THE DAILY COLLEGIAN
Mills'
about
Philadelphia-based Brett
Senior, also representing two
other former Nittany Lions,
wants teams to take the time
to get to know Zack Mills.
By Jenny Vrentas
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER I jennyv@psu.edu
As far as the NFL draft is concerned,
all it takes is one team to fall in love with
a player then he's set, and the rest is
up to him.
The trick, of course, is giving the team
Calvano
makes
return
to field
By Stefen Lovelace
FOR THE COLLEGIAN
After college, most students are
thrown into the "real world," grabbing
interviews wherever possible in hopes
of finding a job or career.
Anthony Calvano, however, is not
quite ready to put away the shin guards.
Calvano, a former Penn State men's
soccer player, will get to continue his
soccer career with the United Soccer
League's Pittsburgh Riverhounds.
When Calvano first graduated, he
hoped he could extend his soccer
career beyond college. His coaching
staff at Penn State tried to get him a try
out with professional teams, to no avail.
When it appeared soccer might not
pan out, he decided to start looking for
work as a teacher. In his second inter
view, Calvano received a job in Fairfax,
Va., teaching sixth graders.
But a call that Friday from the River
hounds changed his career plans indefi
nitely.
"I got a contract offer from the River
hounds that Friday," Calvano said. "I
was already nervous about teaching,
and then I got the call from them. It was
kind of a shock, but it turned out to be a
good shock"
Calvano signed a contract with the
Riverhounds, but still had to explain to
the school that he would not be taking
the job. He went in the following Mon
day, which was supposed to be his first
day as a teacher, to tell the administra
tion.
"I told them I was going to play for
the Riverhounds and they understood
that I would never get a chance like this
again," Calvano said. "They told me to
keep in touch if the soccer thing didn't
work out."
Calvano, a Penn State men's soccer
team member from 2002-04, joins a
Riverhounds team that was the Atlantic
Division champion last year, posting a
19-3-1 record. Rich Salvini, an assistant
coach for the Riverhounds, said his
coaching staff has been watching Cal
vano for years and thought he would be
a great fit for the Riverhounds style of
play.
"He's got great physical toughness,
he's very aggressive and he's got lots of
talent and skills," Salvini said. "When he
gets the ball he makes the simple play,
Jamaal Tate (1) has gone through some
trying times at Penn State.
agent optimistic
NFL prospects
enough reasons for that to happen.
That's how, in any case, the draft has
been presented to former Penn State
quarterback Zack Mills by his Philadel
phia-based agent, Brett Senior, who is
also representing former Penn State
football players Andrew Guman and
Robbie Gould.
"There are some teams that just are
going to say he doesn't fit," Senior said
of Mills. "But there are some teams that
are going to say, 'Hey, here's a guy that
brings a lot, he's going to be an addition
to a team that's positive in any manner,
and he can play football.' "
The plan, then, is to get the teams to
Patrick Sopko/Collegjan File Photo
Former Penn State soccer player Anthony Calvano (22) has signed a contract with the USL's Pittsburgh Riverhounds.
which is the kind of players we look for."
It's Calvano's toughness that has got
ten him this far. A standout in high
school, Calvano turned down scholar
ship offers from small schools to come
to Penn State.
After being cut in varsity tryouts his
freshman year, Calvano joined Penn
Tate looks back on tough 4-year journey
By Tricia Lafferty
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER I tullo4@psu.edu
Sitting at the end of the bench
dressed in a butterscotch-colored suit,
he was often tortured by the desire to
run onto the court and launch a 3-point
er just like the good old days.
But minutes later, reality would set in,
as it did during every home game, and
Penn State senior Jamaal Tate
remained in his chair. He realized his
playing days were done. They've been
done for some time now, but he wasn't
ready to separate himself from the Penn
State men's basketball team.
"Basketball has ?' says been a part of
me," Tate said. "It's kind _ f hard to stop
something that has had such an influ
ence on your life and got me where I
am."
That's why Tate hung around and fin
ished "le year as an inactive mem
br .Aig assistant. He was the
.. ...icor, that coach with whom the play-
SPORTS
know the player, with reports, letters
and interviews, and then to take care of
the rest with a physical display at com
bine-like workouts such as Penn State's
Pro Day, which takes place tomorrow.
Senior takes care of the first part, by
contacting position coaches and player
personnel directors in the NFL, sending
out player and character bios and, later
in the process, setting up interviews
and follow-up workouts for the players.
