The slow blogging this past weekend was due to the fact that I was out celebrating my birthday. But I feel like I could have still written some interesting posts drunk.

While I was gone:

Penn State’s dominating mens volleyball team faces the Buckeyes of Ohio State out in California for the national semifinals.

How can I call them dominating? Well this year’s squad holds a 28-1 record with their only loss to George Mason early in the year. They eventually redeemed themselves by sweeping George Mason in their second meeting for the EIVA championship.

Penn State should have no trouble with the Buckeyes in this match up. They have met twice this year with a 3 game sweep in Columbus and a 4 game victory in University Park. But lets hope history does not repeat itself.

2 years ago, the anteaters of UC-Irvine was in the exact same position Penn State finds itself in this year. They were the #1 seed filled with All-Americans yet they were upset by the #4 seeded Nittany Lions at Rec Hall. This year, Penn State finds itself in the exact same position except it is the Lions that have to travel across the country to bring back its second national championship.

If they manage to avoid the upsets, Penn State will become only the second school to win the men’s and the women’s volleyball championship in succession. Stanford being the first.

So if there are Lion fans out there in the Los Angeles region, head on out to UC Irvine this Thursday and root for the Blue and White at 6 pm.

Ticket Information

All Tickets are sold through the Bren Events Center Ticket Office by calling (949) 824-5000 or
Box Office Hours
Monday-Friday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Ticket Prices
All-Session Adult Pass - $25
All-Session Youth/Student Pass - $18

Single Session Tickets will only be available to purchase beginning April 28.
Please note there is no guarantee that any single session tickets will be available.

Adult Single Session Pass - $15
Youth/Student Single Session Pass - $10
$1.50 service charge per ticket.

(session one - Thursday, May 1st and session two - Saturday, May 3rd)

Do we need a recount?

There are five captains for this season’s football team.

Yes. Five.

This either means there aren’t true ‘leaders’ on this years squad to pinpoint an individual offensive and defensive captain, OR there are so many playmakers and leaders that they couldn’t settle on just 3 captains. I’m hoping for the latter, but with all the off-the-field issues with the law, I can’t help but think its reason number 1.

But in addition to our sideline captain, Sean Lee (LB), Gaines (DE) and Scirrotto (S) were selected defensive captains and Shipley (C) and Williams (WR) were chosen as the offensive leaders. It was interesting to see Scirrotto on that list seeing as he was in Joe’s doghouse, but I guess Joe realizes there are worst crimes out there.

Count 5 for the NFL

Linebacker Dan Connor slips to the third round when he was selected by the Carolina Panthers as the 74th overall pick.

Cornerback Justin King was selected as the 101st overall pick in the fourth round.

Wide receiver Terrell Golden was signed as a free agent to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Fullback Matt Hahn was signed as a free agent to the Oakland Raiders.

And most amazing of all, Anthony Morelli was signed as a free agent to the Arizona Cardinals.

…more on the NFL draft through Blue and White tinted glasses tomorrow later this week.

This is the official email sent out to all the students qualified for student season tickets for this coming season:

2008 FOOTBALL STUDENT SEASON TICKET INFORMATION

- Please read thoroughly, print, and retain for your reference.

First of all, we wish you well in the successful completion of classes and final exams over the next few weeks.

On behalf of Penn State Athletics, we want to make you aware of the upcoming modifications and important dates related to the 2008 Student Season Ticket sale that will take place in mid-June.

While some important steps of the process have been modified, please note that Penn State Football student season tickets will once again be issued via an online first-come, first-served sale. Each eligible student may attempt to purchase one season ticket.

Over the past several months, Intercollegiate Athletics has encouraged and read your suggestions as well as met with various student leadership representatives to review the long-standing season ticket allocation process. From the beginning, our very clear collective mission has been to assure that the season ticket allocation process is fair for all eligible participants.

The results of those discussions produced the following refinements to the distribution of season tickets for the 2008 season:

Highlighted changes are as follows:

PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIREMENT

1. All returning, full-time students who wish to purchase a 2008

season ticket must pre-register for the sale during the designated pre-registration period, May 27-30. Full instructions to complete this process will be sent via email only to all returning students’

official Penn State email address during the period of May 15-23.

PLEASE CHECK YOUR PENN STATE EMAIL ACCOUNT DURING THIS TIME TO ASSURE RECEIPT OF THIS IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Returning students who do not pre-register will not be eligible to participate in the sale.

Incoming Freshmen and newly accepted transfer students from another university will not pre-register, but are eligible to participate in the sale (See #3).

