Penn State football: 5 most underrated Nittany Lions in program history

Teams didn’t dare throw on Darren Perry when he was at Penn State.

Penn State football has had some of the greatest defensive players to ever play college football come through their program. Obviously with the name “Linebacker U” they reign supreme in the middle of the defense, and there are quite a few standouts that have played in the trenches but where Penn State has never really stood out is in the secondary.

Now I’m sure Penn State football fans could name drop quite a few players but none that were in the national spotlight. And of those names, would they mention the next person on our list: Darren Perry.

Perry was a defensive back for the Nittany Lions from 1988-1991. In 1988, Penn State saw it’s first losing season since 1938 but would bounce back the following year. Perry was not much of an impact in his first two years, only intercepting two passes, but played an important role in 1990 and 1991 that would jump-start Penn State’s dominance in the ’90s.

In his junior and senior year, Perry would total 13 interceptions, three of which he would return for a touchdown. This performance would earn Perry All-American Honors in 1991 and has him tied for second for interceptions in a career (15) in school history. And not only did Perry succeed in college but his game translated over to the pros.

Perry finished his pro career with 35 interceptions, 74 pass break-ups and 499 total tackles in his eight-year career. So Perry should not only be considered one of the most underrated Penn State football players in their college career but also their professional career.