachers rather having Zoom meetings.
"I hope that things can go back to normal, and we're just taking the next step forward to go back to normal. Hopefully, by the time the season comes Beaver Stadium will be fully packed."
Parsons finds himself in a new position--not on the field--but in terms of leadership. He is now the veteran linebacker.
"It's going to be a challenging year for me, but I think it can't do anything but help me grow. It's a challenge that I have to be willing to accept and a challenge that I have to be willing to grow into to do what we want to do this year. It's something I'm really looking forward to and excited about."
The Nittany Lions are 20-6 in Parsons' first two seasons. He knows what he wants in 2020.
"Just going out there and trying to win championships. And that's all it is. I'm just trying to win championships this year, and if it's my year, it's my year. There's no pressure. It's just going out there and performing. There's no pressure on us making the playoffs. Either we do what we have to do or we don't."
Parsons makes his feelings known on social media about subjects other than football, though he is more reserved that some athletes.
"I don't really say too much on social injustices because we all know what's going on. We're all aware of the injustices that go around. It's not something that everyone needs to speak on because we all know. It's the world that we live in. We have to keep striving to make a change in the people around us. It can't be an individual thing, Everyone has to be together. Everyone has to understand the magnitude and how far you want to go with this. If you want to raise awareness, do it together."
And Parsons links his football with "real life"
"I think that's another reason why I go so hard," Parsons said. "I don't want my son to have the same life I had to grow up in. I faced challenges throughout my life, and I want him to see something different."