Penn State Unveils “Doomsday Machine”

(University Park, PA) Scientists around the world are excited by the news coming out of central Pennsylvania yesterday. Coaches designed an offense went so far into a shell it actually collapsed in on itself temporarily creating black holes repeatedly throughout Saturday’s contest against Ohio State. A CERN spokesman was quoted as saying, “we’re left feeling a bit silly actually, we had thought that we needed to build large devices such as the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) to observe such small phenomena, when, it seems, the same results could have been produced on the much smaller scale of an American Football field.”



Asked after the game why there was not a concerted effort to push the ball down the field, even when trailing by more than one score late in the third quarter, Jay Paterno responded, “I think we mesmerized by the scientific breakthroughs we were achieving out there. That’s the kind of thing you work your whole life to see just once and we did it almost every time the offense lined up. The possibilities of what could be uncovered in the future by our discovery are limitless” For his part, Jim Tressel seemed gracious, “I’m jealous, I’ve been on the verge of that achievement so many times and darn it they beat me to it, but I’m really happy for Joe. If I couldn’t do it, I’m glad he’s the one that beat me. I'll just have to settle for a victory in the game this year.”

The crowd seemed less enthused as they began streaming out early in the second half. “I came to watch a football game, not participate in an experiment,” claimed an unnamed spectator, “you’re playing God, I’d prefer not to be witness to Armageddon if they inadvertently end up creating a black hole large enough to consume the solar system. It’s just wrong, you’re messing with powers you don’t fully comprehend.” Early review of the data indicates no such threat exists, but the staff is still awaiting endorsement by the American Physical Society. Regardless, Police are expecting throngs of protesters to flood the area this Saturday for Penn State’s contest against Indiana.

Tailgating Nazi says: No fun for you!

Tailgating has been canceled due to inclement weather:

--Pink numbered, reserved lots, preferred lots (orange, blue and black) and all general yellow parking will be redirected to space-available lots either on campus, or in designated lots in the community.

-- Parking in numbered, reserved lots (green, red and purple) will be on a first-come, first-served basis for permit-holders in those lots. Parking will be restricted to one space per vehicle until 11 a.m. or until the lots are filled. If the lots are not filled by 11 a.m., they will be opened to the general public, with the restriction of one space per vehicle remaining in place.

-- All ADA parking will be located in the East Parking Deck on Bigler Road. This parking deck will be open only to those with ADA parking permits, and it will be serviced by the ADA shuttle.

-- Penn State is working to partner with area businesses to have football patrons park in these community lots and be shuttled to Beaver Stadium. Shuttle service to the game will be provided to those parking in the following parking ots: the Benner Pike Wal-Mart; Sam's Club; Chem Cut; Target; Lowe's; Home Depot; the former Corning plant on East College Avenue; and the Big Lots Plaza. More information on this will be posted as additional community parking locations are identified.

Patrons with passes for the lots listed above who arrive after these lots are filled, or after 11 a.m., will be redirected to another lot.

Anyone remember something like this happening? I certainly don't. Needless to say, I'll be watching from a nice warm couch. Now I really feel bad for those that have tickets.

Austin Scott sues Penn State

I don't think he has a case against the university but the others, most definitely.

An attorney for Austin Scott filed the civil suit this week against Centre County prosecutors, Penn State police and the university in federal court in Williamsport. The suit said Scott suffered "mental pain and suffering" and diminished "earning capacity" because of the case.

Cutting to the chase, Scott and his attorney claim that the sexual assault case against Scott caused him to get kicked off the team and therefore go from a player in the draft (assuming he had a decent year with Penn State) to undrafted which cost him a lot of money. I totally agree with that blanket statement and I think the DA is at fault here, not the university or the university police. What I do have beef with is Scott's NFL claim.

The lawsuit alleges Scott enjoyed a "highly successful" high school and college career before his arrest, and that he was slated to be a third- or fourth-round draft pick in the NFL.

Now if they can bring some "experts" to testify that Scott could have gone in those rounds then fine but I don't think anyone had those high of expectations, then again Hunt went in the third round and had Austin had his numbers who knows, but it's hard for me to believe a guy that was only a starter his freshman and senior year would go as high as 3^rd or 4^th round.