INDIVIDUAL CLASS SALES

2. The 2008 sale will be administered by class and will result

in five (5) separate sale dates for the five (5) separate class designations - Seniors, Juniors, Sophomores, Freshmen and Graduate students. Class designation will be determined by total credit hours through Spring ‘08. The number of tickets allocated to each class sale will be based on historical purchase data and/or projected enrollments of each class at University Park.

FRESHMAN and TRANSFER STUDENT PARTICIPATION

3. Incoming Freshmen and newly accepted Transfer Students are

eligible to participate in the online sale without pre-registration because issuance of University email addresses for this group will not yet be complete at the time of the sale.

TICKET RESALE POLICY

4. Penn State Athletics retains the right to revoke purchased

tickets and future ticket purchase privileges from any student found to be selling his or her season ticket on the secondary market. The season ticket process is intended solely for Penn State students who plan to attend the scheduled games and support the Nittany Lions.

ADDITIONAL KEY POINTS AND TIMELINE:

INSTRUCTIONS SENT

May 15 - May 23: All full-time, registered (minimum 12 credits) students for Fall 2008 semester, including incoming Freshman class, will be notified via email of the complete instructions for the 2008 Student Football Season Ticket sale. In addition, incoming freshmen and newly accepted transfer students from another university will receive the instructions by US mail. Emails and US mail addresses used will be those on file with the University. Details of the sale will also be posted at:

<http://www.GoPSUsports.com/ticket>www.GoPSUsports.com/tickets.

PRE-REGISTRATION PERIOD

May 27 thru May 30: Mandatory online pre-registration period for all returning students interested in purchasing 2008 student tickets.

(This does not include incoming freshmen and newly accepted transfer

students.) Note that registration can occur at any time during this 4-day registration period. All eligible, full-time students who register during the specified time period will be eligible to participate in the sale.

SALE WEEK

Week of June 16: Student ticket sale. Seniors - 6/16, Juniors - 6/17, Sophomores - 6/18, Freshmen 6/19 and Grad students - 6/20.

Each sale will begin at a time to be announced in the mid-May set of instructions.

TICKETS MAILED

Week of July 21: Student season tickets will be mailed to home address on file with the University’s Registrar and Admissions.

Students with UP campus or outside the continental United States addresses will not receive their tickets in the mail. They must be picked up at the Athletic Ticket Office beginning August 11.

BE PREPARED

Must Have Valid PSU Student ID: All student participants will need

to use their Penn State Student ID # in order to access both the online pre-registration (May 27- May 30) and sale (June 16 - June 20). Student ID # is assigned by the University.

PAYMENT

Valid Credit Card: The Student Season Football Ticket process requires a valid credit card - American Express, MasterCard, Visa and Discover only - at the time of the sale. Tickets will be charged to the account immediately upon successful purchase of the student season ticket. Credit cards that are not valid or can not absorb the charge at the time of purchase may cause the student to be disqualified.

Again, we encourage you to print this message and retain it for your reference. We also invite you to revisit this message as often as needed at www.GoPSUsports.com/tickets.

Please expect, as outlined above, to hear from us again in mid-May with further detail and instruction for the June sale.

Enjoy your summer!

Ticketing Services - Penn State Athletics

So there you have it. So instead of all the tickets selling out in 45 minutes, you will see each allotment of tickets sell out in half an hour on each specific day. Congratulations Penn State, instead of 1 day of pandemonium you have created an entire week of students screaming for heads to roll. Job well done.

Source: York Daily Record

Knowledge Timmons, the former William Penn standout, said he was reinstated to the team late Wednesday — along with starting defensive tackle Chris Baker, linebacker Navorro Bowman and tight end Andrew Quarless, two more potential starters.

That should be great news for the depth of our defensive line.

Thanks to Mike at Black Shoe Diaries, we present a Big Ten bloggers roundtable!

I love spring. Flowers blooming. Birds chirping. Bones breaking. ACL’s tearing. List the injuries your team sustained and describe their impact on 2008.

With 3 out of the 4 injured players projected to be back by the fall, the most glaring loss on that list is obviously Sean Lee. The fact that he will probably still be named a captain for the 2008 squad despite being sideline by his ACL injury is telling. He was is the leader of the defense and hopefully he will continue to help the young linebacking corp along from the sidelines.

“It’s not just the physical loss to us. He’s everything you want in a football player. He’s got poise. He comes to practice everyday. He works like a dog and the whole bit. When he got hurt it was a big loss, particularly in the drill. It wasn’t even a contact thing. It’s going to hurt us, but as I said to the squad, if you’ve got a good football team, somebody comes to the front.” - Joe Paterno

Luckily for us, we are Penn State. That means we run before we have to pass, we will be in blue home jerseys and black cleats a century for now, and we are never low on linebackers. Joe feels Tyrell Sales have ’stepped up’ and put himself in the position to fill the athletic void that was left by Sean Lee. So Sean Lee’s injury is not a good thing come 2008, but he has already promised to come back in 2009 and our linebacking corp should be one of the best especially with younger players forced to play this year.

