Fourteen Questions on northwestjaguars.com

Penn State's Tyrell Sales (46), Tamba Hali (91) and Anwar Phillips (1) celebrate Phillips' interception against Northwestern in the fourth quarter Oct 1, 2005 in Evanston, Ill. The late-game interception ended Northwestern's final drive. Penn State won, 34-29.

Photo by Brian Kersey, Associated Press

Now, here's 14Qs with Anwar Phillips...

1)What are the challenges of being a football player and a college student?

AP: It’s just a whole lot of balancing between the class load and football. Especially when you’re trying to succeed and get the best grades possible. It’s a lot of work.

2)How would you describe your first experience as a Nittany Lion?

AP: Man, it was great. My first experience was a game versus Miami. It was, obviously, a big game, and basically I’ve never been part of anything big like that. I redshirted that year, I remember. I didn’t play in the game, but I was down in the field. I’ve been lucky I guess, my first game as a Lion happened to be against a very, very good team in Miami. It never hit me until later when I played my first game how special it was. Just the magnitude of it all, especially for a first one. It was cool.

3)As a starter for a nationally ranked team, how are you handling the pressure?

AP: Back at Northwest when we went two and eight, we had teams all beating up on us and even though there were like games [in which we] were playing really good teams, it still excited me. That’s a fact. It’s not much of pressure for me, I don’t know. I just took it one game at a time. And it never mattered to me if we were two and eight or nine and one or undefeated and playing a huge game versus a tough team. It was all just about having a good game. But with all the preparation and all, I don’t see why there should be any pressure to worry about. And even now in college, I am still doing the same thing. It didn’t matter if it was a ranked or unranked opponent. You handle things all the same.

4)What is it like playing for Joe Paterno?

AP: It’s a wonderful feeling knowing you’re playing for a great guy. There’s a lot of knowledge and a lot of history in him. And it’s really great that he’s still very active with the University and he’s shown that he can still be very productive now like he was in the past. Not a lot of people can say they played for a legendary coach, you know. I mean when you talk about Joe Paterno, everybody knows who he is. Even people who never played football know who he is. There’s a lot of wisdom in him that can help me now and even when I’m not playing ball anymore.

5)Against a highly ranked Ohio State team, what was it like to play in front of the second largest crowd ever recorded in Beaver Stadium history (109,839)?

AP: Man, it was amazing. That feeling where you’re playing in a big championship-type game. The magnitude of that is just unbelievable. I’d think that would be similar to what it’s like in a National Championship game. It’s really great when you got all these fans cheering loud and helping out making it hard for [Ohio State] to play well. It really helps us a lot and it makes us want to play better. It’s a good feeling knowing I’m a part of that.

6)What is the biggest difference between college and high school football?

AP: Speed. You got linemen and linebackers running and sometimes they get as fast as the QBs, DBs and the runningbacks. It’s a lot of fullbacks and linemen that can run. In college, you got linemen that have runningback speed in high school. Some of those linemen run under a 4.5-4.6 speed. The personnel in college are just tougher and there’s just a whole lot of competition in college.

7)So far, what is your most memorable game as a Nittany Lion?

AP: The Illinois game, my sophomore year. It was one of the first games I ever played where I caught an interception to help the team win. That was really exciting and memorable for me.

8)This has been the best start a Penn State team has had in awhile. What should the fans expect to see in the future of PSU football?

AP: Basically, we want to bring back the tradition of what Penn State football was in its glory days. We want to help out the younger guys do their thing and make Penn State big. We want to transport the enthusiasm to them and establish a tough, respectable team, the Penn State way.

9)Who are the most notable teammates and opponents you have played with/against in college?

AP: Larry Johnson had a really great work ethic. His work ethic really stands out a lot. That’s why he had a lot of success in college and he’s doing his thing in the NFL. Opponents, there’s Carlos Rogers and Maurice Clarett. Those guys are so talented they could almost dominate the game by themselves.

