Zayd Issah Out of Chances with Penn State Nittany Lions


bill o'brien

Matthew O’Haren – USA TODAY Sports

The Penn State Nittany Lions are trying to rebuild their brand after getting hit with historic NCAA sanctions and to do that, Bill O’Brien expects more out of the players he brings into the program. Three-star linebacker Zayd Issah, who was scheduled to join the team in January, apparently didn’t get that message and could find himself off the team before ever taking a snap following his second run-in with authorities since committing to Penn State.

Just four months ago, Issah found himself in hot water after passing out counterfeit $20 bills. O’Brien was disappointed in his recruit’s behavior and warned him that he was on thin ice and needed to straighten out before he could be relied on as a member of the defense. That message didn’t stick, however, after Issah once again found himself in trouble with local police last weekend which may just punch his ticket out of the program.

According to reports, State College police were called to an apartment complex around 1 a.m. on Saturday. Issah was arrested and charged with a felony for aggravated assault, three counts of resisting arrest and one count of marijuana possession. His bail was set at $20,000 so hopefully he held onto a significant stack of those phony $20’s, either to make bail or to pay for the moving truck to take him out of town.

Bill O’Brien isn’t going to be giving Issah any more chances. After hearing about the arrest and the charges against the incoming freshman, O’Brien told reporters, “If this is true, he certainly won’t be part of this team.” Any possible benefit the Nittany Lions may have gotten from Issah on their roster isn’t worth the headache that he has proven to be in a very short amount of time.

You can follow me on Twitter @Teeblerone and Rant Sports @RantSports

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