Penn State category, Page 42
‘I visualized a touchdown’: Penn State’s KeAndre Lambert-Smith on his Rose Bowl record-breaker
PASADENA, Calif. — In the buildup to the Rose Bowl, KeAndre Lambert-Smith and Harrison “Trey” Wallace III workshopped touchdown celebrations at Penn State’s hotel. And on Monday night, Lambert-Smith got to show off what he decided on. No, Lambert-Smith wasn’t actually hurt when he held his hamstring in the end...
Penn State’s young core leads the way in Rose Bowl
PASADENA, Calif. — As Penn State players celebrated their Rose Bowl win over Utah, there was a belief they can and should be back in 364 days when “The Granddaddy of Them All” hosts a College Football Playoff semifinal. “I think we’re contending for everything, you know what I’m saying?...
Big-play Penn State roars past Utah 35-21 in Rose BowlVideo
PASADENA, Calif. — KeAndre Lambert-Smith had the longest touchdown reception in Rose Bowl history on an 88-yard pass from Sean Clifford, freshman Nicholas Singleton broke a tiebreaking 87-yard touchdown run and No. 9 Penn State rallied past No. 7 Utah, 35-21, in the 109th edition of the Granddaddy of Them...
Rose Bowl pregame: Nittany Lions pay tribute to the late Franco HarrisVideo
PASADENA, Calif. — Penn State’s football program paid tribute Monday to the late Franco Harris prior to the Rose Bowl game with Utah. Penn State head coach James Franklin walked off the team bus wearing a No. 34 jersey. That was Harris’ number during his time in State College. The...
Rose Parade avoids California rain as it welcomes New Year
PASADENA, Calif. — Flower-covered floats, marching bands and equestrian units celebrated the New Year on a chilly but dry Monday as the 134th Rose Parade slipped through a gap in California’s siege of drenching storms. Pasadena’s annual floral spectacle offered the optimistic theme of “Turning the Corner” for 2023, and...
Rose Bowl watch parties connect Penn State fans across country
Val Evans ordered a blue and white flag with the words “We are Penn State” so the 1975 graduate could proudly hang it at her house in time for Monday’s Rose Bowl. Only trouble is, there aren’t many like-minded fans in her locale. She lives in Salt Lake City, home...
Jalen Pickett, Andrew Funk help Penn State hold off IowaVideo
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Jalen Pickett finished with a season-high 26 points, Andrew Funk scored 20 and Penn State held on for an 83-79 victory over Iowa on Sunday. Pickett made 10 of 16 shots from the floor and all six of his free throws for the Nittany Lions (11-3,...
Utah faces Penn State as the sun sets on a Rose Bowl eraVideo
PASADENA, Calif. — The sun usually sets behind Arroyo Seco late in the third quarter of the Rose Bowl. The moment is often spectacular, with clouds turning pink and orange while the San Gabriel Mountains light up in dazzling reds and yellows amid the dying rays. The sun is also...
Penn State QB Drew Allar reflects on his ‘surreal’ freshman season, handling expectations
PASADENA, Calif. — Under drizzling rain, Penn State’s players filed off buses toward a tent steps from the Rose Bowl. For the veterans, this was just another press junket, something they have done countless times. But for the freshmen, this was the first time they were speaking to media members...
Penn State’s Sean Clifford, Utah’s Cameron Rising have similar QB styles
LOS ANGELES — After Penn State found out it was heading to the Rose Bowl, Sean Clifford posted a photo of himself in front of the stadium when he was 11 years old and said, “dreams come true.” Utah’s Cameron Rising nearly made his dream of leading his team to...
Rose Bowl teams remember lessons of 2020’s covid-19 season
LOS ANGELES — Tyler Warren started playing at Penn State in 2020. Nothing about that covid-19-hindered season made sense to him. “Really, like my first year of college football, it’s more like 2021 from a normality perspective,” the Nittany Lions’ third-year sophomore tight end said. “It was really its own...
2022 Year in Review: Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, Franco Harris’ death among top stories in Pittsburgh sports
For the Pittsburgh Steelers, the year began with a victory lap of sorts and one final playoff appearance for Ben Roethlisberger. It ended with the Steelers breaking in a new quarterback and reeling from the sudden loss of one of the franchise’s all-time great players. Before he retired, Roethlisberger guided...