So what do the main players say?

[Centre County District Attorney Michael] Madeira called Scott's legal claims "frivolous" Thursday evening, though he had not read the lawsuit.

Yes, the best thing to do is make a statement about a lawsuit you have not read. I'm beginning to believe Michael Madeira is something akin to a moron.

The University Police:

"These allegations are false. Employees of Penn State took appropriate action in following up on a report of an alleged crime, and we plan to vigorously defend the university against these charges," [school spokeswoman Lisa] Powers said.

True, I don't think they are at fault at all. Just one more little tidbit to throw on this juicy pile: Lance Marshall, the lead assistant DA on the case has since resigned because he is being investigation by the state attorney general's office for alleged inappropriate contact with a female victim in a domestic abuse case he was prosecuting.

Small world, huh?

Why can’t our football players keep from getting high?

You would think that after watching Maurice Evans completely annihilate his chances of an NFL career by smoking some weed his teammates would learn a lesson. Apparently not.

Penn State police searched an on-campus apartment of four football players for marijuana the night of last month's Blue-White spring football game, according to court records obtained Monday.

So who were the four players?

An application for search warrant identifies the apartment residents as Stephfon Green, Devon Still, Eric Latimore and Johnnie Troutman.

Yeah, kinda… sorta.. important. But wait there's still more. It was a police setup right? I mean they weren't doing anything to draw attention to themselves right?

According to the affidavit, police responded to a report of a loud party at Nittany Apartments. After arriving, police heard a fire alarm and ''detected a strong odor of burnt marijuana'' near the apartment, the affidavit states.After knocking on the door and receiving no response, police entered the apartment ''for health and safety reasons,'' the affidavit states.

Oh, so it was a loud party…. With FIRE ALARMS GOING OFF!!!! WTF?!? Who is so Goddamned stupid to sit around smoking pot while fire alarms are going off?!?! But the pot was well hidden you ask?

Upon entering, police observed marijuana ''in plain view in the kitchen,'' the affidavit states.

Just amazing. The affidavit does not say if any of the players were present but if they were there should be some fallout from this. Not only was it stupid to smoke pot when you have such a bright future but to do it in such a brazen way is completely unforgivable.

Bowman permanently entrenched in JoePa’s doghouse

Navorro Bowman was sentenced to one year of probation in his hearing today after admitting he smoked marijuana twice in the last four months. Prosecutors wanted six months but the judge decided to double the recommendation. If Bowman violates his probation again he will face six months in jail.

"It's completely within the judge's discretion and he's well within his rights and authority to [double the recommendation]," Centre County Probation and Parole director Tom Young told ESPN.com.

Bowman cannot be around drugs or alcohol (including in bars), must report to his probation officer at least once a month and submit to monthly drug and alcohol screenings.

Bowman admitted in court that he has been struggling with the death of both his father and his high school coach in the last year. "I'm still not really relieved from everything," he told ESPN.com last week. "It's still a struggle every day, just trying to do what I'm here to do and graduate. That's the most important thing. I'm eight-and-a-half credits from my degree, and once I get that, I can put a check mark next to the main reason I came to college. Everything else will pan out after that."

So there you go, I guarantee Paterno will help Bowman out by placing him in his infamous doghouse for the duration of his probation.

Bowman will have to clean that thing up it's been empty for a long time

Penn State loses its wrestling coach

Coach Troy Sunderland has officially resigned after 11 seasons as Penn State's wrestling coach.

Penn State coach Troy Sunderland announced his resignation Saturday, ending extended speculation about his status.

Sunderland, 38, informed the team of his decision through an e-mail sent at 11:30 a.m

"I am proud of what we've accomplished at Penn State during my tenure as head coach," Sunderland said in the statement. "While we did not achieve the ultimate goal of winning a national title, I feel that this program is on the cusp of accomplishing that elusive goal. I am pleased with where this program is headed and wish the next coach here the best of luck as the Penn State wrestling family continues to strive for the national title."

