Hype may have hurt Penn State . ' • Jim Tarman, color man for Penn State lOotball radio broadcasts, is not the type talks just to hear his voice. He speaks the facts. . Last Friday night, Jim Tarman was .saying there has been as much en- Ihusiasm and excitement surrounding this football season as in any of the previous 20 years he has been here. As much as in 1969 when Lydell Mitchell and Franco Harris led State to a 12-0 . record. And as much as the undefeated :,1973 season when John Cappelletti won his Heisman Trophy. ,- Consider: Penn State has never won a national championship, the most coveted prize in college football. And .since this year Joe Paten's), the nation's .winningest active coach, is saying this team may be his best yet, it's natural •that fans are sensing what might be within reach. But with' the hype for No. 1 comes. pressure. Pressure to produce. Pressure to perform well. Pressure to satisfy hungry, title thirsty fans. And how did the hype get so out of hand? That's easy. The media. That's '.what blows everything up. At least a ,e4ozen preseason college football publications touted the Lions to be ex plosive more so than last year, when they finished 11-1. Every magazine was optimistic about Penn State. Maybe, as several players admitted .after the Temple scare, they were overconfident. But, since there was so Such hoopla, it's unfair to blame them. One preseason magazine described Lion punter Scott Fitzkee like this: "Fitzkee will punt, if State ever has to." Tell; Fitzkee had' to punt against emple. Twelve times. Let's look at it this way: say, for example, your major is basket weaving. Your advisor, who also coaches the basket weaving team, repeatedly commends you during the spring term. "I have high hopes for you in the fall," Me says. "You could be the best basket weaver that has ever come out of Penn State. Good enough to help us win the National Trophy." As a result, all summer you think about how satisfying it would be to fulfill your advisor's dream how he's such a eat coach and how it would be good to come through for him. And you think and thinirand think. As mid-August rolls around, you begin ; reading preseason basket weaving publications. The media has picked up on your ability. Magazines say that you, i bate's star weaver, combined with the lio " 'Lions' other key returning knitters and crocheters, should have one of the most balanced teams in the nation. And, the magazines say, if the Lions can get by an early season away game with Philadelphia Textile, they may - have a tat the National Trophy. Then you come back for fall term. In enn State's first weave-off, all your nitters are jittery and you almost lose o a team you were predicted to roll past. 11 your fans throw up their hands and an't understand what happened. You ii Omit you were riding high. t o II Realistically, when so much is ex ected of a person, not living up to ex ectations is practically inevitable. ]most predictable. For this reason, it's of hard to comprehend the Lions' shaky pener. $ ' But now, all the players insist, the talk lover, Physically, it appears that if the ions' offensive line improves its per formance and the defense continues' its opportunistic game and Chuck E'usina remains himself the Lions should be back on the track. That's the way the men in the pit see it, nyway. "Obviously, we didn't play very well," • I-American tackle Keith Dorney says, 'but we worked very hard this week and think we'll do a better job against tgers. We know if the offensive line. sn't clicking then the offense won't click nd you have to have offense. That's half he game." Eric Cunningham, returning starting :'ward, says he learned from the Temple :ame. "Having looked back at the films we an see the mental mistakes and the Tlors," he says. Itt u t maybe center Chuck Correal best ummed up the feelings of the offensive 4ieman. "We stunk," he says: "Now thing is more defined. We've, wed fundamentally. You can only it so long and then you have to go id show what you can do." he Lions can do one of two things • •row: They can look sluggish again ius place absolutely no value on ison ratings or they can look sharp ie team they're supposed to be iow Rutgers away. not the Greek, but count on the Neil Rudel Collegian sports the daily „JAI ' MO t4c ::::"16'f..;:3: iti - f ' ; " . , ::. , : : g . •; ,' : '.l; ;et. .;,;...;,,,,, 4 - 4, • g .:., ,r; ....:, ~- • ; ' - 'l., 4f , 1e . , ,,,• , '": „: "' Sir /Mb.