July 25, 2007
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa., July 25, 2007 - Coach Joe Paterno and a trio of Nittany Lion seniors will represent Penn State at the 36th Annual Big Ten Kickoff Luncheon Festivities in Chicago, July 31 and August 1.
All-America linebacker Dan Connor (Wallingford), wide receiver Terrell Golden (Norflok, Va.) and quarterback Anthony Morelli (Pittsburgh) will join Paterno at the prestigious event. Activities will be held at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Chicago as the Big Ten prepares for its 112th season of football competition.
Terrell Golden |
The Kickoff activities will include news conferences with every Big Ten head coach and players from each squad. Interviews with print and electronic media will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Kickoff Luncheon is Wednesday with the Big Ten Network's Dave Revsine serving as emcee. A sellout crowd of 1,800 will attend the Luncheon.
The Nittany Lions are entering their 15th season of Big Ten competition. Last year, Penn State lost three close games to Ohio State, Michigan and Wisconsin in conference play, but finished 9-4 with a 20-10 victory over No. 17 Tennessee in the Outback Bowl. Penn State was the Big Ten co-champion in 2005, defeating ACC champion Florida State in the FedEx Orange Bowl to cap an 11-1 campaign.
In his 42st season as head coach of the Nittany Lions, Paterno owns a 363-121-3 (74.8) career record. In his 58th year in Happy Valley, Paterno is second in all-time victories among major college coaches and fourth in wins across all four NCAA divisions. He has led Penn State to two national championships (1982, '86), five unbeaten and untied seasons (1968, '69, '73, '86, '94) and is the all-time leader in bowl appearances (33) and wins (22-10-1). He has guided the Nittany Lions to 16 appearances in one of the four bowls that comprise the Bowl Championship Series, earning a 12-4 record.
Paterno has produced more than 300 NFL players, 73 first team All-Americans, 35 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, 15 National Football Foundation Hall of Fame Scholar Athletes and 18 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship winners during his illustrious career. He has been selected the AFCA Coach of the Year an unprecedented five times, including 2005.
Anthony Morelli |
Paterno will reach two significant milestones during the 2007 season. He will pass another college football legend, Amos Alonzo Stagg, in longevity at one institution among major college coaches. Stagg was a head coach for 57 years, including 41 at the University of Chicago (1892-1932).
In December, Paterno will be inducted into the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame, with his induction having been postponed from 2006 due to injuries he sustained in a sideline collision during a November game at Wisconsin. Paterno was scheduled to be among three legendary coaches to become the first active players or coaches inducted into the Hall of Fame. He will join active coaches Bobby Bowden and John Gagliardi as inductees. Paterno and Bowden received the Gold Medal -- the Foundation's highest and most prestigious honor - at the 2006 event via a video presentation.
Connor has been named a pre-season first team All-American by Athlon Sports' College Football 2007 and is a candidate for the Bednarik, Butkkus, Rotary Lombardi and Lott awards. Last season, he earned first team All-America honors from The Sporting News and was a second team Associated Press All-American. The former Strath Haven High School standout became the 13th linebacker to earn first team All-America honors at "Linebacker U" under Coach Joe Paterno.
Connor was fifth in the Big Ten with 113 tackles last season and has 274 career stops, 98 away from Paul Posluszny's school record. He also recorded 9.0 tackles for losses, 5.0 sacks (minus-39 yards), led the team with three forced fumbles (sixth in Big Ten), made two interceptions and one safety. Connor should be among the top candidates for the Butkus, Bednarik, Rotary Lombardi, Lott and Nagurski awards this season.
The lone senior among Penn State's talented and deep receiving corps, Golden has earned praise from his teammates as one of the squad's leaders since off-season workouts began in January. The recipient of the 2007 Red Worrell Award as the offense's most improved played in spring practice, Golden made six receptions for 120 yards last season. He made one of the biggest plays of 2006 with his diving 17-yard reception on third down for a first-and-goal against Illinois, leading to a touchdown, as the Lions rallied from a halftime deficit to a 26-12 win. The former Lake Taylor High School standout has an impressive career 21.7 yards per catch average, with 18 catches for 390 yards and two touchdowns.
During his first season as the Lions' starting signal-caller, Morelli led Penn State to wins in five of its last six games and broke the school season records for pass completions (208) and attempts (386). His 2,424 passing yards were third-highest on the school season list. Morelli had 11 touchdown passes and eight interceptions and posted the school's seventh-lowest season interception percentage. A candidate for the Davey O'Brien and Johnny Unitas awards, he ended the season with a very strong performance, going 14 of 25 for 197 yards, with one touchdown and no interceptions, in directing the Outback Bowl win over Tennessee. The former Penn Hills High School All-American threw for a career-high 281 yards and two scores in the win at Minnesota and had three scoring strikes against Akron, becoming the first Lion quarterback in the Big Ten era with a trio of TD passes in their first career start.
Paterno's 42nd Penn State team returns 32 letterwinners and 15 starters for the 2007 season. The Nittany Lions open their 121st campaign September 1, hosting Florida International at 12:00 p.m. in Beaver Stadium. "Penn State Football Eve presented by Sheetz" will be held the evening of Aug. 31, with festivities starting at 6:00 p.m. outside Beaver Stadium.
The Nittany Lions have a blockbuster 2007 home schedule that includes five bowl teams from 2006: Notre Dame (6:00 p.m., ESPN), Iowa (Oct. 6), Wisconsin (Oct. 13- Homecoming, 3:30 p.m., ABC), Ohio State (Oct. 27, 8:00 p.m., ABC, ESPN or ESPN2) and Purdue (Nov. 3). The Nittany Lions will host Buffalo on Sept. 15 for a 12:00 p.m. kick that will be televised by the Big Ten Network, which launches in August.
A school record 93,500-plus season tickets have been sold for the 2007 season with a 99 percent renewal rate from last year.