Penn State cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields returns to his home state as confident as ever

If Feb. 1, 2017 had gone a little differently for Tariq Castro-Fields, he would not be wearing the classic white Penn State road football uniform on Friday night.

Instead, he could have been lining up opposite one of the Nittany Lions’ starting wide receivers in front of the blackout crowd, playing for the biggest university from his home state of Maryland.

On that day back in 2017, very few people knew where the four-star corner from Riverdale Baptist School would land — in fact, Castro-Fields didn’t even know himself until sometime that afternoon. However, once he reached down to make it official, the hat he was drawn to was navy blue and white.

“I know it was a stressful day,” Castro-Fields said Tuesday, recalling his commitment. “I think I didn't make the decision until about, I don't know, 2:30. I went back and talked to my coach about it, and I finally knew and I decided when I picked up the hat.”

Castro-Fields was one of the last players to commit to the Nittany Lions’ 2017 recruiting class. The importance of that class isn’t just felt with guys like Castro-Fields and Yetur Gross-Matos, who saw time as true freshmen. Everywhere you look — whether it be on offense, defense or special teams — you’ll find someone from that class.

Sean Clifford, KJ Hamler, Journey Brown, Mike Miranda, CJ Thorpe, Lamont Wade, Jonathan Sutherland. The list goes on and on.

But that class (as well as Friday’s game) could have a different feel to it if the hat Castro-Fields picked up was red and the many colors of the Maryland state flag.

The Terrapins program has taken a sense of pride in keeping players in the state of Maryland. But players like Castro-Fields and Cam Brown made the decision to come to Happy Valley and are a big reason why the Nittany Lions have outscored the Terps 173-50 over the last four years.

But it’s not just the performance on the field that has made Castro-Fields proud of his decision.

“I would just tell [high school players in Maryland], go through the process, really understand what schools have to offer you, what schools will do for you after football,” Castro-Fields said. “I chose this place because it was the best fit for me. Academically, the coaches, the players, I fit in here the best.”

This won’t be the first time Castro-Fields will head back to College Park as a member of the Nittany Lions.

In 2017, he was on the field as Penn State thrashed Maryland 66-3, but Castro-Fields will be the first to admit he’s a much different player from the regular season finale of his freshman season.

“I've grown up a lot from going back to my freshman year, period,” Castro-Fields said. “I think two things. My confidence. Coach T [Terry Smith] just does a great job of building confidence in his players. And then my tackling. Each year I've improved and this year I'm doing a great job of tackling.”

Castro-Fields, along with John Reid, have formed a duo on the outside for the Penn State defense that James Franklin is more than happy to go to battle with this Friday and the rest of the season.

“We think that we’ve got two of the better corners in the country, we really do,” Franklin said prior to the Pitt game. “Not just the conference, but the country, and they are playing with a lot of confidence right now.”