Sept. 4, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State will kick off its 123rd season of football on Saturday when it hosts Akron in the fourth meeting between the schools. The game, which is scheduled for a 12 p.m. start, will air on the Big Ten Network, the Penn State Sports Network and www.GoPSUsports.com.
The Nittany Lions own an impressive 101-19-2 (83.6) record in the first contest of the season, winning their last seven and 16 of the last 18. Penn State is 36-7 (83.7) in season openers under Coach Joe Paterno.
The Nittany Lions lead the all-time series with the Zips, 3-0. The teams last met in the 2006 season opener, with the Lions winning, 34-16. Penn State won in the 2004 opener, 48-10, in J.D. Brookhart's first game as head coach. The first meeting came in the second game of the 1999 season, a 70-24 PSU win.
Penn State is ranked No. 8 in the USA Today Coaches preseason poll and tied for No. 9 with Oklahoma State in the Associated Press preseason rankings. The AP ranking is the Nittany Lions' highest entering the season since the 1999 squad was No. 3.
Paterno, in his 60th season on the Penn State coaching staff, will lead a squad that returns just 10 starters from last year's Big Ten Championship team. All four starters in the secondary, three starters on the offensive line and replacing the top trio of wide receiver classmates in program history are among the primary areas with more inexperience entering Paterno's 44th season as head coach.
Five starters are back on offense and four on defense, along with senior punter Jeremy Boone. Eight additional players with starting experience also return, including senior linebacker and team co-captain Sean Lee and senior defensive end Jerome Hayes, both of whom are returning after suffering season-ending knee injuries in 2008.
Among the returnees are seven Nittany Lions who have earned All-Big Ten recognition in 2007 or 2008 including Boone and Lee, junior linebacker Navorro Bowman, senior quarterback Daryll Clark, senior defensive tackle Jared Odrick, junior tailback Evan Royster and junior center Stefen Wisniewski.
Clark was runner-up for the 2008 Big Ten Silver Football, presented by the Chicago Tribune to the Conference MVP.
Former Nittany Lion All-American running back Curt Warner will be honored at halftime for his induction into the National Football Foundation College of Fame later this year.
Four Penn State home games are sold out, with a limited number of tickets remaining for Akron, Syracuse (Sept. 12, 12:00 p.m.), Temple (Sept. 19, 12:00), and Eastern Illinois (Oct. 10, TBA). Single game tickets are on sale at www.GoPSUsports.com or by calling 800-833-5533
Following the Akron game, Penn State will welcome Syracuse to Beaver Stadium for a 12:00 p.m. contest on Sept. 12. Syracuse will be playing in Happy Valley for the first time since 1990. The Nittany Lions won 55-13 over the Orange in the Carrier Dome last year. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network, the Penn State Sports Network and www.GoPSUsports.com.