Penn State got his second transfer in a week. Just seven days after former Baylor runner John Lovett announced his intention to join the Nittany Lions, now former South Carolina cornerback Johnny Dixon did the same.
I want to say that I am grateful for the USC team and my brothers who still play there. After a lot of thinking and praying, my family and I made the decision to transfer and play at Penn State University. #We are #Nittanynation @CoachTerryPSU @coachjfranklin pic.twitter.com/E9zEWOazTv
– BET ON ME (@JohnnyDixon_) December 28, 2020
Dixon was a three-star cornerback from Tampa, Florida, in the 2019 recruiting class, and appeared in all 11 games for the Gamecocks during his real freshman season in Columbia, including the start of the first season that year. In these appearances, he placed three tackles and an interception. Dixon had a bigger role in 2020, appearing in all 10 games (eight matches), accumulating 34 tackles by breaking five passes. With Will Muschamp fired as head coach and a new coaching staff arriving, Dixon decided to join the transfer portal earlier this month.
According to Sean Fitz and Lions247, cornerback coach Terry Smith chased Dixon out of high school and is also a childhood friend of Jordan Miner, who signed with Lions in 2018. Miner was forced to retire from football before he even dressed with Nittany Lions due to a heart problem.
Dixon will join Joey Porter Jr., Keaton Ellis, Daequan Hardy and Marquis Walker as third-year songs for Lions, while senior Tariq Castro-Fields may still return as well.