- i , `,••••,. ,A- • , 1 1 "MIT . ;::. ' ,', ~„. . ,',- ,il4 ; ix.V.Vl.;,."Nk P:ei ' ''' ' ' .; 1i , : 5 )7 , :i , ;;. , ';,! - ', 4 .... , ',. ' i , l e- ,, ' "'„, , 2 . , :; ,;` ~,,„, -, .• '4, ~' ' , elle:o6 '' ' A t r44:4741 4 ',., ~•'#‘. . ..... --.. ;'.. 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"; ''.4-;‘.-----,...f, , 4 ,.:; :. ., .., o „ . #, - - 0 ,100 , 41,, *.e.1,....xt„1t iem .„.,,,,„,,,,,,,.....,;.t ~,,..t,„,, , ,vz,, ..... ,t, fitr*l., .'14...1414....A f irl z .1...-.. i,,, - 1: 4 , lor ~. ~.. „ ~ 14 ' ia V 44400 ; ' ,,, 4. 4 :' , - - - F• '" .7 ',..4„,,,,,A1,1".,r,- . , , , , g . `, , I . 0 , . , ~. .. , ~ , , ', 7 4.1 3 .--•,:4 ••-,',' ta.-:, '. , . - - • vz,-;31 , 4-....... , , , ,, , ,..:.,........., , ;6_•.,,,••. ~.. • Tony Petrucci° (99) and Rick Donaldson (92) are two of the mainstays on a swarming Lion defense that should Injuries, inexperience key worries Rutgers looking for error-free play By GARY SILVERS Daily Collegian Sports Writer If you thought last. year's Rutgers game was a disgrace to the Garden State, don't even bother getting out of bed Saturday. The Scarlet Knights are in trouble and no one knows it better than Head Coach Frank Burns. "I think Penn State could very well be the No. 1 football team in the country," he said. "They have good personnel, tremendous coaching and everything else it takes to be a winner. There's no doubt we're definite underdogs." Burns' main concern this yeai• is just staying close, for this year's Rutgers team is probably• weaker than the '77 team (45-7 victims). The reason in juries. "Our preseason was not ' very good at all," Burns said, "because four of our starters were out of action. It really slowed our progress." The first big blow to Burns' hopes was the loss of sophomore center Frank Naylor. The 6-2, 230-pounder broke his left arm on the first day of practice, the same arm. he broke last summer in a construction accident and will be out at least four weeks. Another sophomore Herb Menhardt Will start at midfield for Penn State to night at Jeffrey Field in the Nittany Lions' clash with ".;- , 4.N1440,‘ standout to be sidelined for a while is Lester Johnson, a top-notch tailback !hampered by a thigh injury. Over on the defensive side, linebacker Tim Blanchard (knee injury) may also be unavailable for duty. The senior co-captain started all 11 games a year ago and his 96 tackles and four recovered fumbles were tops on the team. Joining him on the injured list is tackle Jeff Hess, a 6-3, 230-pounder who is oue for the year with a knee injury. On offense, the Knights are putting all their marbles on quarterback Bob Hering, a 6-1 junior who has never started a collegiate game. "He's cer tainly a big question mark," Burns admitted. "Last year he played a total of two minutes, so experience-wise, we're hurting." Hering's main targets this season are tight end George Carter,; last year's leading pass catcher and wide receiver Tim Odell, who ranked second. Rutgers' running attack is led by 5-9 Glen Kehler, a senior tailback who netted 866 yards on the ground last year on 164 carries. The 180-pounder does have one major flaw, however. He's scored just two touchdowns his entire career. . 4t lON=6',IMI a t give Rutgers its share of headaches 'tomorrow in the Lions' home opener. , Cleveland State, the No. 6 team in country last year • '''•!.‘ VOi k # , Another offensive threat, according to Bums, is fullback Kevin Mannix, a junior transfer student from guess where Penn State. Mannix is being counted on heavily to help solve Rutgers' depth problem in the backfield. On defense, seniors Jim Hughes (All- East in 1976), Don McMahon and Rich Baldwin return at the linebacking positions, Dino Mangiero at. tackle and Bob Hynoski and Sammy Davis at defensive back. All the rest are rookies. "We do have a depth problem on defense," Bruns said, "but I think the guys have great potential and should get even stronger as the season progresses." According to Burns, if the Knights have any chance