By Silas Redd Says He Thought About Leaving Penn State in November, the Freeh Report Was the Deciding Factor
August 29, 2012 – 9:30 am by Chris Fedor
Silas Redd was Penn State’s leading rusher last year with over 1,200 yards, which earned him second-team honors in the Big Ten conference and helped the Nittany Lions achieve a 9-4 record in what turned out to be Joe Paterno’s last season. Individually it was a great year for Redd. That was only part of it though. The other part was dealing with the adversity of a sex scandal that rocked Happy Valley and put a black eye on the program’s reputation. Then in July, when the NCAA hit Penn State with crippling penalties, Redd decided he wanted and needed a fresh start. After his father fielded calls from 50 schools interested in the 5-10 200-pound running back, there was just once school that appealed to him and allowed him to best escape from the dark cloud that still hangs over Happy Valley. That school was USC.
As the college football season approaches this weekend, Redd will try to put last year and this offseason behind him and try to concentrate on being one of the pieces of the Trojans offense that is supposed to put Southern Cal back in the National Championship spotlight.
Silas Redd joined Fox Sports Radio with Petros and Money to talk about the difference between Penn State and USC, how tough things were at Penn State last November, how tough it was for him to decide to leave Penn State, why he decided to leave the Nittany Lions program, what he expects his role to be in the USC offense, how many teams showed an interest in him when he was thinking about transferring and whether his feeling towards Joe Paterno have changed since everything happened at Penn State.
On the difference between Penn State and USC:
“It’s a big culture shock. It’s extremely different from playing in State College where you’re kind of in the middle of nowhere. You come out here and you’re in the city of L.A. and that’s different, the weather is different, the people are different and all those things said it was still a smooth transition.”
How tough last year was with the changes at the end of the season:
“That month of November was very tough. We were 8-1 going into the Nebraska game and then all of that stuff happened and that really took a toll on the rest of our season. We went 1-2 those last couple of games and we would’ve had a chance to play for the Big Ten Championship if we would’ve beaten Wisconsin and we didn’t do that so I’m not blaming the whole situation on that but it definitely took a toll on us.”
How tough it was for him to decide to leave Penn State:
“A lot of people don’t know that I had questioned leaving in November when it first hit the fan and I talked to my family, they were really my anchors and really the shoulders I needed to lean on. I decided to stay through the winter and we really started to turn the corner with the new program and coach O’Brien and everything and then the things happened with the Freeh Report and that was kind of the straw that broke the camel’s back so to say.”
Why he decided to leave Penn State:
“I feel like I needed a fresh start. First off let me say that I established some great opportunities and great relationships with some people at Penn State that really did a lot for me on and off the field but like you said it was the best decision for me to leave and I feel like this will be a great new chapter of my life, I plan to establish great relationships and opportunities here just like I did at Penn State.”
What he expects his role to be in the USC backfield:
“Curtis and I are going to share carries. A lot of people are trying to compare us to LenDale (White) and Reggie (Bush) and that was sort of a thunder and lightning thing. Curtis and I are the same type of back essentially. Around the same size and the same speed so really what we look to do is change the pace of the game, keep some fresh legs out on the field and help our defense stay off the field.”
How many teams showed an interest in him when he thought about transferring:
“Over 50 schools called my high school coach and the school that really caught my interest was USC. My dad called me and said Coach Kiffin had called and that was the only school that I wanted him to call back.”
What his thoughts are on Matt Barkley:
“He’s the most humble and down to earth guy on the squad I would say through all of the accolades and through all of the records broken he still maintains to be humble. That’s something where my hat goes off to him.”
Whether his thoughts about Joe Paterno have changed since the scandal:
“When I signed to play with Coach Paterno those two years that I played under him as a player personally he never did anything to me so based on how he treated me, my opinion of him didn’t change. A lot of people have their different opinions but he never did anything of any malice to me.”
Listen to Silas Redd on Fox Sports Radio here
Tags: College Football, Fox Sports Radio, Silas Redd, USC Trojans
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