Penn State defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn is sticking with the coaches booth, and for him, the choice is simple.
Lynn said Tuesday at Beaver Stadium that the elevated view gives him the best chance to see the whole picture as the game unfolds, and he’s comfortable operating from there because it’s familiar territory. He noted that he spent most of his NFL career calling from the booth, and during camp he mixed in both spots while working through scrimmages.
“During camp, we had a couple of different scrimmages, so I called some from the field, some from the booth,” Lynn said on Tuesday at Beaver Stadium. “I spent the majority of the time in my NFL in the booth.”
Before arriving at UCLA in 2023 as defensive coordinator, Lynn coached for five different NFL teams. That background has made the booth feel natural, and he said the setup also fits the staff Penn State has on the field.
“I just felt like with the coaches that we had on the field, I trust all those guys as far as being able to keep those guys [even keel] on game day,” Lynn said.
From up top, Lynn can track how plays develop in real time and gather more information between drives without leaning as heavily on replays or other technology. He said that mattered to him, and once he tried it in Week 1, he was sold.
“And then just in between drives, [I] just felt you’re able to gather so much more information in between drives,” Lynn said. “So I wanted to try it out week one.
I liked it. The players enjoyed it.
So, we’ll probably keep on doing it.”
Penn State is on the road this week, heading to Philadelphia to face Temple at Lincoln Financial Field. The game is set for noon on ESPN2, and with a large alumni base in the Philly area, it should feel a lot like a home setting for the Nittany Lions.
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