of upsetting Penn State Saturday, they must: First maintain decent field position;, second allow no big plays, and third make no major errors or "we're cooked." However, the pressure is not on Rutgers,- but on the Lions, Burns said. "They're the ones who have to win. They're the ones in contention for the national title. Last year we appeared in awe of them. This year should be dif ferent though. Hopefully, we can give them a good run for thier money." • 9,4 ,r 4 4 • Photo by Joe Tort Nevertheless, what's done is done. With the excitement and enthusiasm of a home opener in the newly renovated Beaver Stadium. On paper, Saturday's contest looks like a matter of extremes; Penn State is Rutgers' toughest opponent this season and Rutgers is the soft spot on the Penn State schedule. Penn State rolled over Rutgers 45-7 in last season's opener. Coach Frank Burns has only 13 starters returning and most of his losses were in key. positions. The Scarlet Knights will once again be the underdogs against the Lions, but Burns doesn't expect his team to be over whelmed this time. "I think we were a bit in awe of Penn State last year," Burns said. "One thing is certain, we should be able to play the game with more confidence. We will be more relaxed." Neither hag Penn State coach Joe Paterno completely ruled out the competitiveness of Rutgers. "Rutgers became a good football team after the first two games last year," Paterno said. "They didn't play well against us last yeir, but improved. "They'll be encouraged about what happened last week and they'll be out to beat us. I'm not saying they're a great team, but a competitive one." Inexperience, injuries, size and strength are all in the Lions' favor. Penn State's offensive line outweighs the Rutgers defensive line by an average of 30 pounds. But the game should be in teresting just to see how Penn State can smooth out the rough spots from last week. The time is now to put the act together next week Penn State faces off against Ohio State. Cleveland State By DARLENE HROBAK Daily Collegian Sports Writer • Just what exactly is a Cleveland State? Penn State soccer coach Walt Bahr has an idea, but if you take a trip to the Lions' Jeffrey Field game at around 7:15 p.m. tonight, you'll be sure to find out. What Bahr does know is that the Vikings have an awfully good soccer team good enough to have posted a 14- 2 record last year to wind up ranked No. 6 in the country. "We don't know how they play or what alignments they use, so the first part of the game is a feeling out process," Bahr said. "They have a new coach and a team we haven't seen yet; we have to see what they can do." What Cleveland State can do might even be a bit of a mystery to its coach, Steve Parker. He graduated five starters from last year and his team has yet to play their first regular season game. Penn State, on the other hand, has a 5-1 Wednesday night victory over Lock Haven to its credit which might or might not give the home team an edge. "I think it gives us a little bit of an advantage, because we have a game under out belt that counted," Bahr said, "and that's a little different than playing a scrimmage. The Vikings, however, have a few pretty good players on the team who haven't lacked game experience in the past. Forward John Tyma, who led Cleveland State in' scoring with 15 goals last season, was a member of the Olympic team and the cover-boy on the NCAA magazine. Joining Tyma on the front line is Bob Hritz, one of Cleveland State's all-time leading scorers, who was out most of last year with an injury. Junior midfielder James Paynter is one of the other guality players on the squad. He was named to the All—Midwest team for the past two years and was a starter for the Bermuda national team. All this should give added incentive for the Lions when they take the field tonight, according to freshman forward Pete Jancevski. Photo by Jack W "For me it's easy to get up for any game since it's my first year," Jan- Time get in 'new' By JOYCE TOMANA Daily Collegian Sports Writer The Lions may be more worried about themselves than they are the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. After an unimpressive 10-7 win last week against Temple, Penn State has