The 10 Most Important Players In 2009: #3

3. Sean Lee, MLB (Sr.)--One of the few two-time captains in Penn State's history, Lee will play two important roles this fall.

First, Lee must make the transition from the strong side linebacker position (also known as the "Sam" position at Penn State), to middle linebacker (aka "Backer" at Penn State) like Paul Posluszny did in 2006. While history smiles on Poz as one of the most successful and beloved Penn State players of all time, he struggled early in the 2006 season coming off of two ligament tears in the Orange Bowl nine months earlier. By the end of 2006 Poz was back to his old self, but I'll never forget how slow he looked trying to cover Notre Dame's John Carlson (TE) in that 41-17 beat-down. By contrast, Lee tore-up his knee during spring practice in April 2008, a full 17 months before Lee will need to go at full-speed. "Experts" always say that it takes about a year and a half to make a full recovery after an ACL tear, and that's just about what Lee will have. His full recovery and smooth transition to the middle linebacker position are essential to stabilize the heart of a re-building/re-loading Penn State defense.

Second, but just as important, Lee must be the vocal and exemplary leader on defense who will be responsible for bringing along a young defensive line and secondary. Luckily however, at linebacker, Lee will not have much coaching or teaching to do with All-Big Ten LB Navarro Bowman and super sophomore Mike Mauti lining up on either side of Lee this fall. Nevertheless, the defense must start the season strong giving a young offensive line time to gel and new wide receivers time to sync-up with Daryll Clark.

Previously Discussed Players:
4. A.J. Wallace, CB (Sr.)
5. Evan Royster, RB (Jr.)
6. Derek Moye, WR (So.)
7. Stephen Wisniewski, C (Jr.)
8. Gerald Hodges, SS (Fr.)
9. Jack Crawford, DE (So.)
10. Kevin Newsome, QB (Fr.)