Break down the major position battles going on with your offense

There are 2 for Penn State.

The much talked about one is the quarterback position, but I’ve mentioned many a times, this is basically Daryll Clark’s to lose. The signs are already there. He had the most production last year in limited snaps, and he took all his snaps solely with the first team offense while Pat went with the second team offense before moving to the first team when Daryll was pulled in the spring game. If the competition was as even as everyone thinks, wouldn’t Daryll have had snaps with the second team offense as well? But I’d much rather have 2 heralded quarterbacks that are capable of running our offense than none at all.

The second position would be at the running back position. This spot became a position battle since Green turned a pitch into a 57 yard touchdown at the Blue White game. Before that, no one doubted Royster’s place on the depth charts after his efficient production in limited carries last season especially after Scott was removed due to legal problems. But Green has put himself in the position for a second look with his electrifying runs both during the spring scrimmage and during practice.

Break down the major position battles on defense

Where do I start?

First there’s Sean Lee’s injury, which means younger players like Sales, Hull and Gbadyu will have to step up. This can be a two way street though. While we might be a little vulnerable at the linebacking spot for this season, imagine next year when we get all 3 back including Sean Lee. We can rotate them at will. Imagine the fresh legs at that spot.

Then there’s the defensive line. Last year the injuries sort of depleted our defensive line leaving very little room for error on defense. When you don’t have depth on the defensive line, you can’t pressure quarterbacks fast enough leaving your corners and safeties into vulnerable positions. And it is one of multiple reasons why our defense broke down in a few games, Ohio State and Michigan State for starters. But this year we have so many capable defensive linemen we are able to rotate them like a carousel. We already have Odrick, Koroma, Still, McEowen, Ogbu and less heralded Okoli. Imagine if we get Baker and Taylor back from suspension. Offensive coordinators shall tremble before our line.

Lastly we have secondary battles going on. Cornerback is our biggest concern with Justin King bolting prematurely for the NFL. There will be two prime candidates for this one. Tony Davis and Lydell Sargeant will fight for the second cornerback slot since Wallace is a lock for the first one. But both Davis and Sargeant are seniors with experience in our defense so the transition should not be too rough.

Who are the unknown kids on your team that will be household names come December?

I wonder if Green is even an ‘unknown’ kid anymore. With all the talk from spring practices, opposing defenses will be more worried about Green than they are about Royster.

But in all honesty, keep an eye out for Derek Moye. I know we have the super trio of Williams, Butler and Norwood, but the staff realizes we need to get some of our younger guys in the game seeing as all 3 are forced to graduate following this year. Rumors out of spring practices are that Moye could be the next big one for Penn State. Remember when Penn State last recruited Williams and Butler became our most productive receiver? Look for Moye to step up a little bit this year seeing as defensive will be more focused on our seasoned trio leaving the relatively unknown offensive players to slip through.

How would you describe the general mood around your program? Are you gearing up the tailgate party for a conference title run or do you get the impression there are going to be a lot of empty seats in your stadium this year?

Who do you think we are? Pittsburgh? Nittany Lion fans packed Beaver Stadium during the Zack Mills dark ages and there i no doubt we will continue to do so this year even if it turns out horrendously bad, which will not happen.

But Nittany nation is itching for the season to start. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who watched Green turn a simple pitch into a 57 yard sprint to the endzone. Then there’s Daryll Clark who conjures up memories of our last athletic quarterback, Michael Robinson and we all know how that season ended up. So spirits are high. The only hesitation I have with this season is our conference schedule. Not so much the dates we have to play specific teams, but the time we are slated to play them especially on the road in prime time.

Usually teams that are expected to make a national title run are slated for multiple night/prime time games in one season. Think USC, Ohio State, Florida, LSU. These are all teams that were expected to be national title contenders with potential Heisman candidates in their respective seasons and prime time television not only provides them further exposure, but makes for great television if they do indeed stumble along their path to glory.

So why exactly is Penn State playing 3 night 8pm prime time games in 4 consecutive weekends? The player who is even remotely close to a Heisman candidacy might be Derrick Williams and even then, he isn’t our most productive receiver on the squad. And lets not kid ourselves, we aren’t the juggernaut that can march into the Horseshoe and Camp Randell and roll over teams. We would struggle just to beat Northwestern if it was an away game.

