Penn State Football: Joey Porter Jr. Will Forgo Bowl, Declare for NFL Draft

Penn State redshirt junior corner Joey Porter Jr. will not participate in the Nittany Lions’ upcoming bowl game and will enter the 2023 NFL Draft process, he announced on Twitter early Wednesday evening.

“To my family, thank you for the unconditional love and support,” Porter wrote. “I wouldn’t be the man I am today without the love and guidance from my mom. To my dad, thank you for introducing me to the game I love and for always pushing me to be my best. … I have decided to forego our bowl game and declare for the 2023 NFL Draft,” Porter said in a statement. “From one dream to the next, I am excited to continue this next chapter.”

Porter is generally expected by most daft experts to go somewhere in the middle stages of the NFL Draft’s opening round. The standout corner played sparingly against Michigan State in Penn State’s regular season finale coming off of appendicitis which sidelined him for two games. Prior to that medical situation Porter showed flashes of why scouts think so highly of his length and coverage skills. Porter finishes his 2022 season having broken up 11 passes on the year and registering 21 solo tackles through 10 games of action. He had 74 solo tackles over the course of his Penn State career.

Penn State will find itself still in good hands following the departure of Porter. The Nittany Lions will have the returning services of sophomore corner Kalen King who finished the regular season second in the nation with 20 passes defended.