Penn State's Yetur Gross-Matos making impact as a freshman

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Penn State's Ryan Buchholz overheard a conversation between coach Sean Spencer and Yetur Gross-Matos on the sideline Saturday.

The defensive line coach was talking to the freshman defensive end about when he'd put him in against Akron. When the time came, Buchholz, a redshirt junior defensive end, grabbed Gross-Matos by the neck and said, "Just come in with me. I'll tell you what to do."

"I think he was a little nervous," Buchholz said of Gross-Matos, "so I just wanted to make sure that everything was going to be fine. I said, 'If you don't know what's going on, just talk to me on the field.' So I was just trying to be there to help him and make him less nervous."

Gross-Matos recorded two tackles against Akron on the way to a 52-0 shutout in the season opener. But it's understandable that he'd be nervous. Coach James Franklin said he's probably not even ready to play yet. But after seeing his performance during camp, Franklin decided to burn his redshirt, predicting he'll have a "significant role" for Penn State a few games in.

"He doesn't know the game plan 100 percent yet," Franklin said. "He doesn't know offensive systems as well as we would like him to yet. But what he did was he played really hard and he played recklessly. He flew around from the time the ball was snapped till the whistle was blown."

And what more can you expect from a freshman?

"He's done a really good job," Buchholz said. "I would say it's more mental than physical, but he's done as good as you can pretty much as a true freshman."

Buchholz praised Gross-Matos' physical characteristics — 6-foot-5, 248 pounds — and compared him to former Nittany Lion Carl Nassib, whom the Cleveland Browns selected in the third round of the 2016 NFL draft.

Gross-Matos adds exactly what Franklin wants on defense — depth. The fourth-year head coach said depth is the best way to develop players, as playing time gives them a more significant role and makes them feel involved, which in turn creates a healthy locker room.

"I'm really pleased with Yetur at this point," Franklin said. "I think he's a good example of what we want to continue doing,  building depth."