Penn State pledge Jameial Lyons proves 鈥榖est in PA stay in PA鈥�
PHILADELPHIA (BVM) 鈥� When his previous high school shut its doors after 2021, Roman Catholic鈥檚 Jameial Lyons thought his chances of playing at the next level were shot.
Turns out, with the plans Cahillite coach Rick Prete had for him, they were about to skyrocket.聽
Lyons, now a four-star commit to Penn State, played every position but offensive line before arriving at Roman. He was uprooted after Wyncote鈥檚 Bishop McDevitt High School closed down, left with his pick of another archdiocese school.
But he wasn鈥檛 sure what to think about his future in the sport.
鈥淚 kind of felt like the football dream was over, not gonna lie,鈥� Lyons said.
Prete had a vision, though 鈥� one that would prime Lyons for a bigger stage.
鈥淗e told me that, if I wasn鈥檛 playing D-line, then I couldn鈥檛 come to Roman,鈥� Lyons recalled. 鈥淎t first, I had a problem with it 鈥� At the time, I was around 185 (pounds), so I don鈥檛 want to say I was scared, but I was shocked.聽
鈥淚 was trying to run from the position.鈥�
With Lyons鈥� length, Prete could see why he was previously being dropped into coverage. With his frame, however, it made more sense for him to play on the line of scrimmage.
Not that it came without its hiccups. For the senior edge rusher, it was 鈥� and still is, for that matter 鈥� a learning curve. Watching things play out from 20 yards behind the line of scrimmage was a whole lot easier than going toe-to-toe with stout linemen.
鈥淚t鈥檚 different guarding a shifty wide receiver and trying to come down and make tackles as the running back has the ball,鈥� Lyons said. 鈥淭he first couple months, I got bullied, I鈥檓 not going to lie. I got blocked by a couple of people.
鈥淚 feel like it made me better as a player. It fixed my mentality and made me want to go harder.鈥�
Schools such as Pitt, West Virginia, and Nebraska began to show serious interest.
鈥淲hen he started picking up his offers, I told him, like, 鈥楽ee, this is what we spoke about with you playing in the right position,鈥欌�� Prete said.
Now that he鈥檚 putting it all together, Lyons is a physically dominant presence with a knack for the football.
鈥淚 think people that are his size should not be able to do the things that he does,鈥� Prete said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 one of the faster kids on our team. And that says a lot to be pushing 6-5 and 260 pounds.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a special player that you have to account for. Even when you account for him, I think special players still get it done.鈥�
Lyons鈥檚 coaches thought highly enough of him to name him a team captain early in the offseason. Through the first five weeks of this season, Lyons has a team-high 25 tackles, eight of which were for a loss. Any praise that comes his way is well deserved.
鈥淗e accepted everything that we put in front of him as far as the weight room and really taking that serious,鈥� Prete said. 鈥淎ll we鈥檝e kind of done as a staff was say, 鈥楾his is how you impact the game the best for us. We鈥檙e going to put you in that five-tech.鈥�
鈥淢ost of it is him.鈥�
In terms of Lyons鈥� sheer athleticism, Prete calls to mind two plays in particular. There was a fourth-and-short play in the Cahillite鈥檚 opener this season, against Wilson, that caught his attention.
鈥淭hey got a pretty big guy under center and you would think that one yard is a given,鈥� Prete said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 some different things we do with Jameial as far as moving him up and down the line of scrimmage.鈥�
This time, he got set in front of the guard.
鈥淲here Jameial did some special stuff on that play was, he kind of just split the block, and stuck out one arm,鈥� Prete said. 鈥淗e just wrapped the kid up and stuffed him.鈥�
Against La Salle College High School last year, Lyons picked off a slant pass from his spot on the edge.
鈥淚t was one of the freakiest things I鈥檝e ever seen,鈥� Prete said. 鈥淭he funny thing about that is, he鈥檚 done that on multiple occasions 鈥� It鈥檚 hard to throw perimeter stuff on him. If he doesn鈥檛 get home, he understands getting his hands up. He鈥檚 got elite ball skills.鈥�
As for his decision to pledge to the Nittany Lions, Lyons wanted to prove himself nearby. But not for the reasons you would think.
鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 because it was three hours away,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 because I鈥檓 a momma鈥檚 boy. Coach Franklin told me the best in PA stay in PA. That stuck with me the whole way. To me, it鈥檚 more than just a saying. I think there鈥檚 a deeper meaning to that.鈥�
His coach had the same sort of mindset.
鈥淚鈥檓 kind of old-school where you’re a Pennsylvania guy and you鈥檝e got a chance to play at Penn State,鈥� Prete said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a tremendous opportunity.鈥�
