| Senior Levi Brown addressed the fans in today's pep rally at the Tampa Convention Center. |
TAMPA, Fla.; December 31, 2006 ?C An enthusiastic crowd of approximately 8,000 Penn Staters cheered Coach Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions today on the eve of their Outback Bowl clash with No. 17 Tennessee at the team??s pep rally. The huge throng at the Tampa Convention Center sent Paterno and his squad off the stage with a loud standing ovation. The Blue Band, cheerleaders and Nittany Lion all participated in the rally, that was sponsored by the Penn State Alumni Association and Intercollegiate Athletics.
The Nittany Lions (8-4) and Volunteers (9-3) will be meeting in the The 21st Outback Bowl. The contest will kick off at 11:00 a.m. ET on New Year??s Day. The battle in Raymond James Stadium (65,567) will air on ESPN, the Penn State Sports Network and ESPN.com.
Earlier today, Paterno said he plans to be on the field for pre-game warm-up and will then determine whether he will coach from the sideline or the coaches?? booth in the press box.
The Nittany Lions are playing in the Outback Bowl for the third time and will be participating in a New Year??s bowl game for the third time in the past five seasons. Penn State is making its 22nd January bowl appearance under Paterno and 33rd post-season trip overall under the all-time leader in bowl wins (21) and appearances.
The Nittany Lions are 2-0 in their previous Outback Bowl appearances, defeating Auburn on January 1, 1996 and Kentucky, 26-14, on January 1, 1999. Penn State All-America wide receiver Bobby Engram was the Outback Bowl MVP vs. the Tigers, while All-America defensive end Courtney Brown, the first selection in the 2000 NFL Draft, was the MVP in the 1999 Outback Bowl.
Tennessee has one previous Outback Bowl appearance, defeating Boston College, 38-23, on January 1, 1993, the year before the Big Ten??s tie-in with the game began. The Penn State-Tennessee series is tied, 2-2, with the Nittany Lions winning the last two contests. The Volunteers won regular season contests in Knoxville in 1971 (31-11) and 1972 (28-21). The Nittany Lions earned a 42-17 win over No. 10 Tennessee in the 1992 Fiesta Bowl and a 31-13 victory over the No. 6 Vols in the 1994 Citrus Bowl.
Penn State has won 21 of its last 26 games, dating to the final two contests of the 2004 season. The teams the Nittany Lions lost to this season (Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin and Notre Dame) have a combined record of 44-4 and all are ranked in the BCS Top 12.
The Nittany Lions' 24 bowl wins overall are tied for third-best in the nation with Tennessee and Oklahoma. Penn State??s bowl winning percentage of 66.2 is the nation??s best for schools with at least 10 post-season victories.
Paterno has an impressive 21-10-1 (67.2) winning percentage in bowl games, tied for third-best all-time among coaches with at least 11 bowl appearances. He is the only coach to win the Rose, Fiesta, Orange, Sugar and Cotton Bowls.
Paterno teams are 15-6 in New Year's bowl games, including a 26-23 triple overtime victory over ACC Champion Florida State in the 2006 FedEx Orange Bowl. He has taken Penn State to 13 different post-season contests, winning in 11 locales, more than anyone in college football history.
The Nittany Lions are 7-5 vs. Southeastern Conference foes in bowl games, with the last meeting a 13-9 loss to Auburn in the 2003 Capital One Bowl. Penn State is 6-4 vs. SEC opponents in post-season contests under Paterno.
The Nittany Lions are led by senior All-America linebacker Paul Posluszny, a two-time first team All-American, the school??s career tackles leader with 364 and the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American? of the Year in Division I football; All-America linebacker Dan Connor, a finalist for the Bednarik Award (with Posluszny); defensive tackle Jay Alford; All-America tackle Levi Brown; tailback Tony Hunt, who has gained more than 1,000 yards each of the past two seasons; quarterback Anthony Morelli, who has broken school season records for pass completions (194) and attempts (361) and punter Jeremy Kapinos, a finalist for the Ray Guy Award.