The players themselves implement
training schedules leading up to the pro
day, which Mills, Guman and Gould
have been able to do at Penn State with
See MILLS, Page 18.
State's club team, where he helped ele
vate the team to a national champi
onship and undefeated season.
In his sophomore year, Calvano tried
out for the varsity squad but was cut
again.
That still didn't deter Calvano, who
played club soccer for another year and
"Basketball has always been a part of me. It's kind of
hard to stop something that has had such an influence
on your life and got me where I am."
ers could connect, and perhaps his most
endearing role team grandpa.
"He's like that guy sitting in the old
rocking chair giving you some advice.
He's been very helpful and encourag
ing," freshman guard Danny Morrissey
said
"Uncle Tate" has been through more
than most 22-year-old students. Basket
ball has taken him down many roads;
some he'll always remember, some he'd
like to forget, and some that are a com
plete blur.
Tate is a recovering alcoholic. He has
n't touched a drink in almost two years
and he doesn't intend to anytime soon.
Zack Mills (7) has a lot to offer a potential NFL employer, his agent says
helped take the team to another unde
feated season.
After two years playing with the club
team, Calvano finally made the men's
team and helped the Lions win the Big
Ten title in his first year with the team.
He earned Big Ten All-Tournament
See CALVANO, Page 18.
All he has to do is think back to the
morning of June 10, 2003, when he woke
up hung over at 9 am. with the desire to
have a drink before even brushing his
teeth. That same day, the Linden, N.J.,
native checked into a rehab clinic in
western Pennsylvania He stayed there
for two weeks, just long enough to real
ize he had to turn around his life. He
missed other warning signs that indicat
ed he was beginning to develop a prob
lem with alcohol. Drinking alone during
the day and after practice became a
daily activity for Tate. He withdrew from
classes in the spring of his junior year
because he was failing every class.
He found himself in this mess and'
had no idea how or why he got into it.
"I had such trouble realizing I was an;
alcoholic because my vision of an alco-;
holic was an old guy that slept on the
bench in the park who had lost every
thing," Tate said. "When I got in rehab, I
was in there with doctors, lawyers and;
regular businessmen."
Jamaal Tate
Penn State senior
Tate was a Division I athlete who !
played in the NCAA tournament just
two years before his downfall. A true
freshman at the time of Penn State's'
Sweet 16 run in 2001, Tate showcased a
critical four-point effort in an 82-74 upset
against No. 2 seed North Carolina !
And what a magical run it was.
"It's something I can't describe," he
said, with a boyish grin on his face. "It'
was definitely something special."
After losing to Temple in the Sweet
16, Tate returned for his sophomore
season in which he averaged 6.5 points
per game and ranked second on the
See TATE, Page 18.
WEDNESDAY, March 16, 2005 11
Parity
shows
up u►
tourney
Penn State is not a lock to
beat Liberty on Sunday,
despite holding a No. 4
seed to Liberty's No. 13.
By Justin Kunkel
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER I jak44o@psu.edu
For years, filling out a bracket for
the first round of the women's NCAA
tournament was not challenging.
But with parity suddenly becoming
the norm in the women's game,
that's no longer the case.
Though fourth-seeded Penn State
has to be considered a heavy favorite
entering its first-round NCAA tour
nament game against 13th-seeded
Liberty University of Lynchburg, Va.,
Sunday in College Park, Md., the
Lady Lions would be making a big
mistake if they looked past the Lady
Flames.
"They come to the table with a
complete game, and they are going
to do some really good things," Penn
State coach Rene Portland said.
Liberty has dominated the Big
South Conference for the last decade
and has won the league title for the
last nine years, yet has no wins to
show for nine straight NCAA appear
ances. The Lady Flames feature one
of the tallest players in the history of
the women's game in 6-foot-8 center
Katie Feenstra. Feenstra has
imposed her will on the Big South
throughout her career, winning con
ference player of the year honors the
last three seasons. She ended her
career by leading the Big South in
scoring, rebounding, field-goal per
centage and blocked shots this year.
Feenstra's presence is also felt at,
the defensive end, where she and her
teammates held opponents to only 53.
points per game. Lady Lions senior
forward Ashli Schwab will most like
ly be called on to shut down Feen
stra. Schwab said that, despite Feen-,
stra's size, she will not approach the!
assignment differently than any'
other post player she has guarded.
See LIBERTY, Page 18.,
Coaches outline the keys to tourna
ment success I SPORTS, Page 12