Penn State 2008
BY LOGAN ZUGAY
STAFF WRITER
LXZSOI6@PSU.EDU
Tucked deep in the shadow
of Mount Nittany, the tradition
of 120 years of excellence
resided quietly. The Penn State
football squad prepared for the
upcoming season while earning
minimal national respect.
Preseason polls had the Blue
and White at a mere 16, third in
the conference, and predictions
of another mediocre season. The
poking and prodding from the
national media continued up
until August 30, 2008. Then the
wrath of the sleeping Lion was
awakened.
With questions surrounding
the abilities of fourth year
junior quarterback Daryl
Clark, endurance concerns with
running backs Evan Royster
and Stephfon Green, combined
with the off the field activities
Super arrivals: Cardinals and Steelers in Tampa
BY BARRY WILNER
AP FOOTBALL WRrrER
The pilot of their airplane stuck a
team flag out the cockpit window
as the Arizona Cardinals landed in
a place few could have imagined.
Ever.
A team whose fans haven't
touched ground since the start of
a stunning postseason run in early
January, arrived in the Super Bowl
city Monday. With many players
videotaping the proceedings
the walk across the tarmac,
the bus ride to the team hotel, the
first onslaught of media it was
clear that just being here meant
something to a franchise long
considered an NFL doormat.
"It's a great moment," said
safety Adrian Wilson, the longest
tenured Cardinal. "To be here, to
go through all the teams, to go
through all the players, it's big for
the whole organization. It's big
for the players who are here right
now.
"You never know the type of
team you have and you never
know the circumstances. This
of Maurice Evans, Abe Koroma,
and Phil Taylor, many experts
thought that Penn State was
still a year away from being a
contender for the Big Ten title.
Penn State was more concerned
with the National title hunt.
A weak non-conference
schedule didn't add to the Nittany
Lion's cause, however. Despite
outscoring Coastal. Carolina,
Oregon State, Syracuse, and
Temple by a combined 211-40,
Linebacker U was only sitting
at number 12 nationally in the
polls with the Big Ten season
now upon them.
They began their quest for their
second conference championship
in four years with a test against
then number 22 Illinois the
following week. On a nationally
televised prime time game, Penn
State picked apart the Fighting
Illinoi 38-24.
Former top recruit Derrick
Williams ran, received,
team and this group of guys who
you have right now, I think we are
special."
Not that the Steelers, seeking an
unprecedented sixth Super Bowl
title, don't have a special feeling
about their surroundings.
Even though a hi
chunk of the,
have been this
route before,
the cameras
were out, the
smiles were
wide, and the
warm sun was
welcoming.
"Are you kidding?"
said wide receiver Hines
Ward, the MVP of the Steelers'
2006 Super Bowl win over
Seattle. "It's very nice to be in
Tampa; it was snowing on our
way here. They had to defrost the
plane there was so much snow on
the ground.
"It's the Super Bowl and it's a
great event to take part in and,
personally, I love the South,
everything about being down in
the South," said Ward, who grew
football season recap
and returned a kickoff for
touchdowns in the win, finally
snapping a two-season slump.
The win catapulted the Lions
to number 6 and they never
left the top ten the rest of the
season.
After a key road win at Purdue
20-6 and a thrashing of pre
season top 10 Wisconsin 48-7,
the Badgers worst home loss
ever, the Nits were on track for
a homecoming match-up with
arch enemy Michigan. In front
of a record setting crowd, the
youthful Wolverines jumped out
to a 17-7 lead. Many fans started
doubting if the Lions could ever
beat Michigan if they could not
take down this year's 2-4 team.
Penn State had lost 9 straight
to the Blue and Maize but Penn
State came into the game with
zero losses and they would
exit that way after unleashing
on a 39-0 run starting mid way
through the second quarter. The
up in Georgia. "Being in Florida,
the weather is something. It
definitely beats being back in
Pittsburgh."
Ward and his teammates fully
expect Tampa to resemble the
Steel City by the weekend. No,
weather-wise; if that
NFL won't be bringing its
extravaganza back here. But in
color, as in black and gold.
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger
envisions a tsunami of Terrible
Towels.
"It's awesome," he said. "Every
time we go to an away-city, in
a way it feels like a home game
because there are so many fans.
We expect them to be out there
and having fun."
For now, with no practice sessions
until Wednesday, the players
comeback was sparked by Evan
Royster's 44-yard touchdown
scamper before halftime that
turned out to be the game
changing play.
Despite deleting the streak
against Michigan, the Lions had
no time to celebrate. The much
anticipated and monumental
meeting with national
powerhouse Ohio State the next
Saturday in Columbus was on
its way. The game dubbed "the
Big Ten championship game"
played out to the hype. A bitter
cold evening in the Horseshoe,
Columbus Stadium was the
sight of one of the best games
of the 2008 season. Nationally
televised by ESPN, the hard
hitting battle proved to be more
than just a football game, it was
personal.
"Penn State is not beating
Ohio State in the Horseshoe, it's
not gonna happen" profoundly
stated Mark May, an ESPN
actually can have some fun, too
Not too much, of course.
Neither coach is about to clamp
down on his players this early in
the week. They promise to keep
things reasonable and as normal
as possible, so don't look for any
early curfews like the ones Dick
posed on his 1980
;. Philly's players
tighter as the week
we on, even as the
Oakland Raiders
were partying
New
across
Orleans
'y game time, the
Eagles could barely
breathe, let along play
football, and they were routed by
the loose Raiders.
"He hasn't put any handcuffs on
us," James Harrison, the defensive
player of the year, said, referring
to coach Mike Tomlin. "We have
the same freedoms as if we were
staying in Pittsburgh for a week,
as opposed to here."
Same thing for the Cardinals,
whose coach, Ken Whisenhunt,
was Pittsburgh's offensive
college football analyst. The
Nittany Lions had not won in
Columbus in 30 years. On top of
all the other plots, an underlying
story line emerged when former
Pennsylvania State Player of the
Year Terrell Pryor, who chose
the Buckeyes over Penn State,
became the full time starter for
the Bucks.
With a 6-3 lead and only
minutes to play in the game,
Ohio State tried salting the
game away with a heavy dose of
Chris "Beanie" Wells off the left
tackle. A fourth and short at the
Penn State 48 yard line changed
the game and the season. The
snap went to Pryor under center
and instead of plunging straight
ahead for the first down and
possible game clincher, the
freshman broke out to his right
where he met Lion Safety Mark
Please see FOOTBALL RECAP
on page 16
coordinator for that fifth
Super Bowl win. Whisenhunt
understands the importance of
sticking to the norms, even if this
is more than uncharted territory
for the Cardinals.
He also believes the week the
Cardinals spent in the East in
September, with back-to-back
games in Washington and the
Meadowlands, will be beneficial
now. Even if Arizona lost both
games.
"This is a week of distractions,"
he said, "and this is one distraction
that is not new to us. It helps us
minimize that distraction."
Regardless, both coaches, as
well as veterans who have gotten
this far yes, the Cardinals have
some players who made Super
Bowl teams elsewhere, including
quarterback Kurt Warner can't
stress enough the importance of
not stressing too much.
"I'm just going to have fun and
enjoy it," Roethlisberger said. "I
don't know if it's my last one, you
never know. I hope not. I hope I
can come back to five more of
these, but you just never know."