Going into the Big Ten Championship game against the Penn State Nittany Lions, Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks felt confident about their position and their chances of winning the game, which would earn them the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
There was one matchup that would be critical, though. If Oregon wanted to come out on top, it would be imperative that they shut down, or at least slow down, tight end Tyler Warren. As the Nittany Lions' best offensive weapon, and arguably the most dynamic player on their roster, the defensive gameplan for Oregon started and ended with No. 44.
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So who did they designate as one of the players to come in and try to lock Warren down? None other than true freshman safety Kingston Lopa, a player who had a total of 17 snaps in his career before that.
While it may have been surprising for fans to see Lopa's name called in that situation, Lanning and his staff were more than confident that the freshman was up to the task.
"It's just what he does every day in practice," Lanning said on Saturday of Lopa. "You know, the part that we get to see. Kingston is going to be an unbelievable player for us. You know, he's had a really good spring so far. But he earned those moments by what he did in practice. And you come here as a talented guy... if you're good enough, you're old enough, we say that all the time. So as a freshman, we had confidence in him going in there to do his job."
For any true freshman with minimal experience at the college level, going on such a big stage at Lucas Oil Stadium in the Big Ten Championship could be daunting. At the start of the year, Lopa admits that he didn't think much playing time was in the cards for him, but continued improvement led to increased confidence, and by the time the postseason rolled around, the opportunity to produce came as no surprise.
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“There's a lot of guys that look at it as, like, ‘I’m not gonna play this year.’ At first, I was thinking like that," Lopa said. "But as I started running, I just felt like I started getting better. And I think it really helped me, just 'Winning the Day,' every day. Just working every day, just trying to get more meetings. And I started feeling more confident."
That confidence is something that has paid dividends this offseason. With veterans like Tysheem Johnson, Brandon Johnson, and Kobe Savage heading off to the NFL, there are spots to fill in the safety room. While Purdue transfer Dillon Thieneman will undoubtedly lock down one of the two, Lopa is in a great position to secure the other.
He will have to beat out Peyton Woodyard, Aaron Flowers, and Trey McNutt on the depth chart, which will be no easy task. But with the confidence that this coaching staff has already shown in Lopa, it would come as no surprise to see him playing a significant role in 2025, and turning himself into a household name by the time the year is over.
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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Oregon Ducks Kingston Lopa ready for breakout year after earning trust
