UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State redshirt junior cornerback Joey Porter Jr. was tabbed one of nine semifinalists for The Lott IMPACT Trophy on Thursday.
The IMPACT award is given annually to individuals who demonstrate excellence in the field of athletics and recognizes college football's Defensive Player of the Year who best exemplifies the IMPACT acronym: Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community and Tenacity.
Joey Porter, Jr. · R-Jr. · CB · 6-2 · 198 · Bakersfield, Calif. · North Allegheny (Pa.)
- Porter has played in 33 career games with the Nittany Lions and has made 29 starts.
- He is also a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award and Jim Thorpe Award and was a Midseason AP All-American.
- Penn State has held opponents to a 53.7 completion percentage (180-of-335), good for eighth in the country and fourth among Power Five teams.
- The Nittany Lions lead the country with 63 pass breakups, 13 more than any other FBS team.
- Porter Jr. and sophomore Kalen King are tied fourth in the nation with 11 pass breakups.
- Porter tallied a career-high six pass breakups against Purdue, earning Bednarik Award National Player of the Week honors.
- Porter's six pass breakups vs. the Boilermakers set a school record and tied a Big Ten single-game record. He matched Michigan's Jourdan Lewis (vs. Michigan State, 2015) and Minnesota's Michael Carter (vs. Purdue, 2012).
- Porter's six pass breakups are tied for the most in a single game for an FBS player since Houston's William Jackson III had seven against Temple in 2015.
Established by The Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation, The Lott IMPACT Trophy honors college football's best in character and performance. The award is unique because it represents the first college football award to give equal weight to personal character as well as athletic performance from a defensive college player and is the first national college football award bases on the West Coast.
The LOTT IMPACT Trophy was named in honor of Ronnie Lott, a two-time All-American for USC and College Football Hall of Famer. Lott went on to win four Super Bowl rings with the San Francisco 49ers and earn 10 Pro Bowl selections and a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Penn State Football Recognized on 2022 Season Watch Lists
Barney Amor: Ray Guy Award
Ji'Ayir Brown: Bednarik Award, Jim Thorpe Award, Senior Bowl
Abdul Carter: Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award (Semifinalist)
Sean Clifford: Davey O'Brien Award, Manning Award, Maxwell Award, Senior Bowl, Walter Camp Player of the Year, Wuerffel Trophy (Semifinalist)
Adisa Isaac: Comeback Player of the Year
Theo Johnson: Mackey Award
Keyvone Lee: Doak Walker Award
PJ Mustipher: Comeback Player of the Year, Rotary Lombardi Award, Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Outland Trophy, Senior Bowl
Joey Porter Jr.: Bednarik Award (Semifinalist), Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Jim Thorpe Award (Semifinalist), Lott IMPACT Trophy (Semifinalist)
Juice Scruggs: Rimington Trophy
Chris Stoll: Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, Mannelly Award
Brenton Strange: Mackey Award
Jonathan Sutherland: Paul Hornung Award, William V. Campbell Trophy (Semifinalist)
Mitchell Tinsley: Biletnikoff Award, Senior Bowl
Parker Washington: Biletnikoff Award, Earl Campbell Tyler Rose
No. 14/15/14 Penn State hosts Maryland on Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on FOX.
The 2022 Penn State Football season is presented by PSECU.