Nov. 23, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - A conference-high six members of the Penn State football team have been selected first team All-Big Ten and senior defensive tackle Jared Odrick (Lebanon) was named Defensive Player of the Year in voting by the conference head coaches and media panel.
In addition to becoming Penn State's fourth conference Defensive Player of the Year in the past 12 seasons, Odrick also was named Defensive Lineman of the Year by the coaches. Odrick is the first interior lineman selected for the conference's top defensive honor since Ohio State's Dan Wilkinson in 1993.
Penn State senior quarterback Daryll Clark (Youngstown, Ohio) joins an elite fraternity by being selected first team all-conference for the second consecutive year.
The All-Big Ten football team was announced tonight live on the Big Ten Network. Penn State's six first team honorees were tied with Iowa for first among all conference schools. The Nittany Lions' nine overall honorees were second to the Hawkeyes' 11.
Four Nittany Lions were selected to the first team offense: Clark, senior tackle Dennis Landolt (Burlington, N.J.), junior tailback Evan Royster (Fairfax, Va.) and junior center Stefen Wisniewski (Bridgeville). Royster and Wisniewski were second team all-conference in 2008.
Odrick was selected to the first team defense for the second straight season, as was junior linebacker Navorro Bowman (District Heights, Md.).
Three Penn Staters earned second team All-Big Ten honors: senior punter Jeremy Boone (Mechanicsburg), senior linebacker Josh Hull (Millheim) and senior linebacker Sean Lee (Pittsburgh). Boone earned first team all-conference accolades in 2007, while Lee was a second team choice two years ago. The 2009 co-captain missed last season with a torn ACL.
Six Nittany Lions earned honorable mention all-conference recognition, five of whom will return for the 2010 season: sophomore safety Drew Astorino (Edinboro), sophomore defensive end Jack Crawford (Longport, N.J.), sophomore cornerback D'Anton Lynn (Celina, Texas), sophomore wide receiver Derek Moye (Rochester), junior defensive tackle Ollie Ogbu (Staten Island, N.Y.) and senior tight end Andrew Quarless (Uniondale, N.Y.).
A three-year starter, Odrick joins All-America defensive end Courtney Brown (1999) as Nittany Lions to be selected Big Ten Defensive Player and Lineman of the Year. Penn State linebacker LaVar Arrington (1998) and defensive end Michael Haynes (2002) also have earned the Defensive Player of the Year honor, while defensive tackle Jimmy Kennedy (2002) and defensive end Tamba Hali (2005) won the Defensive Lineman recognition from the conference coaches.
An All-America candidate, Odrick leads Penn State with six sacks and has 10.0 tackles for losses for minus-56 yards. He is fifth on the team with 41 tackles and blocked a field goal in the win at Northwestern.
Clark becomes just the 12th quarterback since 1950 to be selected first team All-Big Ten multiple times, joining the likes of Drew Brees, Tony Eason, Bob Griese and Chuck Long . Purdue's Brees was the last to do so in 1999 and 2000.
Clark was named Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this season after throwing for 310 yards and four touchdowns to spark Penn State's 42-14 win at Michigan State last Saturday. Clark has earned the conference's weekly honor five times in his career, good for a tie for sixth place all-time.
A two-time semifinalist for the Davey O'Brien Award, Clark broke Penn State records for season (23) and career touchdown passes (42) and season passing yardage (2,787) in the win over the Spartans.
Lee was named Penn State's Sportsmanship recipient.
Coach Joe Paterno's squad (10-2) is ranked No. 13 in this week's Bowl Championship Series standings, No. 11 in the USA Today Coaches and Harris Interactive polls and No. 12 in the Associated Press poll. Penn State concluded its regular season with the convincing victory over the Spartans, posting Paterno's Football Bowl Subdivision record 21st season with at least 10 victories.
The Nittany Lions are 50-13 (79.3) since the start of the 2005 season, the nation's No. 8 winning percentage over that span. Penn State is awaiting the destination and opponent for its 36th bowl game under Paterno, who is the all-time leader in post-season appearances and victories (23-11-1 record).