Penn State has filled its fourth and final open Graduate Assistant slot with another former Nittany Lion, per a source. Former defensive end Deion Barnes has joined the staff as a defensive assistant for the 2020 season.

The Philadelphia native was most recently the Defensive Coordinator at his alma mater, Northeast High School. He spent three years there as a defensive assistant following a short pro career. Northeast went 12-2 last season, outscoring opponents 450-116 over 14 games and posting seven shutouts on the year. Northeast fell to eventual state champ St. Joseph’s Prep in the state playoffs.

Two players from that team, Class of 2021 defensive end Elijah Jeudy and Class of 2022 defensive end Ken Talley, hold scholarship offers from the Nittany Lions. Barnes coached both and trained a number of prospects in Philadelphia as part of his “Hunting101” program for defensive linemen.

Barnes got into coaching following his final stint in professional football, which came as a member of the San Antonio Commanders in the short-lived Alliance of American Football in early 2019. Barnes had 16 tackles and two sacks in eight games for the Commanders.

The transition from player to coach was a welcomed change.

“It’s a lot better than I thought it would be,” Barnes said of coaching in a fall interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer. “Just preparing the kids, teaching them techniques, and then seeing them go out there and execute, it’s definitely a great feeling.”

Barnes, now 27, was the 2012 Thompson-Randle El Big Ten Freshman-of-the-Year and a consensus Freshman All-American as he started eight games and appeared in all 12 for Bill O’Brien’s first team. He recorded 26 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, six sacks and three forced fumbles. As a redshirt freshman, he led the Nittany Lions in tackles for loss and sacks.

He would only play two more seasons in Happy Valley, matching his freshman output as a junior in 2014 with six sacks. He finished his career with 99 tackles, 26.5 tackles for loss, 14 sacks and five forced fumbles. He somewhat surprisingly declared for the NFL Draft after the 2014 season but went undrafted. Barnes was an honorable mention selection on the Lions247 with Fight on State All-Decade Team.

Barnes caught on with the New York Jets but was cut in late August. He surfaced on the team’s practice squad but never played in a game. He also had a short stint with the Kansas City Chiefs as a part of the team’s practice squad in 2016.

A three-star prospect in the 247Sports Composite rankings, Barnes was the Philadelphia Public League School Player of the Year as a senior in 2010 and helped Northeast win its first Public League championship in nearly 30 years. He was rated the No. 9 player in Pennsylvania and the nation's No. 21 strong-side defensive end in the Class of 2011.

The Nittany Lions needed three new graduate assistants for the 2020 season, as Mark Dupuis, Kevin Reihner and Kevin Smith followed Ricky Rahne to Old Dominion to become full-time assistant coaches. Barnes will join Defensive Grad Assistant V'Angelo Bentley, who held the position last season, and Offensive Graduate Assistants Jeff Carpenter and Wendy Laurent. Laurent is also a former Nittany Lion.