July 10, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Senior defensive tackle Anthony Zettel (West Branch, Mich.) was named to the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Outland Trophy Watch Lists, while senior safety Jordan Lucas (New Rochelle, N.Y.) was also among the nominees for the Nagurski Trophy.
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy is given yearly to the National Defensive Player of the Year. The award is named for legendary two-way player from the University of Minnesota, Bronko Nagurski, who dominated college football then became a star for the Chicago Bears in the 1930s.
The Outland Trophy is named after the late John Outland, an All-America lineman at Penn at the turn of the 20th century, and is given to the nation's top interior lineman (offensive or defensive). Penn State defensive tackle Mike Reid won the Outland Trophy in 1969 and All-America defensive tackle Devon Still was the most recent Nittany Lion finalist, in 2011.
Zettel is a nominee for the Bednarik Award for the National Defensive Player of the Year and claimed preseason first-team All-America accolades from Phil Steele. After moving from defensive end to defensive tackle in 2014, Zettel enjoyed his most productive season on the field in the blue and white. A fourth-team All-America selection by Athlon Sports and an All-Big Ten first-team pick by both the coaches and media, Zettel logged career-best totals with 17 tackles-for-loss and 8.0 sacks. His 16.0 career sacks rank tied for No. 15 in Penn State history and his 27.0 career TFLs are just five shy of entering the top-15 in the PSU record books.
Zettel was the only FBS player to rank among the national leaders in sacks and interceptions per game in 2014. The athletic defensive lineman nabbed three interceptions, the most by a PSU defensive lineman since at least 1959, to tie for the team lead in the category and added one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and eight pass deflections.
Lucas has been a preseason first-team All-Big Ten selection by Phil Steele and a second-team All-Big Ten choice by Lindy's. An honorable-mention All-Big Ten pick last season, Lucas is the unquestioned leader of the secondary. His 58 stops in 2014 ranked third on the team and his nine pass breakups ranked among the best in the Big Ten. Lucas notched a career-best 2.0 sacks last season, including a key fourth quarter takedown of Tyler Murphy in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl victory over Boston College. Lucas closed the season strong, making 20 stops in his final three games, including a season-high-tying seven stops against the Eagles in the overtime bowl victory.
The annual Bronko Nagurski Trophy Banquet, presented by ACN, will be held on Dec. 7 at the Westin Hotel in Charlotte.
The Outland Trophy presentation banquet, sponsored by the Greater Omaha Sports Committee, will be held on Jan. 14, 2016 in Omaha, Nebraska.
The Nittany Lions open the 2015 campaign on the road against Temple at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on Saturday, September 5 at 3:30 p.m.
Season, partial season and single game tickets for the 2015 campaign are on sale, with nearly 4,000 new season tickets having been sold. To purchase tickets or for information on joining the Nittany Lion Club and purchasing new 2015 season tickets, as well as club seating in Beaver Stadium, fans can visit PSUnrivaled.com, call 1-800-NITTANY or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office weekdays from 10 a.m-6 p.m.