This comes as no surprise, many people have been clamoring for Sunderland's head all season long and the disastrous ending to a mediocre season was the final straw for a lot of wrestling fans. I'm never a "[insert beleaguered coach here] must go!!" type of guy but I could see this coming. Most of the team did not live up to their potential and in the big matches against the best of the Big Ten Penn State fell flat on their faces. Often guys would get in deep on shots and not finish something that is fundamentally wrong. Actually not only would the fail to finish, but often they'd give up a takedown off of their shots. Speculation is rampant right now as to the new head coach but you can bet it will be someone with Penn State ties, it always is.

Thank you Troy for all your hard work and dedication.

Let’s just pretend this weekend never happened

Wow, what a horrible weekend for Penn State Athletics. It started off Friday night when a shorthanded Penn State wrestling team lost (and lost badly) to #6 Ohio State 33-7. Not to be outdone the Basketball team then played "anything you can do I can do worse" and lost to Wisconsin at home 54-44 in one of the most boring games I've ever watched… ever… in any sport. Thank God I turned it off long before the game was over or I would have been pissed to waste a beautiful afternoon on that garbage. But wait, there's still more! While the Basketball team was demonstrating utter futility Sunday the Wrestling team decided they could top Friday night's pathetic performance and lost to top ranked Iowa 31-6! Not much to report other than that, trying to find something good that came out of this weekend is like trying to find a politician on Obama's cabinet that pays his taxes.

Wrestling Wreport: the impending doom edition

Normally on a weekend like this with matchups against two of the best wrestling teams in the country I would be quite stoked but not so for the duals against #6 Ohio State (tonight at 7) and #1 and defending national champ Iowa (Sunday @ 2). Penn State is without several starters and in wrestling (a sport you have 9.9 scholarships for 10 positions) if your starter goes down the cupboard is VERY bare. Throw in the fact that Penn State is a black hole at 197 and Heavyweight and well, it's going to be a pretty bad weekend for the good guys.

There are interesting matchups that should make it worth the 30 minute trip to State College:

At 125, #13 Brad Pataky is coming off probably his best weekend of wrestling and gets to face #4 Charlie Falck of Iowa.

At 133, #9 Jake Strayer, who is also coming off a pretty good outing besting the returning national champ, has the daunting task of facing #1 AND #2 in #2 Reece Humphrey of OSU and #1 Daniel Dennis of Iowa.

Normally I would be more apprehensive about such matchups but I have a lot of confidence in both Pataky and Strayer right now, I think they are Penn State's best wrestlers at this point.

At 174, well get a chance to see what true freshman #16 Quentin Wright is made of as he gets the 4^th-ranked wrestler in Jay Borschel of Iowa. Coincidentally he also gets erstwhile Penn State wrestler and current OSU 174 pounder Dave Rella, which should make for interesting off-the-mat conversation.

One more reason to hit the panic button is the status of Penn State's only undefeated wrestler, 149 pounder Bubba Jenkins who is still recovering from a sprained ankle and did not wrestle last weekend.

"(Saturday) I tried to move around and it didn't feel good at all," Jenkins said. "I think I'm a couple days behind where I thought I would be."

"We don't want to do that and that's why he didn't wrestle this weekend," Sunderland said. "Dual meets are one thing. But the end of the year focus is the Big Ten Tournament and national tournament. We have to keep the big picture in mind."

Emphasis mine – it's important that Jenkins is 100% because he would be facing #4 Lance Palmer of Ohio State and #1 Brent Metcalf of Iowa whom Jenkins lost to in the national finals last season, both of which are very physical wrestlers.

"I don't think I'm going to rush back, especially because I have Palmer and Metcalf," Jenkins said. "I have to be close to 100 percent to wrestle those guys. I don't know how close I will be Friday."

