Penn State secondary won't dwell on loss

STATE COLLEGE - There are some plays Jordan Lucas wishes he had back from Penn State's loss Saturday, but the cornerback said he does not think the secondary's performance was as bad as some thought.

"I don't think it was as bad as the media made it sound," Lucas said yesterday. "Of course, I had some good plays, I had some not so good plays. But it comes down to me looking at the film, which we did [earlier in the week], and I know what the mistakes were and I have to be better this week. That's all."

Penn State's defense had, by far, its worst performance of the young season, allowing 31 points and 507 yards - 288 of which came through the air - to Central Florida in a three-point loss Saturday. It was quite the test and learning experience for Lucas and fellow cornerback Trevor Williams - who were both making just their third starts at the position.

Lucas said he can't worry about what others thought of his or the secondary's performance, and as he mentioned, he did come up with some strong plays in the defeat. He had one of the Nittany Lions' two tackles for a loss, forced a fumble and ended the game with six takedowns.

A sophomore, Lucas played in all 12 of Penn State's contests last season, as did Williams. But Lucas has more experience in his current position.

Williams was converted to the defensive side of the ball after making 10 catches for 97 yards as wide receiver in 2012. Williams made a splash in his defensive debut when he iced the team's season-opening win against Syracuse with a fourth-quarter interception. He also leads the team with four breakups and five pass deflections through three games.

Coach Bill O'Brien said there were areas where the sophomore could have been better Saturday, like the rest of the defense, but seemed pleased with Williams' progression at the new position.

"Just like all of us, [he] made his share of mistakes on Saturday," O'Brien said of Williams. "He has come back to work on Monday. He worked really hard. He'll get better and better and better."

After getting burned by UCF quarterback Blake Bortles on some shorter gains earlier in the game, Penn State's corners started pressing receivers more as the game wore on. But it didn't slow down Bortles and the UCF offense, and the signal-caller and wideouts connected on deeper plays.

Though they're both inexperienced and went through some growing pains against UCF, the cornerbacks had the backing of senior linebacker Glenn Carson.

"That's something I said to them on the sideline during the game. 'Hey, I trust you, you're a great ballplayer, let's try to turn this game around,' " Carson said. "I think that they all know what they have to do."

Lucas said the secondary also got a message from senior safety Malcolm Willis at Monday's practice - players have to get to the ball and "be nasty." But in addition to listening to veteran teammates, Lucas noted that he and Williams are always talking.

"Me and Trevor, we're like brothers," Lucas said. "I wouldn't say we rely on each other. We communicate to each other so much, giving Trevor a head's up is a habit. I have his back and he has mine. That's how it's supposed to be."