Penn State WR Mitchell Tinsley’s journey from JUCO walk-on to Rose Bowl
LOS ANGELES — Mitchell Tinsley’s journey to the Rose Bowl was improbable. The Penn State wide receiver knows that better than anyone. “I’m still trying to grasp it,” Tinsley said with a smile Thursday at the Sheraton Grand in downtown Los Angeles. “It’s definitely surreal.” When the No. 11 Nittany...
Lundy returns to lead Penn State over Delaware State, 60-46Video
STATE COLLEGE — Seth Lundy returned from a one-game absence to score 15 points and grab 10 rebounds to lead Penn State to a 60-46 victory over Delaware State on Thursday. Andrew Funk hit four 3-pointers for his 12 points, and Jalen Pickett had 10 points and six assists for...
Penn State, Utah understand opt-outs for Rose Bowl
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Not even the “Granddaddy” of all bowl games is immune from opt-outs. There will be some notable names missing when seventh-ranked Utah faces ninth-ranked Penn State in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 2, but the absence of the likes of Utes tight end Dalton Kincaid and Nittany...
Penn State’s Brenton Strange declares for NFL draft, will play in Rose Bowl
Two weeks ago, Brenton Strange acknowledged he had a “life-changing decision” on his hands: come back to Penn State for the 2023 season or declare for the NFL draft. “I haven’t really made any decisions yet,” Strange said at Penn State’s Rose Bowl media day at Beaver Stadium. “But I’d...
Penn State’s defense was terrific in November, but can the Lions keep rolling against Utah in the Rose Bowl?
Which Penn State defense will show up Jan. 2 when James Franklin’s 10-2 Nittany Lions face 10-3 Utah in the Rose Bowl? Will it be the one that was gouged for 418 rushing yards by unbeaten Michigan in the Wolverines’ 41-17 win over PSU in Ann Arbor on Oct. 15?...
Pickett nearly gets triple-double as Penn State tops QuinnipiacVideo
STATE COLLEGE — Jalen Pickett finished an assist shy of a triple-double, and Penn State defeated Quinnipiac, 77-68, on Thursday. Moving the game time up by four hours because of weather didn’t affect Pickett, who is the only player in the country averaging 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists....
Penn State’s 2023 class includes athletes who could help next season’s defense
STATE COLLEGE — Penn State’s 2022 defense was one of the Big Ten’s most disruptive units during the regular season. The Nittany Lions’ fan base will get one more look at coordinator Manny Diaz’s troops when the 10-2 Nittany Lions face 10-3 Utah in the Jan. 2 Rose Bowl. Penn...
James Franklin on Penn State’s early enrollees, positions of need and steals
From 7 a.m. until noon, James Franklin sat in the same chair in the Lasch Building with coaches and staffers surrounding him. There was NFL Draft music, and there were former Penn State standouts like Tamba Hali, Pat Freiermuth, Paul Posluszny and Jaquan Brisker calling in to announce the future...
Penn State remembers Franco Harris as ‘true steward’ of the university
Before Franco Harris became a four-time Super Bowl champion and Pro Football Hall of Famer, he was one of the greatest running backs in Penn State history. Penn State coaches, administrators and former players mourned Harris’ passing Wednesday, remembering a player who helped form one of the nation’s top backfields...
Penn State’s Kalen King, ‘one of the best corners in the country,’ ready for Rose Bowl spotlightVideo
When Penn State and Utah kick off at the Rose Bowl, the Nittany Lions will be without one of the top prospects in the 2023 draft. Joey Porter Jr., a first-team All-Big Ten pick and a projected first-round selection, is sitting out after declaring his NFL intentions. And yet, even...
‘I was astounded’: Penn State teammates impressed with Drew Allar’s development
Already holding an insurmountable lead, it didn’t really affect the outcome of the game. But the play of the day during Penn State’s win at Indiana last month was Drew Allar’s bullet to Harrison Wallace III. Allar rolled right and, instead of waltzing into the end zone himself from a...
Jalen Pickett, Andrew Funk lead Penn State past Canisius
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Jalen Pickett scored 16 points, Andrew Funk added 15 and Penn State turned up the defense in the second half to roll to a 97-67 win over Canisius on Sunday. Pickett had 13 points and the Nittany Lions shot 56% in the first half but the...
Penn State DC Manny Diaz discusses his 2023 plans, and whether he wants to be a head coach again
STATE COLLEGE — The list of college defensive coordinators who had a better year than Penn State’s Manny Diaz is a short one. The Lions’ first-year DC directed one of the top units in the Big Ten. Penn State finished fifth in the conference in scoring defense (18 points per...