Even with Jenkins, Penn State has no chance against Iowa they are a machine. Nine of Iowa's ten starters are ranked, including two No. 1's. The aforementioned Brent Metcalf is No. 1 at 149 and Daniel Dennis is No. 1 at 133, Alex Tsirtsis is No. 2 at 141, Ryan Morningstar is No. 3 at 165, Phil Keddy is No. 3 at 184, Charlie Falck is No. 4 at 125, Jay Borschel is No. 4 at 174, Dan Erekson is No. 7 at HWT and Chad Beatty is No. 18 at 197. That's nine out of ten ranked with 7 of those in the top five. That's F-in impressive and even more so, they only have one senior in that group of ranked wrestlers. Yeah, Iowa is going to dominate Wrestling for the foreseeable future.

You got me out of bed for this: PSU finalizes its 2009 schedule

There's a reason I gave up my tickets last season and although I never saw one live game of Penn State's march to a Big Ten championship, I have no regrets. None. This season the administration has decided to further validate my misgivings about the horrible schedule as they have finalized this piece of shit:

2009 Penn State Football Schedule
Sept. 5 AKRON
Sept. 12 SYRACUSE
Sept. 19 TEMPLE
Sept. 26 IOWA (1)
Oct. 3 at Illinois
Oct. 10 EASTERN ILLINOIS
Oct. 17 MINNESOTA (2)
Oct. 24 at Michigan
Oct. 31 at Northwestern
Nov. 7 OHIO STATE
Nov. 14 INDIANA
Nov. 21 at Michigan State
(1) All-University/Varsity "S" Day
(2) Homecoming

(emphasis on the "out of conference schedule" is mine) Can you say crap, crap and more crap? News flash for the powers that be: you may be selling tickets and making money but that ass-rape you received by the likes of USC will continue if you don't start scheduling somebody with a pulse. Here's how it's gonna go, let me break it down for ya one time: PSU will plow through the first three games like a bulldozer through a wall of pudding and then will hit Iowa and realize, probably far too late, that the cupcakes (wait… those teams can't even be categorized as cupcakes, you need milk to eat cupcakes or you might choke… more like bowls of Cool Whip)

Penn State's 2009 OOC schedule

...the bowls of Cool Whip you scheduled aren't in the same league as Big Ten teams. Good luck with that and have fun getting tossed around in the Big Ten. At least you'll have 4 wins for sure. I'm not even going over to tailgate at Eastern Illinois; it's not even worth the effort. You want to know how utterly pathetic this schedule is? The official site of Penn State athletics, those that can polish a turd to the highest sheen, don't even MENTION Eastern Illinois in their new release of the 2009 schedule, but they do mention this:

In 2010, old rival Alabama returns to Penn State's schedule. The traditional powers will meet Sept. 11, 2010 in Tuscaloosa and on Sept. 10, 2011 in Beaver Stadium. During the 2012-13 seasons, Virginia returns to the Nittany Lions' slate.

You KNOW your schedule is total suck-ass-crap when your administration's mentioning the 2010 schedule in a release about the 2009 schedule. Wretched, pitiful, despicable, shameful – you pick your favorite adjective, anyone will fit, they should be ashamed.

Pat Devlin transferring; no longer with team

This leaves a gigantic hole at quarterback but I can understand Devlin's decision.

Pat Devlin is transferring from No. 6 Penn State, leaving the Nittany Lions short a backup quarterback headed into the Rose Bowl.

The sophomore informed coach Joe Paterno of his intention, the team said Wednesday night in a brief statement.

"The Penn State football program wishes him well at his new school," the statement said.

Devlin saw the writing on the wall: this is Penn State and the upperclassmen play before the younger guys, that's been Joe's M.O. since he started coaching 300 years ago. If he is ever going to play he needs to transfer now so he has some time left. Now the coaches have a gigantic task ahead of them, they MUST sign several quarterbacks in the next class because after next season the only actual quarterback on the team is Matthew McGloin.

And you thought ESPN loved the SEC before…

Now they have 2 billion more reasons why.

The Southeastern Conference has signed a 15-year deal with ESPN reportedly worth more than $2 billion to televise sporting events, including football and men's and women's basketball.

"This agreement makes the SEC the most widely distributed conference in the country," said SEC Commissioner Mike Slive.

ESPN will have rights to every SEC home football game not on the network package and all league matchups will be shown on some outlet, including at least 20 a year on ESPN or ESPN2. That includes two primetime Thursday night matchups and Saturday night games.

