Welcome back everyone! With the regular season now officially over, it's time to get updated with everything that's going on in the world of Penn State football heading into the postseason. We'll start with what I consider to be the biggest news. Right after the Michigan State game, it was announced that much maligned Offensive Coordinator John Donovan had been relieved of his duties. Since then, a search was conducted and concluded with the hiring of Joe Moorhead, the former head coach of FCS Fordham. I actually really like this hire. Moorhead is a Pennsylvania guy who took an 1-11 team and has averaged double-digit wins in the past 3 years along with winning multiple conference titles. And he's done it all with a solid offensive system that *gasp* adjusts to the players he has instead of trying to fit square pegs into round holes. Here's a little bit more from his introductory press conference.
I think you know what the other big story is... it's the most wonderful time of the year! No, not Christmas, Bowl Season! This year the Nittany Lions will face off against the Georgia Bulldogs in the Taxslayer.com Bowl (formerly the Gator Bowl) in Jacksonville, FL on January 2nd. Generally, I think this worked out quite well considering Georgia is a better matchup than LSU, and I personally think Jacksonville is a better venue than Nashville (I mean, their stadium has a freakin pool!). This will be the first time since the 1983 Sugar Bowl that these teams have faced off, and the second time ever. You might remember that particular game gave Joe Paterno his first National Championship. Onward State did a brief history of the now infamous game if you're interested. We'll get more into this year's rendition closer to New Year's.
In the meantime, a slew of other bowl games will kick off this Saturday, December 19th. I know it's a short notice, but if you have the time and an ESPN account (they're free), head on over and join this year's Prime Pick Em Challenge! Now, if you've paid attention to this blog the last two years, you'll know that one of my favorite things about bowl season is seeing the list of swag bags handed out to the participating teams. Sure enough, Sports Business Daily compiled this year's list and I'm already super jealous. It looks like Penn State's players will get a Panasonic gift suite and a fossil watch, not bad.
The postseason isn't just bowl season, though, it's also awards season! This year's big winner was, surprise surprise, Carl Nassib. The former walk-on was this season's feel good story as he skyrocketed into the headlines with big hits and a record breaking sack total. As it stands right now, Nassib has officially won 3 major national awards: the Hendricks Award (given to the nation's top DE), the Rotary Lombardi Award (given to the nation's top lineman or LB), and the Lott IMPACT Trophy (given to the defensive IMPACT player of the year). Additionally Nassib has been named a First Team All-American by the Associated Press, SI.com, ESPN.com, Walter Camp, CBS Sports, FWAA, and AFCA. He was also a Second Team selection by USA Today. Speaking of USA Today, they named RB Saquon Barkley to their All-Freshman Team. Similarly, ESPN.com and the Sporting News named Barkley a Freshman All-American. So a big CONGRATULATIONS to both players for all their success!
As long as we're on the subject of congratulating players, I'll send another big one out to Jordan Lucas for his selection to the Senior Bowl. This is arguably the top postseason All-Star game where NFL prospects showcase themselves for scouts. I'm sure a few more Nittany Lions will be invited to these types of games, so we'll discuss that more when it happens.
Today's final bit of news surrounds the ever "polarizing" Christian Hackenberg. It appears that ESPN's resident draft expert, Todd McShay, thinks that the Junior signal-caller would benefit from another year in school, but that he'll probably choose to turn pro... turns out ESPN analyst (and former Washington QB) Brock Huard agrees with that assessment.
Alright, that will do it for today. Since I, like most people, have off on New Year's Day, and I'll be spending the bulk of it watching football, I think that's when I'll write and post my Bowl prediction. So check back then. In the meantime, head on over to my Facebook page and give it a like or even a share. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!
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