10)If you were to play in the NFL, who would you like to play for?

AP: Wow. That’s a good one! I’d have to say, the Bengals

11)...And why would you like to play for them?

AP: Because they have a headcoach that is very defensive minded. Since he was once a very good defensive coordinator in the league, I could learn from him and becoming a better player. You know, I’m big on defense. Defense is my thing. I want to learn from the best.

12)Who or what inspires you?

AP: Coach Trivers. He has been very inspirational to me. He always made sure I stepped things up in class and that I do what I got to do. He always instilled in us the importance of doing your best and always working hard. Then there’s my mother and my brothers. Besides that, it’s basically putting your high school on the map. It would be nice if people get to know Northwest the way other high schools are in the country. They got the great players and coaches and all. I’m going to do as much as I can for myself as well for my high school.

13)What are your most favorite memories of being a Jag?

AP: The bond between teammates. It was the passing league tournaments, eating together, doing homework together, joking together, funny times in the locker room, doing everything together. Number two; it’s probably that last playoff game. I mean even though we lost and it hurt. Because I know I left everything I had on the field. You know. I had tears in my eyes and it’s just that you work so hard and for things to end the way it did. You know, it hurt. It was memorable to me. I can remember the faces and how cold it was. And it’s like to this day I think about it and I really believe we had that. Still.

14)Any advice for the current and future players of Northwest High School Jaguars football?

AP: Work hard. Do what Coach Trivers says. Basically keep the tradition alive at Northwest. It’s not just my class or the class before us. I mean, yea, we set the way, but the guys now, they’re still part of making history, still. I mean, look at the team from last year, when they won that state championship. They’re making history and it’s still part of what makes Northwest special. So basically, just work hard because down the road, ten years later, you know, they’re going to reminisce and talk about the times and you want to be able to look back and remember yourself in a positive way. You’re going to want to remember yourself as part of a special group of Jags who worked hard and did their best.

[end]

Michael Cornejo. October 15, 2005.

Aerial view of Beaver Stadium during the Ohio State - Penn State game on October 8, 2005. Picture courtesy of GoPSUsports.com Click to enlarge.

The biggest challenge of being a football player and college student according to Phillips...

"...a whole lot of balancing between the class load and football. Especially when you’re trying to succeed and get the best grades possible. It’s a lot of work."

Photo by Ms Beth Muehl.

Hard work and sheer determination put Anwar Phillips in a position to play in front of the second-largest crowd at Happy Valley. Beaver Stadium is the largest college stadium in the nation.

Photo by Michel Cornejo

Click picture to enlarge. (900p X 675p), 570k.

In his senior year at Northwest, he caught 39 passes for 827 yards and 12 touchdowns. Defensively, "Pops," forced two fumbles, accounted for 40 tackles, and returned 3 of his 10 interceptions for scores. In Special teams, he ran kickoffs and punt returns for scores as well. He played in the Super-44 all-star game during the summer of 2001. Picture by Ms Beth Muehl.

Coach Trivers and Anwar Phillips pose with the statue of Legendary Coach Joe Paterno outside of Beaver Stadium. Photo by Ms. Beth Muehl. Click to enlarge.

Welcome Jaguars fans and thank you for your interest in one of our latest features in northwestjaguars.com. Debuting on 14Qs is Anwar Phillips.

Anwar Phillips was one of the first players to play for Northwest. He was the starting wide receiver in the first season of Jags football in 1998 as a sophomore. After a dissapointing 2-8 season, he helped lead Northwest to playoff appearances in his junior and senior seasons to win eighteen games and just four loses. Thus paving a standard of winning in the future seasons of Jaguars football.

Phillips is now in his third year as a starting cornerback for the Pennsylvania State Nittany Lions. PSU is enjoying their best start since 1999. They currently hold a 6-0 record entering their game against conference rival Michigan today. The former widereceiver recruit is being considered by many NFL Draft publications as a top fifteen cornerback in the nation.