15 years, and 2 billion (that's with a 'b') dollars!?!?! Think the rest of the college football world will get equal billing on ESPN from now on? Yeah, think again. I didn't think it was possible for me to hate ESPN more but they just keep pushing the boundaries.

The real issue at hand is now you have a major network with a tie in to a second major network (ABC) who has an underlining agenda. They just paid 2 billion dollars for a product (SEC) that they need to succeed so they are going to promote them every chance they get, I know I would if I paid that kind of coin. Can we really trust Kirk Herbstreit or Lee Corso when they suddenly start pushing for Florida or LSU at the end of the year when there are only three 1-loss teams left? Maybe, but you get my point it's going to tough to take ESPN as in impartial observer/reporter of college football from this point forward.

Who let the dogs out: Chris Baker did

It appears that perhaps the timing in the Baker/Taylor dismissal may just be coincidence with the OTL interview. Baker is being cited for harboring a dangerous dog after his pit bull attacked two people on July 15^th and according to District Attorney Michael Madeira, Taylor is under investigation in connection with a disturbance at a pool party the weekend of Arts Fest.

The pit bull attack is even more frightening because it involved a child.

Baker did…acknowledge an incident in which his pit bull may have injured a child. Baker said he didn't think the dog bit anyone, but said it may have "scratched a kid."

So draw your own conclusions, but it appears on the surface that Paterno gave these two all the chances he could allow and they never learned from their mistakes. I've said it before, I think Baker should have been off the team a long time ago.

<soapbox> Side Note: allow me to take this opportunity to once again pontificate on the precarious breed of dog known as pit bulls. I hate pit bulls and I'm a dog lover. If you're going to break out the "well Galen, pit bulls are great dogs if you raise them right and any breed will be mean if mistreated" don't waste your time. While it's true any breed can be mean there's no other breed that is as aggressive or can do the damage of a pit bull. A pit bull can easily kill a full grown adult and their jaw strength is unbelievable. Not to mention they have a skull thick enough that, while they are locked on to you like a vice, you could beat them with a baseball bat and not get them to let go. I hate pit bulls. </soapbox>

Paterno: next coach an in-house hire

The Altoona Mirror has an article that suggests Joe Paterno is telling recruits that the next Penn State coach will come from the current coaching staff.

''Mr. Paterno told me himself that his replacement is already within the staff, so he'll just bring one new guy in and bump everybody up in the ranks,'' linebacker Mike Yancich from Washington, Pa., said.

Those words apparently can make quite an impact on a youngster.

''Coaching stability is not going to be any big deal at Penn State,'' Yancich said.

Now this is nothing new, Joe's assistant coaches have said similar things in the past.

According to several [recruits], [Larry] Johnson has assured them that Paterno's successor will be in-house.

"He said [Paterno's] going to coach for as long as he can," said Derrick Thomas, a cornerback from Greenbelt, Md. "If this year would happen to be his last, someone on the staff would get the head coaching job."

So we do know that the coaching staff is pitching this to potential recruits but for some reason it's now starting to gain some legs and local stations in PA are jumping on it but does it mean it's the truth? Let's face it is just that: a pitch to ease the fears of recruits and counter claims of rival coaches that there will be instability when Paterno finally hangs it up [in 10 years]. The real question is: is this what Graham Spanier wants? Of course Spanier's not tipping his hand.

Spanier has done his best to avoid questions about potential succession plans. ''I wouldn't want to speculate about it,'' he said earlier this year.

So nothing has really changed but the very scary part of Yancich's comments is the "bump everybody up in the ranks" part. This is really the first time (that I've read) anyone hinting that the next coach will be stuck with everyone that sticks it out when Paterno hangs it up. That's a very scary thought because it's very probable that Galen Hall will retire with Paterno and that leaves the Offensive Coordinator's job for one grossly unqualified Jay Paterno. Very scary indeed. Having an offensive coordinator whose former quarterback's skills are described as "acutely under coached and unprepared" is not an appealing proposition to say the least. If we are going to be stuck with Jay as OC if the next coach comes from within then I pray that Spanier cleans house and brings in an entirely new coaching staff.

