Weekend Roundup

Lots of little tidbits this weekend so here's a look at the events affecting our beloved lions:

• The annual lift for life occurred this weekend and your winning team was a bit surprising.
  

The winning team, nicknamed 'A million here! A million there!,' wasn't comprised of the senior lineman. Instead, senior quarterback Daryll Clark, linebacker Josh Hull, and tight ends Greg Miskins and Mickey Shuler took the crown.

The event raises money for kidney cancer and other rare diseases, which are diseases that affect fewer than 200,000 Americans. Because of their obscurity, rare diseases do not receive the same amount of funding as other diseases.

• Sick of hearing about the Paterno contract issue? Well here's some more.

Penn State President Graham Spanier today denied a news report saying Joe Paterno has a succession plan in place for the next Penn State football coach. "We haven't made any decisions nor have we named anyone," Spanier said, later adding, "We've made no commitments, and we've made no decisions."

The "news report" the articles was referencing was the Altoona Mirror piece that somehow got traction and ended up on the ESPN news ticker setting off internet/message board speculation. Until the season is over I don't think we will get a good feel for where Spanier wants to go next.

• Bani Gbadyu's family escaped war-ravaged Liberia a decade ago but his older brother is in danger of getting deported back after running into trouble with the law.

Emmanuel, the 22-year-old brother of emerging Penn State linebacker Bani Gbadyu, faces possible deportation to Liberia after a litany of legal issues.

Online court records from Maryland indicate Emmanuel Gbadyu first ran afoul of the law with a first-degree assault charge in 2002, four years after his family arrived in New York City and later settled in Gaithersburg, Md., where other members of the family lived.

In February of 2007, Gbadyu pleaded guilty to second-degree assault and served 78 days in a Montgomery county jail. Seven months later, and fewer than five months after his release, he was found guilty of marijuana possession and served one year in jail with one year of probation.

The apparent final straw came June 20. The string of charges: possession of firearms, second-degree assault and reckless endangerment, among others.

Gbadyu was sentenced to an additional 364 days.

Not exactly the feel good story of the year.

• Apparently Costal Carolina is a big draw because Penn State's home games are nearly sold out.

Unprecedented demand for Penn State season tickets has another Nittany Lion football season nearing a complete sellout, approaching the record-setting totals set in 2007 for public and student season tickets.

The tremendous demand for tickets to watch the Nittany Lions has resulted in sellouts of three home games. Tickets have been exhausted for Penn State's contests with Oregon State (Sept. 6, 3:30 p.m.), Illinois (Sept. 27, 8 p.m.) and the Homecoming clash with Michigan (Oct. 18, 4:30 p.m.). Tickets are close to exhausted for Big Ten foe Indiana (Nov. 15) and the Senior Day clash with conference rival Michigan State on Nov. 22.

Ok, maybe not Coastal Carolina but demand is still through the roof.

• Finally, the mysterious Spread HD apparently is nothing more than last year's offense without Anthony Morelli.

"We had pretty much a spread offense last year, but with the talent me and Pat bring with being able to run the ball, we're going to have some option with a couple of wrinkles," Clark said. "Wideouts being in the backfield, things like that. Things we're going to work out during camp."

Wideouts in the backfield?!?! Tricky, they'll NEVER see that one coming. They should have called it the Spread SAM as in Spread Sans Anthony Morelli. Now that's catchy.