Trending
MORGANTOWN -- After two years at Penn State, Lance Dixon traded in one shade of blue for another.
Now, entering his second season with the West Virginia University football team, Dixon found exactly what he was looking for: a situation that would allow him to make the most of his skillset.
"Obviously it's a difficult process having to transfer schools, but I'm pretty happy with the decision I made," Dixon said. "I can't really say I would go back and change it."
He enters the spring as the presumptive starter at "will" linebacker, a spot that will make the most of his speed. A former safety in high school, Dixon's agility and maneuverability was an asset he felt was underutilized in the Nittany Lions' defensive scheme.
"It was a little more in the box [at Penn State], like completely -- I'm mostly in the box, like 90% of the time," Dixon said. "Here, it's more like 50-50. I'm out, I'm in sometimes. It can change each game, and I like that a lot."
Dixon played sparingly as a true freshman, tallying only two tackles with the Nittany Lions. He became a much bigger factor the following season -- appearing in nine games and even starting one -- but Penn State quickly fell out of favor.
At WVU, he found no limit to on-field opportunities.
Primarily on special teams, but also as a reserve, Dixon folded himself into an increasing role with his athleticism and versatility. Despite missing the final three regular season games with an injury, he totaled 36 tackles.
Entering this spring with a year already under his belt, he already feels tremendous growth coming this fall.
"I feel way better compared to last season because, last season, I didn't really get the offseason training that I usually got over the last couple of years," Dixon said. "Right now, I feel way better. I feel like I can do a lot more, got a lot more stamina, can play a lot more, can do a lot more things."
Despite the loss of veteran Josh Chandler-Semedo to the transfer portal, Dixon will likely be the main focus of the linebacker corps. Lee Kpogba, who transferred in from East Mississippi Community College this semester, will likely overtake Chandler-Semedo's spot as the man in the middle.
Elsewhere, the team returns all three starters on the defensive line from a year ago -- which will have a radiating effect on all aspects of the defense.
"That definitely helps, especially for newer guys like Lee coming in," Dixon said. "It's easier for him to be able to know that the guys in front of him are going to do exactly what they're supposed to do.
"It's hard if you're trying to learn your coverage drops, your run, your gap and stuff like that, and then the guys up front, they might mess it up, and now you're confused, you don't really know what you're doing," he added. "It's definitely helpful to have those guys in front of you that know what they're doing and go be in the right spot every time."
Kpogba is one of a handful of new additions expected to make an impact on defense this season, as well as safety Hershey McLaurin and cornerback Marcis Floyd, among others.
"We got a whole bunch of new guys coming in and a lot of them are long, a lot of them are fast, athletic," Dixon said. "It's gonna be a fun season. I like the pieces we added, and I like what we're doing."