Sometimes it’s hard to say goodbye: MZone, you’ll be missed

When I started this humble little blog some two years ago (and I just realized TNL's B-day is coming up) I would read a couple blogs on a daily basis and one of my daily reads was the MZone. Yost and the boys did a great job of mixing meaningful football analysis with loads of comedic brilliance. From co-ed showdowns to photoshopped gems MZone did it with a flair few could match. Unfortunately, the members of MZone dwindled down to one and Yost found it too difficult to continue to pound out the daily posts by his lonesome.

Thus, rather than ever get to a point where people say, "Man, the MZone used to be so good. But now it sucks giant, Michigan-owning Buckeye nuts," I'd rather end it here on a high note and the old vaudevillian credo of "Leave them wanting more...caption contests and Photoshopped gems." And while I won't say never in terms of the MZone returning somewhere down the line - or in some other incarnation - if the passion returns, right now it's time to simply say farewell.

Before I started this blog I e-mailed Yost and asked for some advice not actually thinking I'd get a reply. To my surprise I immediately got a return e-mail with loads of tips on starting things up. Yost e-mailed me several times answered all my questions and was very helpful and for that I'm immensely thankful. While some bloggers strive to be EDSBS I wanted to be the next MZone (yeah, yeah, I know I fell way short). I had no intention of becoming a professional writer I just wanted to talk football and hopefully make some people laugh along the way. Yost was unique in the world of Michigan bloggers, he had no problem questioning and often criticizing Michigan football on and off the field. While others toed the company line and defended everything Michigan did, Yost called a spade a spade and I always respected that.

So a great blog has come and gone and I, for one, will miss it. Thanks MZone for a great three year run, and oh by the way Colin Cowherd is still a dick.

Forget apple pie what about Anheuser-Busch?

Editor's note: this has nothing to do with Penn State football but it hits close to home as far as I'm concerned.

Rumors have been flying for some time now that the nation's largest brewery is being targeted by InBev SA, a Belgian brewer, in a hostile takeover attempt. It appears the rumors are true.

The maker of Budweiser beer disclosed late Wednesday that InBev SA delivered an unsolicited all-cash bid of $65 a share. It's unclear whether senior Anheuser-Busch executives think the deal makes sense, but shareholders may be drawn to the offer that represents a sizable premium over the company's closing price of $58.35 Wednesday.

As a matter of full discloser, I'm not a flag waving, hand over my heart national anthem singing, red-white-and blue blooded American; in fact I pretty much question anything the government does but having said that is there really anything more American than Budweiser beer? I've ingested heroic amounts of Michelob light when I'm out and Busch light at home because A) my body can't handle the high calorie or alcohol content of regular beer in the quantities I drink and B) it's readily available at every bar and distributer. Oh, and Bush light brings out the inner redneck in me (ye haw!).

Don't get me wrong I'm a beer aficionado at heart, I've probably tried thousands of different types of beer in my life and breweries in Belgium make more beer (read: different varieties) in a calendar year than the rest of the world combined but no way in hell should a foreign company be permitted to take over Anheuser-Busch. Not only are we talking about the possibility of losing thousands of American jobs but we don't want to lose an American icon.

Worries about job cuts at Anheuser-Busch could be justified. InBev has a reputation for squeezing costs out of the companies it acquires, said Benj Steinman, editor of the Beer Marketer's Insights trade publication. Because of its size, and control of nearly half the U.S. beer market, Anheuser-Busch could be a ripe target for cost-cutting.

Do we really want the maker of Beck's and Stella Artois to run our beer company? Come on, Beck's is swill and Stella is nothing more than corporate yuppie drank. Yeah, I love craft beer (hell I make my own) and a Blue Moon or Corona w/ lime every now and then is a treat but when it comes down to it, dollar for dollar an ice cold Anheuser-Busch product quenches the thirst on a warm sunny summer day. Let's just hope, in the future, it's an American Anheuser-Busch product.

Sean Lee out for season, time for panic

"Sucks" does not even begin to describe how horribly bad this is.