So it’s basically clear the television networks smell blood in the form of Joe Paterno’s retirement and the sharks are circling. This might be his last visit to the Shoe and Camp Randell, even if he doesn’t retire following this year, he probably will in 2009. Unfortunately, this Penn State squad with a little glimmer of potential is thrust into the limelight because of Joe Paterno’s inevitable retirement which is a bit unfair, but nothing about college football is fair.

So no, there will not be any empty seats come 2008, but if Joe’s Lions manage to pull off the impossible running through the gauntlet of Illinois, Ohio State, Michigan and Wisconsin unscathed, you can be sure there won’t be an empty seat in all of Happy Valley.

Thousands continued to voice their displeasure for the past 2 years. Many have gone as far as to express their protest in public. It was obvious that things just weren’t going right. But our leader insisted everything was going according to plan and we will prevail over the repeating setbacks that have befallen us.

Isn’t it amazing how the Morelli era almost seem identical to our situation in Iraq?

Joe Paterno’s insistence on playing an overrated Morelli despite his ineptitude in winning games with his arm can almost be as stubborn as Bush’s insistence that the Iraq war was the right thing to do. Both can’t be convinced of otherwise and trying to do so is a waste of time.

Then there were the rumors swirling that Morelli possessed an arm capable of shredding defenses to bit. But like Iraq, that weapon of an arm was as existent as the WMDs Iraq supposedly possessed.

The Altoona Mirror ran a piece yesterday titled “B-W Game fans wrong to boo Morelli” and I’ll give you one guess as to what it’s about. But it basically chastised the fans that were vocal in their displeasure of the once overhyped quarterback at this year’s spring game.

“No, Morelli may not have lived up to expectations during his two seasons as Penn State’s starting quarterback. But to boo him in that setting — a practice scrimmage, after his career is over and while he’s being honored on the field for an achievement — was shameful.”

For those of you who weren’t present, Morelli was introduced to the Blue/White game crowd of 73,000 at halftime to accept one of the Players of the Game award for the Florida International game last year. In stark contrast to the rousing reception for Michael Robinson and Tamba Hali just minutes earlier, almost half the crowd rained boos on the now ex-Penn State quarterback surprising many in attendance.

But what is exactly surprising? Are you surprised that the quarterback that single handedly lost us multiple games in the last two years was not given a standing ovation? Yes, Morelli held a 18-8 record during his 2 years as a starter, but are you going to blame Nittany Nation for their unwillingness to accept mediocrity? I sure don’t.

I was in fact one of those that went out of my way to boo the quarterback. But let me explain. I am a Lions fan through thick and thin. Don’t believe me? I was there during the two Zack Mills dark years including the infamous 6-4 Iowa game and never once left early despite the thousands that did during our losing seasons. I am not claiming to be the best fan, but I sure ain’t a bandwagon fan.

But when a school such as Penn State has no remorse in withdrawing an academic scholarship if the student fails to meet the academic requirements, why should athletes be treated any differently? Both were given a free ride to college for their talents. Different talents, but talents nonetheless. Academic scholarships reward those talented in studies and their field of work and athletic scholarships reward the talents in their respective field of play.

So when Morelli clearly performs as badly as a honor student failing his or her classes, and the school continues to reward the failing athlete with playing time and shreds the honor student’s scholarship, why aren’t fans justified in voicing their displeasure. The coach sure won’t heed it, but like those protesting in front of the White House against the war, fans need a public forum to ensure the coach at least noticed it.

Bush won’t end the war because millions marched against the war around the world, neither will Joe bench Morelli. But you can be damned sure, Joe and Bush both knows the fans aren’t happy, and the fact that the boos were directed to one person in particular, Joe knows exactly why they aren’t happy. Is it wrong to condemn a college kid for his ineptitude on the field? Maybe. Maybe not. But fans don’t meet Joe on a regular basis to let him know what they think of his decisions, he is barely around the office to meet his own players on a regular basis. So the best public venue would be at games and the spring scrimmage.

Then there are those that call the boo-birds ‘classless’ and ‘bandwagon fans’. Sound similar to the hordes of pro-war supporters who declare protesters ‘unpatriotic’ and ‘Unamerican’? I have been around Penn State football and love every second of it’s existence. I will sell off my first born for the ticket money if we ever make another national title appearance. But I will also boo Morelli if he deserves it. If I had been at the Ohio State game in 2006 where he threw 2 picks that were returned for touchdowns in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach, I would have boo’d him there too. I am a fan of a team, and a team is bigger than any one person.

If a player does not live up to my expectations for Penn State, I will be damned sure to let him know. I am one of thousands that ensure these players attend college for free, have free housing, free meals and amazing facilities that allow him the best possibility opportunity to compete with the best and if the player is not living up to his end of the deal, fans have the right to voice their displeasure.