gone back to the practice field this week to try and put together a performance closer to what the team is capable of for tomorrow's home opener. "Temple played a great game and we were sloppy and imprecise," coach Joe Paterno said. "We . had better start playing better football than that. Our defense played well, but we were very inconsistent on offense." test booters tonight ptember 8, 1978-13 • for Lions to together stadium Lion senior safety Doug Hostetler will be out of action tomorrow. He sprained an ankle at Temple and has not recovered to full strength. He will be replaced by Pete Harris. The Rutgers contest will also be the unveiling of the "new" Beaver Stadium. More people will see Penn State play than ever before. Estimated attendance will be 77,000 and some tickets still remain. The previous Beaver Stadium record was 62,554 set at last year's Houston game. About 3,000 single-game reserve seats for Saturday's game are avail able at the student price of $4. The tickets, originally allocated to Rut gers but returned, can be purchased today at the Rec Hall ticket office with the presentation of a student ID card. If any student bought a sin gle game for $lO, he can get a $6 re bate at the ticket office with presen tation of his ID. Students buying reserve tickets must still present their ID at the gate. Gates open at 11 a.m. GAME NOTES: This will by Rutgers' first appearance in Beaver Stadium . . . Lion quarterback Chuck Fusina now holds or shares 11 Penn State passing records. He leads in career attempts (454) and career passing yardage (3,676) . . . Scott Fitzkee's seven catches last week marked only the 14th time that a Lion receiver has caught seven or more passes a game. He needs only six to claim 10th palce on the team's pass reception records . . . Penn State is the opening opponent for three teams this year: Temple, Rutgers and Ohio State. Last but not least, Sports Illustrated has made itself known. The Sept. 11 college football issue ranks the Lions second in the nation, behind only Arkansas. How's that for close but no cigar? "Arkansas, Alabama and Oklahoma might not lose a game," Sports Illustrated reports, "Penn State loaded as never before should not." cevski said. "But for the other guys, it's probably a lot easier to get up for a Cleveland State than a Lock Haven." Bahr plans to go with the same line-up he used Wednesday, starting Jim Stamatis, Ray Patrick and Jancevski at the forward positions. Sal Bommarito, Duncan Mac Ewan and Herb Menhardt will be the mid fielders with Kevin Scott, Ken McDonald, Dave Lloyd and Bill Klauberg in the backfield. Last year's record-setting goalie Dan Gallagher will be in the net. One thing that impressed Bahr in the last game, however, was the play of the substitutes namely forwards Tony Giaimo and Matt Rhodes and defender Ed Barreiro. "I was extremely pleased with the work and the play that we got out of some of the substitutes that came in against Lock Haven," he said. 'They did the kind of job that we have to keep getting from them." One Lion who is not expected to play tonight is Dan Canter, a freshman who won a midfielder position in pre-season practice and then came down with the mumps just prior to the first game. The swelling, however, may go down at any time and Canter could see some action. Fellow midfielder Bob Erlich is also still a question mark. To fill the void in the line-up caused by Canter's illness, Menhardt was moved back to the midfield position he occupied last year. Jancevski then assumed Menhardt's regular starting position on the front line. "I felt a little bit of pressure yesterday (Wednesday); I was a little bit ner vous," Jancevski said. "but I think that's behind me now." What the entire Penn State team hopes is behind them is their sub-par play in the first half of the game against Lock Haven. It took the Lions a full half to get warmed up before they got their game on track. "We just have to play like we did in that second half," Jancevski said, "I think we got all the bad stuff out of our systems." Coach Bahr hopes so, too. "We are going to be very, very happy if we can get a victory on Friday," he said. "Extremely happy." will
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