UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.-- Penn State cornerback Knowledge Timmons can chatter with the best of them.

But his tongue and trash talking have gotten him into trouble with his teammates and coach Joe Paterno on more than one occasion.

"They kept telling me to tone it down," Timmons said. "And they said, 'You don't always have to be the loudest person. You can let your actions speak louder than your words.' "

Timmons, a fifth-year senior and first-year starter, is trying to do just that.

"Knowledge, it seems like he's matured so much since he got older," free safety Drew Astorino said. "He realizes this is his last year of playing, this is his last year as a Penn Stater. He's really put it in drive."

It has been a long, bumpy ride for Timmons, a 5-foot-10, 182-pound speedster from William Penn High School in York, Pa.

When he was 9 years old, he and his older brother were placed in foster care. As he bounced between group homes, Timmons worked part time at a McDonald's and excelled in sports. As a junior, he won PIAA Class AAA track titles in the 100- and 200-meter dashes.

Timmons had a strong senior year in football, playing wide receiver, outside linebacker and cornerback.

He arrived at Penn State with loads of talent but had been primarily a special teams star until this year.

And there have been some trying times along the way. In October 2007, he was charged with disorderly conduct and criminal trespass for his involvement in a fight involving several players at the student union.

Timmons didn't make the trip to the Alamo Bowl two months later and was booted from the team for the spring semester. He eventually was reinstated, but that incident taught him a valuable lesson.

"It was bad seeing all my friends going to practice when I was off the team," he said. "Just hanging out and being a regular student for a semester kind of hurt because I love football and I could have played.

"I took it as, 'OK this is my last opportunity.' When coach Paterno brought me back, I said, 'I'm not going to blow this opportunity. He's going to give me one more shot, so I'm going to utilize it to the fullest.'

"I basically became a man at Penn State, a man under coach Paterno," he said. "I got in trouble, I was down in the slums and I worked my way back up to the top."

Timmons has started the first three games at left cornerback for No. 5 Penn State, which welcomes Iowa to Beaver Stadium Saturday for its Big Ten Conference opener.

He has made eight tackles and broken up one pass while splitting playing time with his roommate, senior A.J. Wallace, another player who has been in and out of Paterno's doghouse.

"Knowledge has gotten stronger," middle linebacker Josh Hull said. "The speed has never been an issue with him. But the thing that jumps out at you now is his knowledge of the game. He's able to anticipate things better than before."

In the first quarter against Temple, Timmons looked to be beaten for a 49-yard touchdown by James Nixon. But Timmons got his arm on the ball in the nick of time to swat it away.

He didn't leave the field quietly. Timmons danced around for a few seconds and then pumped his arms in the air. "You just have to have the heart to be able to go out there and compete against anybody in the country when the camera is on," he said.