To those that were shocked and angered by the boos showered onto Morelli at the Blue/White game, maybe its time for you to catch the games on television from home. If something as insignificant as voicing your justified displeasure bothers you, then maybe sports is not the right venue for you. Sports is a passion and you can’t be shocked when you hear passionate responses. Just like it is your American patriotic duty to ensure the government does not run unchecked by the people, we have the right to rightfully boo ineptitude.

If Morelli can’t handle that, he is more unqualified as a Penn State quarterback and I thought. And he’s already set the standard pretty low.

whiteout

Remember all that hoopla about Penn State stealing the ‘white out’ from a team, Phoenix Coyotes that can barely use it? Whens the last time they have consistently made it to the playoffs? But remember all that stuff about trademark infringement?

Well the Pittsburgh Penguins are declaring one for their playoff series against the Rangers at Mellon Arena. What’s worst, when Penn State did it, the fans voluntarily wore white to create that atmosphere. Pittsburgh is actually handing out free white T-shirts to all the fans in attendance. So sue them Phoenix! You huff and puff when a college team pulls off a stadium wide white so I better see that same bravado against the Penguins.

On a side note, I have finally obtained my Blue/White game pictures and they are all up on the Blue/White post. Check it out here.

bigtencoaches

Remember the Rich Rod is a Liar and a Snake series? You don’t? Heres a quick recap.

“Rich Rod’s staff stole more de-commits by themselves than the entire conferences of the SEC, Big East, Big 12 and Pac 10. He can rest assured that the entire conference of the ACC with its 2 divisions have the same de-commits stolen as the great institution of Michigan.”

Apparently Brian at Mgoblog attempted to justify Rich Rod’s suspect recruiting techniques by… drumroll please… blaming the recruit!

“Which, like… of course. Roy Roundtree is perfectly capable of making sound decisions like “not going to Purdue.” He has free will.”

Yes, he does. But the question isn’t whether these kids are capable of making sound decisions, what are the odds of Roundtree even considering switching if Michigan decided to back off after his verbal to Purdue.

But hey, everyone does it Brian argues.

Every coach in the Big Ten has, at one time or another, attempted to poach some other Big Ten school’s “commitment.”

Granted we have had one or two instances every few years in which one Big Ten school poached or attempted to steal another recruit from a fellow conference member. Which by the way, despite what those at Mgoblog says, IS a lot worst than stealing from out of conference teams.

“Stealing recruits from your fellow brethren is like shitting where you sleep. You are not only going to be playing with one another, but there are galas, conferences, conventions and even meetings that will thrust you among your fellow conference peers and Rich Rod has not experienced that as of now. Think he’ll be sitting side by side with Tiller, Tressel or Paterno anytime soon? At the rate he’s going, they’ll have to bring in a kid’s table just so he can sit by himself during Media Day.”

But no one has done it at the rate Rich Rod is going. But hey, Michigan just wants to beat Ohio State at this point so who can blame them. But common, blaming the recruits for switching their commitments? You can do better. Sure, Rich Rod continuing pressure on Roundtree even after his verbal to Purdue had absolutely nothing to do with his decommitment.

So any takers for Rich Rod’s roommate at the Big Ten media conference in Chicago? Joe, Tiller and Tressel rather sleep in a cardboard box.

Thanks to the following for taking part in the Blue and White roundtable. I had many a laughs reading their responses. So here goes with my attempt to compile most of their answers into one post.

nwoemblem

http://www.nittanywhiteout.com/
http://www.blackshoediaries.com/
http://thenittanyline.blogspot.com/
http://gloryofoldstate.blogspot.com/
http://www.yurasko.net/wfy/
http://tangledupinwhiteandblue.blogspot.com/
http://thebigeleventh.blogspot.com/
http://mvn.com/ncaa-pennstate/
http://runupthescore.wordpress.com

The announcement Wednesday is that contract talks are on hold until the conclusion of this season, and that Joe might not even need a contract to coach, how do you see this saga ending? Is this the final year for Joe Paterno?

Joe will not be out following this season. There is no doubting that, but some might argue that he should for recruiting/stability sake. “The story needs to end when Joe says it’s over” sums up the position pretty much in a nutshell. But hey, there are those out there who wasn’t even aware that Joe had a contract until 1994, thats 28 years since he began in 1966!

Joe will clearly not be on the sidelines in 10 years time. Whether he is awarded another extension or is forced out against his will, a new face will inevitably be on the sidelines for the Lions in the years to come. Which candidates would top the list when it comes to a coaching search? Should it be an in-house hire or should we start off with a blank slate?

