Star Penn State defender KJ Winston opens up on season-ending injury

Penn State football has fielded one of the top defensive units in the country this season, all without star defensive back KJ Winston. The junior safety entered the fall expecting to be one of the top defenders in college football, only to have his year cut short in Week 2 with an injury.

Based on the reporting of ESPN’s Adam Schefter after Winston’s declaration for the 2025 NFL Draft in mid-December, the Nittany Lion defender suffered a partially-torn ACL in practice in the lead-up to the home opener against Bowling Green. While the nature of the injury has never been confirmed by Winston or anyone else with the Penn State football program, what we do know is that Winston exited the game against the Falcons in the first half, ending his on-field career with the Nittany Lions.

“When it happened, it didn’t feel right,” Winston said Tuesday following the Nittany Lions’ 31-14 Fiesta Bowl win over Boise State. “I’m very in tune with my body, and when I tried to keep going, it wasn’t feeling right.

“In that Bowling Green game, I tried to play through it, and I felt it again in the game, and I was like, I knew something wasn’t right. And then, you know, we took the procedures, got X-rays and everything.”

© Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Winston finishes his Penn State football career with 15 starts over 28 games played. During that time, he racked up 90 tackles, six passes defended, and one interception. In his final full game as a Nittany Lion, Winston led the team in tackles in the season-opener at West Virginia.

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After leaving the program for a period during the initial stages of his recovery, KJ Winston returned to the Penn State sidelines during the Nittany Lions’ stretch run. The team captain said he was determined to leave Happy Valley as a leader.

“It was so hard for me,” Winston said. “I never expected to play my first game and then the next week in practice I was going to get hurt. But you know, I had to come back. Started this season off, my motivation was to be there for my teammates and be a leader on this team, no matter whether I’m on the field or not.”

With Winston looking on, Penn State football now prepares to face Notre Dame in Thursday’s College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Orange Bowl.

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