Sep 6, 2013
By Mike Esse, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - A lot of things happen in the air. Birds fly, planes fly, rain comes down, sunlight shines through. No matter what it is, something always happens in the sky.
Eli Dennis' life is primarily based in the sky.
One day he looked up at the clouds, the sunlight and the features of the sky and was intrigued. So intrigued, he decided he wanted to spend his college career studying the atmosphere and meteorology.
"I was seriously just fascinated with the sky," he said. "I was looking at the clouds and from there I have loved everything I have been doing with it."
After looking up once or twice, Dennis' life goals were concrete. His love for science was always there, but upon transferring to Penn State from American University, his love for meteorology was firm. It was clear what his focus was going to be academically while at Penn State.
It was an odd choice at first, especially when he told his academic advisor that he wanted to enter the meteorology program.
"I went to my advisor and told her I wanted to try meteorology and she asked me why," he said. "I said 'I don't know, I am just fascinated by the sky.'"
Maybe it all doesn't sound unusual right now, but here's the twist.
Dennis isn't just a student at Penn State. His life isn't predicated in the sky solely because of his academic endeavors. The connection between Dennis and the sky also come from the turf at Jeffrey Field, the home of Penn State soccer.
Yes, a student-athlete is a meteorology major. It's different, even Dennis himself admitted to that. But there is a connection between the two because of the way he plays on the field.
He thrives in the air. Because of his ability to win balls in the air, Dennis has become a very important piece to the ever complicated offensive attack in the game of soccer.
Penn State men's soccer head coach knew he was getting an aerial presence when Dennis transferred in 2011.
"I called around to a lot of coaches in the Patriot league and asked them about (Dennis) and they told me he was unbelievable in the air and would be terrific in the air at any level," said Warming.
"Eli can head it harder than most human beings can kick it."
Dennis proved that on Sept. 1 against Central Connecticut State as he notched his first goal as a Nittany Lion late in the second half in Penn State's 1-0 win. The goal came just two days after he recorded his first points in blue and white off an assist against Radford.
"It's exciting," the redshirt junior said. "Sometimes the game works out like that. As soon as Connor (Maloney) hit the cross I knew it was a goal."
Warming was aware of Dennis' aerial abilities prior to his arrival and is even getting more of an idea in the early going of his team's 2013 season.
What he didn't know when Dennis transferred was the type of person he was getting out of the Easton, Md. native.
Both of Dennis' parents played soccer at Penn State. His father, Greg Ennis, was a four-year starter on the men's team and his mother, Laura, played on the women's team and was an integral part moving the team from the club level to the varsity level.
Warming was getting a Penn State guy, through and through, that also happened to be an intriguing human being.
"He's all in for Penn State," Warming said. "He came here for academic reasons and we were happy he came. I love talking to Eli. I really enjoy talking to him and hearing about all of his adventures he had over the summer."
One of those adventures was his trip in Boulder, Colo. at the National Center for Atmospheric Research. Dennis was selected as the lone representative from Penn State to apply to the program and was one of 20 students from across the country to be selected to attend the conference.
At the conference students toured the facilities, met scientists and interacted with them regarding their research and individual paths to the center.
Through this experience and all of his studies with meteorology, Dennis came to an interesting conclusion.
For him, at least, soccer and meteorology are similar. Both involve detailed study, curiosity and precision in order to be correct and successful.
"Meteorology is a true science and people are always studying and observing their surroundings trying to get a better understanding of how things work in the atmosphere," he said. "On the soccer field you need that same curiosity and excitement to learn and get better."
Those reasons are why Dennis and his head coach get along so well. Dennis likes breaking the atmosphere down and looking at the reasons why certain situations play out the way they do. Warming does the same thing with soccer.
"It is fun to work with Coach Warming because he is so good at breaking down game film and talking about little moves in such detail and it's almost a science, just like meteorology," Dennis said.
When Dennis took a step back and put his academic and athletic journey in perspective he realized that he really does live his life through the air both in the classroom and on the soccer field.
It has all come together for him over the past few months whether it was attending the conference in Colorado or his first points as a Penn Stater. Dennis has come to what he called a "cool" realization that his journey has become much more solidified in the classroom and on the field in similar fashions.
Nevertheless, in both respects, there isn't time for him to dwell on the past.
"It's cool it worked out like this," he said. "I haven't thought much about it, but there's not much time to dwell on a goal or a personal achievement. I can't live in the past and have to be focused on the next opportunity."
Dennis will get his next opportunity on the soccer field this weekend as Penn State faces Rutgers on Friday and St. John's on Sunday.