Anyone remember the number of coaches Nebraska has gone through since Tom Osborne? Or Michigan after Bo Schembechler? The list can go on with the legends that have graced the lucky few programs. But there is simply no easy way to follow a legend. Especially one like Joe Paterno who defined Penn State football.

But there is one common rallying cry for almost all Penn State fans. Whoever the new coach is, in-house or not, Jay Paterno must be purged without hesitation from the staff. Whether it be an in-house hire with Bradley, LJ, and Vanderlinden or an outsider like Greg Schiano, Al Golden, Larry Coker (just trying to plug my candidate in there), or simply anyone who is innovative and charismatic, I’m hoping for someone who will be the next future face of Penn State football. Not another 5 year temp we can expect to bolt for the NFL when the seat gets too hot.

It almost seems as if we find another athlete in trouble with the law each morning when we read the newspaper. What has gone wrong with the once pristine image of the Penn State program?

Two fold.

Kids today are simply not as disciplined as they once were. “If you’ve ever been to the Penn State sports museum, when it first opened (I don’t know if the display’s still there) there was a huge photo on the wall of students in Rec Hall in the 1950s or 1960s watching a sporting event in suits and ties.” TUWB points out exactly what’s wrong in this MTV generation where songs about “Superman’ing that Hoe”, “crunking” and “getting low” are widely accepted and promoted.

Then theres the technology argument. “Nowadays when a player gets in trouble there is someone there with a cell phone to take a picture. Then they go home and fire up their laptop. In a matter of minutes they are telling a thousand people on the message boards about a fight they just witnessed or heard about. Or they are telling their facebook group of 3000 people they just heard in English class that player X was pulled over for DUI.”

If I didn’t know any better, Penn State football is a pedophile charge away from chaos.

After 14 years in the Big Ten, Penn has not dominated the conference in football as most presumed when we joined winning only 2 Big Ten titles in that span. In 1994, Joe Paterno’s undefeated Nittany Lions were also backstabbed by its Big Ten breathern when most conference members voted for Nebraska instead of Penn State. Is the Big Ten the right home for Penn State? Or would Joe Paterno’s dream of an all-eastern conference be a much more ideal conference for the Nittany Lions?

You know when you’re the black sheep of the family, you tend to make a big fuss out of everything? Thing’s around the house are always just not good enough, family members aren’t treating you fairly, you always get the short end of the stick, type deal?

Well, “the reason the Big Ten doesn’t seem to fit us is because we haven’t yet made an impact on it. We’ve beat Ohio State once in the last six tried. The Michigan streak has gotten so long I honestly don’t know what the number is anymore. Wisconsin has become more consistent than us. We plain sucked from 2002 right up until the Ohio State game of 2005.”

So where do we go from here? Do we hide our tails and run, or do we turn around and give the Eastern schools the finger for screwing us earlier in the century? Let’s say we do leave the Big Ten which most are opposed to simply because we’re basically married to it at this point (think kids, a yard and a house) where a divorce would simply be too ugly, we could always join the ACC!

With the lack of our traditional rivals in the Big Ten conference, and our unwillingness to reschedule any of them in any consistent manner, which teams are emerging as Penn State’s chief rivals in the Big Ten? (USC-Notre Dame proves that rivalries aren’t all about geographic significance.)

I HAVE to point this out before we continue with this question. Big 11th points out “ND has lost the last six by 154 points (for you math majors that’s an average of over 25 per game)!” proving that rivalries can be about money and TV ratings. Hahahah! 154 points!

Ok back to business. Almost everyone agrees there is no tradition rival for us in the Big Ten with BSD going as far as to dub Penn State as the “pimple-faced Star Trek nerd that can’t get a prom date.” But common guys, we’re less than 20 years old in the Big Ten, that DOES make us the pimple-face teenager who is still too shy to make a move on any of our older conference brethren.

But there were those that did call out fellow Big Ten teams:

The Nittany Line hates Wisconsin;

“I’ll throw a curveball in and say it’s slowly becoming Wisconsin. The Badgers and Lions usually play a close, hard-nosed game and some have gotten a little chippy – anyone remember Zack Mills and Michael Robinson playing the role of punching bag? I know, I know it makes me queasy as well. Wisconsin is also similar to Penn State in that they both usually have a decent defense and a couple good players on offense that can score but neither offense is going to make defensive coordinators lose sleep at night.”

But the biggest surprise of the day was from Tangled Up in White and Blue who claims, Indiana is our biggest rival. He actually makes quite a compelling case for it and I am slowly warming up to that idea considering my brother attends IU and I would love nothing but to laugh at him on an annual basis.

