Feb. 4, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa., - Six Penn State football student-athletes have been invited to participate in the National Football League's 2010 Scouting Combine. The Nittany Lions lead the Big Ten in total invitees the past two years with 14.
Penn State All-Americans Jared Odrick (DT, Lebanon) and Navorro Bowman (LB, District Heights, Md.) will participate in the Combine, which will be held Feb. 24-March 2 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Quarterback Daryll Clark (Youngstown, Ohio), linebacker Josh Hull (Millheim), linebacker Sean Lee (Pittsburgh) and tight end Andrew Quarless (Uniondale, N.Y.) also have been invited to the Combine.
The six players were instrumental in helping the Nittany Lions win 51 games, two Big Ten Championships and four bowl games over the past five seasons, with three Top 10 rankings. Penn State's 51-13 record the past five seasons is tied for No. 7 in the nation.
Five of the six Nittany Lions have graduated: Hull (a two-time first team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American), Clark (two undergraduate degrees), Bowman, Lee and Quarless.
A total of 14 Nittany Lions have been invited to the 2009 and 2010 NFL Scouting Combines, the highest two-year total among Big Ten institutions. Iowa and Ohio State are tied for second with 12. Iowa (seven) was the only Conference school with more 2010 invitees than Penn State (six).
Seven Nittany Lions are playing in 2010 post-season all-star games: Hull, tackle Dennis Landolt and cornerback/kick returner A.J. Wallace will play in the Texas vs. The Nation game on Saturday, Feb. 6 at 2:00 p.m. Odrick helped the victorious North hold the South to 30 rushing yards in the 61st Annual Senior Bowl on Jan. 30. Clark, Quarless and punter Jeremy Boone helped the North win the 85th East-West Shrine Game on Jan. 23. Quarless made the game-winning touchdown catch with :06 left in the contest.
Jared Odrick running a drill at the NFL Combine |
The NFL Network (Ch. 180 and 254, Comcast Cable in the Centre Region) will have coverage of the Combine daily from Feb. 24-March 2.
The NFL Draft is April 22-24, with the first round taking place on Thursday night.
For just the fifth time in the Super Bowl's 44-game history, Penn State will not have at least one former player on the active roster for one of the participating teams. Indianapolis Colts head coach Jim Caldwell was a Penn State assistant coach from 1986-92, helping the Nittany Lions win the 1986 National Championship. Penn Staters Sean McHugh and Scott Paxson were members of the Super Bowl XLIII Champion Pittsburgh Steelers. Thirty-two former Nittany Lions have earned a total of 48 Super Bowl rings.
There are nearly 30 former Nittany Lions on NFL rosters, placing Penn State in the top 15 nationally among schools in producing current NFL players.
More than 350 Nittany Lions have signed NFL contracts under Coach Joe Paterno's tutelage. The Hall of Fame coach has seen 239 of his players drafted by NFL squads, including 35 first round draft choices. All-America defensive end Aaron Maybin was the No. 11 overall selection in the 2009 NFL Draft, by the Buffalo Bills, and All-America tackle Levi Brown was the No. 5 overall pick, by the Arizona Cardinals, in 2007.