Lee, from Upper St. Clair High School, found out yesterday that he would be forced to sit out the 2008 season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee Friday in practice.

His knee buckled on a non-contact play while he was chasing quarterback Daryll Clark.

Justin King hit the nail squarely on the head.

Asked how outside linebacker Sean Lee's season-ending injury would affect the defense this season, King said: "It's a devastating blow."

Indeed this is horrific. Penn State will be able to shove one of the young guys in his spot and probably still have a great linebacking unit but Lee's leadership cannot be replaced. Lee still has a redshirt left so Penn State is fortunate from that standpoint but this is really really bad. Between the off-the-field crap, Joe's contract situation and now Lee's injury it is getting really hard to have any optimism when speaking of Penn State football.

...and while we’re at it lets burn down Beaver Stadium

Recipe to completely destroy a tradition rich program

-Take two lackluster recruiting years

-Add one big senior class leaving the cupboard bare

-Add an aging coach near the end of his career

-Wait till the end of the contract to talk about retirement/new contract

Penn State president Graham Spanier said talks with Joe Paterno about the famed football coach's contract are on hold until the end of this season.

The 81-year-old Paterno's current deal expires after the 2008 campaign. Spanier told The Associated Press in an e-mail that administrators and Paterno agree that a new contract at this point isn't necessary given Paterno's seniority.

Seriously. This is a goddamn joke right? Why would any recruit with more than one star attached to his name come to a school that has an 81 year old coach in his last year of a contract with no idea if he's going to be around? The coaching staff can reassure recruits all they want but when it comes down to it the coaching staff has no say in who coaches Penn State in 2009 and that would be damn scary if I were a recruit. Especially if I were a skill position player which, oh by the way, is the position of most need for PSU come next season. For the first time I'm seriously worried people, this thing could hit critical mass really fast.

Chris Bell, Master Gamesman

No one beats him at "knifey-spooney" (h/t: Run)


What are we left with (remaining WR on the roster):
Tyler Ahrenhold (6-0/169/Fr)
Jesse Alfreno (5-11/193/So)
Brett Brackett (6-6/235/So)
Deon Butler (5-10/168/Sr)
Kevin Cousins (6-3/205/Jr)
Ryan Gmerek (5-8/183/So)
Patrick Mauti (5-10/190/Jr)
James McDonald (6-2/198/Jr)
Derek Moye (6-5/196/Fr)
Jordan Norwood (5-11/171/Sr)
Derrick Williams (6-0/194/Sr)
Graham Zug (6-2/176/So)

Yeah it's thin, but still has some intriguing guys. Expect them all to get plenty of looks before the season starts.

There Is No Offseason

So, rumors were circulating, but now it’s out in open (h/t: RUTS)

Police said [Stanley] Pringle, the team's point guard, sat behind the victim in the stacks section of the library, attempted to start a conversation with the woman and began masturbating.

Before everyone starts overreacting, clearly this is just a case of trying to keep his skills sharp. The guy is dedicated, I mean look at his bio:

Fast and quick with a penchant for pushing the ball.... who can also shoot with range, he earned Suncoast Conference Player-of-the-Year honors at Pasco-Hernando Community College in 2007 where he shot nearly 40 percent from three.

Now, if someone can tell me, how he could possibly improve his skills any other way, I am all ears. Anyone? I didn’t think so.

You jackin' it?

Another Lesson Of Be Careful What You Wish For

The Nittany Line has learned from multiple sources that Rich Kotite was on campus March 30th and 31st. His time at PSU included tours of the Lasch Building and the Penn State All-Sports Museum located in Beaver Stadium. He reportedly met with Paterno twice during his visit, discussing among other things their upbringings in Brooklyn. He has apparently earned his blessing to succeed Joe as head coach at Penn State and a press conference is expected sometime in late April to make the announcement that 2008 will be Paterno’s final season coaching, however, details regarding the rest of the staff was not yet determined. NFL head coaching failures have had mixed results recently in the college game. Personally selected by Graham Spanier, he is said to be hopeful Kotite will be more Pete Carroll, who he succeeded with the Jets, and less Bill Callahan.

French Toast?