“Why? The 1994 Nebraska betrayal, which was mentioned in question 4, is the reason. The only reason we were in the position to be betrayed is because of Bill Mallory’s Indiana Loosiers and that bleepity bleeping @$$hole Lee Corso, his ESPN mouth piece.”

In a rare instance, we detract from our usual rantings once reserved exclusively to college sports and talk politics because its primary day in Pennsylvania! Yeah thats right, we rock, we rule and apparently we can send the Clinton camp into the sixth level of hell with a defeat today.

So drop those Dorito chips, get off the couch and make your way to the voting booths and say no to established politics. It’s time for someone new, he might not be able to do everything he promises, but for damn sure the gray-hairs down in Congress will be shaking in their boots if America decides they just about had it with the high gas prices, the rising tuition costs, dying economy, and medical insurance. Hey, things can’t be worst than paying $3.34 at the pump for a gallon right?

But politicians are all crooks, some just tend to outdo the others. After all, it was a president (Nixon) that screwed over Penn State in 1969 for a national title.

“How could Nixon know so much about college football in 1969 and so little about Watergate in 1974?” - Joe Paterno, 1969

Karma’s a bitch, Nixon. So vote for Jebus if you want, but get out there and vote!

(Ed: Pictures added April 23, 2008)

Boy does it feel great when the sun comes out in the state of Pennsylvania. 73,000 people sure thought so when they descended upon Happy Valley for a spring scrimmage. 73,000! That’s equivalent to 2 capacity crowds at Fenway Park, and 42,000 more people than the 30,286 that showed up for Notre Dame’s scrimmage.

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With the weather cooperating, we decided to partake in the tailgating festivities where our tailgating neighbors decided it would be a great idea to invite some kids to play a game of dizzybat without the beer. The little boy even managed to whack the ball successfully which is more than I can say for their mom who tumbled head first into a SUV parked adjacent to the festivities. Regrettable, but funny as shit nonetheless.

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We didn’t even think about making our way into the stadium early seeing as this is only the Blue/White game, but when we were standing in line to get in only minutes after the game had started, the entire stadium erupted in a roar. Moments later someone informed us that Stephon Green, the lighting back had turned a simple pitch from Pat Devlin into a 57 yard touchdown run down the sidelines. Can you imagine the possibilities with Green and Royster in the backfield this year? Penn State will finally have a ‘lightning and thunder’ combination that has been sorely lacking in our run-first type offense. Think Clemson, Michigan State, USC, and LSU type of reliable backs. Green’s display of speed single handedly re-energized this fan base for next year.

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By the time we made it up to our seats in the top level of section WA, the entire lower bowl of Beaver Stadium was filled. It was clear we had broken last year’s record crowd of 71,000. Last year, the crowd barely filled up the entire lower level of the stadium. This year, there were no noticeable empty sections in the lower section. The PA announcer only confirmed it when he announced a new record crowd of 73,000 fans for this year’s Blue and White game in the middle of the third quarter.

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And like I said before, there is no quarterback ‘controversy’. It’s clear who is in the lead between Clark and Devlin. Clark took all his snaps solely with the first team offensive while Devlin switched to the first team only after starting with the second team offense. Clark was 9 of 16 for 106 yards and 2 touchdowns and Devlin was 12 of 18 for 122 yards and 1 score. We all know Clark can run. Texas A&M learned it the hard way in last year’s Alamo Bowl. But for the doubters of his throwing accuracy. Clark’s nice 33-yard strike to Derrick Williams for a TD should help answer his critics.

In 2005, Robinson showed that throwing accuracy does not define a successful team, Morelli confirmed it in 2006 and 2007. And after the last 3 years, I would much rather have an less accurate, but efficient passer like Robinson than a supposed ‘cannon for an arm, cannonball for a brain’ type quarterback like Morelli.

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The quarterback situation isn’t so much a ‘controversy’ as it is a ‘competition’. Come Coastal Carolina in the fall, Clark will be the man under center. The question should be whether Devlin will be beside him in Jay Pa’s new HD offense.

On the topic of the new HD offense, nothing went on Saturday that indicated an overhaul of Penn State’s offensive strategies. Maybe we are saving it for the fall, or maybe it was a bluff on our end in a desperate attempt to land Terrelle Pryor. But we will just have to wait and see.

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Spring games mean relatively little. First team players rarely go all out every play of the game and if they do, they definitely wouldn’t want to risk injury with a hard tackle. But this year’s Blue and White game meant more than year’s past. In an off season full of disappointing news ranging from players’ arrests to Sean Lee’s injury, the Lion faithful needed a break, a celebration of what Penn State football was really about. And 73,000 of us gathered to do exactly that this Saturday.

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What IS important at a spring game is for future recruits to get a glimpse of the fan support here at Penn State. Remember Alabama’s record shattering crowd of 90,000+ last year? It was no coincidence that even with a lackluster record last season, Alabama still landed the top recruiting class this year. Recruits love excitement, the hype and the possibility of exposure. Let’s just put it this way, having 73,000 people show up to watch the final spring practice does not hurt recruiting whatsoever.

Below is a list of possible future recruits that paced the sideline last Saturday:

	Position	Rivals Rank	Holding offer?	Home State
Mark Aridiacono	OL	-	Yes	Pennsylvania
Alex Blake	WR	-	-	Maryland
Scott Drosendahl	QB	-	-	NY
Danzel Manley	OL/DL	-	-	Maryland
Terrence Stephens	DT		-	Maryland
Jason Ankrah	DE	-	-	Maryland
Anthony Young-Wiseman	Ath	-	-	Maryland
Andrew Shoop	QB	-	-	Pennsylvania
Mikel Berry	DL	-	-	Pennsylvania
Dominque Cole	-	-	-	Ohio
DeAndre Harris	-	-	-	Ohio
Trevor Smith	-	-	-	Ohio
Mike Herns	-	-	-	Ohio
Maurice Jones	-	-	-	Ohio
Matt Couch	OL	-	-	Pennsylvania
Tariq Tongue	WR	-	-	New York
Andre Civil	DE	-	-	New York
Kevin Douglas	-	-	-	-
Jake Fagano	-	-	-	-
Christian Zemaitis	-	-	-	New York
Lewis Toler	-	-	-	Delaware
Cameron Thomas	-	-	-	Delaware
Rob Stupar	FB	-	-	Pennsylvania
Brian Fields	RB	-	-	Pennsylvania
J.R. Refice	-	-	-	Pennsylvania
Evangelos Regas	OL	-	-	New Jersey
Brent Caprio	QB	-	-	New Jersey
Anthony Stroffolino	LB	-	-	New Jersey
Arthur Fontaine	TE		-	Mass.
Khalil Wilkes	OL	-	-	New Jersey
Nate Papso	-	-	-	New York
Nate Cadogan	OL/DL	-	-	Ohio
Travis Hawkins	CB	-	Yes	Maryland
Stephen Obeng-Agyapong	-	-	-	New York
Mike Hull	LB	-	-	Pennsylvania
Tavon Austin	RB		Yes	Maryland
Jaleel Clark	WR	-	Yes	Pennsylvania
Jelani Jenkins	LB		Yes	Maryland
Ty Howle	C	-	Committed	N. Carolina
Justin Brown	DE		Yes	Delaware
Jordan Hill	DE	-	-	Pennsylvania
Nick Kindler	OT	-	-	Pennsylvania

One name especially pops out from the list and that is linebacker Jelani Jenkins. Rivals just released their updated top 100 and he jumped from #79 to #10 overall. Ohio State just received a commitment from top linebacker Dorian Bell (another Pennsylvania traitor) this past weekend so landing Jenkins would definitely be a boost.

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Our group left the game right before the fourth quarter not because we wanted to get more tailgating in, but because Paul Cianciolo was on the field which meant we were at the 3rd string quarterback point. Regardless to say, I walked out of the stadium appreciating the game for what it was, simply the last practice of spring. Anything more would be over exaggeration and anything less would be dismissing the hard work young players put into trying to get onto the roster.

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Notable Bits:

• Michael Robinson’s and Levi Brown’s rousing reception by the fans
• Conversely, the boos that rained down on Anthony Morelli who has yet to officially leave Penn State when he was introduced as one of the players of the game.

What was even more surprising were the looks on some of the fans who still turn around to look for the people booing as if it was a shocking revelation. Morelli sucked, Penn State is glad to get rid of him. History will see Morelli as a failure who could not use one of the best receiving corps in the country to his advantage in both 2006 and 2007, nor a great offensive line in 2007, nor a stellar defense in 2006. He never stepped up as a leader, never faced the media after a bad game and simply started under center because of some undying loyalty Joe Paterno has to his seniors (which I do commend), but unfortunately we got a super senior who couldn’t pee under pressure let alone throw a pass.

• The small group of red or orange clad fans sitting across from our section of the stadium. They were about 20 strong and all decked out in red or orange gear, couldn’t tell exactly which. I have no idea what it was for, but if someone does, please enlighten me.
• That Paul Cianciolo was actually being planted to the turf despite his red jersey. Just shows the hill he has to climb to fight Devlin for that #2 spot.