UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – A total of 43 Penn State football alumni – the most since 2012 - are populating the training camp rosters of 24 National Football League teams. The Nittany Lions annually are among the top 20 programs nationally in producing players in the NFL. In addition, seven former Nittany Lions are members of NFL coaching staffs and two former non-football student-athletes are on rosters.
Penn State has landed 40 or more alums on NFL rosters in back-to-back years with 40 camp invitees in 2018. The Nittany Lions have not had 40 or more alums in NFL training camps in back-to-back years in at least the last decade.
The Philadelphia Eagles have five former Nittany Lions on their training camp roster with ninth-year veteran offensive lineman Stefen Wisneiwski and rookies Ryan Bates, Shareef Miller, Miles Sanders and DeAndre Thompkins. Sanders was the 53rd overall selection in the 2019 NFL Draft, Miller was a fourth-round pick, while Bates and Thompkins signed free agent deals. Four teams - Miami Dolphins, New York Giants, Tennessee Titans, Washington Redskins - each have three Penn Staters on their camp rosters.
A total of 11 players from Penn State's 2018 squad are vying to make NFL teams. In addition to Bates, Miller, Sanders and Thompkins, Koa Farmer (Oakland Raiders), Kevin Givens (San Francisco 49ers), Connor McGovern (Dallas Cowboys), Trace McSorley (Baltimore Ravens), Amani Oruwariye (Detroit Lions), Nick Scott (Los Angeles Rams) and Kyle Vasey (Atlanta Falcons) are in training camps.
Fifteen-year veteran and San Francisco All-Pro placekicker Robbie Gould is Penn State's elder statesman in the NFL, followed closely by Cameron Wake, who joins the Tennessee Titans for his 11th season and Pro Bowl linebacker Sean Lee returns for his 10th season with the Dallas Cowboys. Former Penn State men's lacrosse player Chris Hogan has played in back-to-back Super Bowls and moves on to the Carolina Panthers for his seventh season in the NFL. Additionally, former men's basketball player Ross Travis is with the Indianapolis Colts for his fourth NFL season.
Additionally, seven former Nittany Lions are members of NFL coaching staffs: Tom Bradley (Pittsburgh, defensive backs); Gary Brown (Dallas, running backs); Bobby Engram (Baltimore, wide receivers); Al Golden (Detroit, linebackers); D'Anton Lynn (Houston, assistant secondary), Pro Football Hall of Famer Mike Munchak (Denver, offensive line) and Paul Pasqualoni (Detroit, defensive coordinator).
The Nittany Lions' home schedule features three non-conference games and four Big Ten Conference match-ups. The Nittany Lions open the season against Idaho (Aug. 31; 3:30 p.m.), Buffalo (Sept. 7; 7:30 p.m.) and the 100th all-time meeting with Pittsburgh (Sept. 14; noon) in non-conference action. In Big Ten play, Penn State welcomes Purdue (Oct. 5; noon), Michigan (Oct. 19), Indiana (Nov. 15) and Rutgers (Nov. 30) to Happy Valley.
For information on joining the Nittany Lion Club and reserving new season tickets for the 2019 Penn State Football season presented by PSECU, as well as club seating in Beaver Stadium, fans can visit www.PSUnrivaled.com, call 1-800-NITTANY weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office weekdays from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
More than 4,600 new season tickets have already been sold for the 2019 campaign.
Former Penn State players on 2019 NFL training camp rosters (pro season in parentheses):
Arizona Cardinals (1): A.Q. Shipley (8)
Atlanta Falcons (2): Jack Crawford (8), Kyle Vasey (R)
Baltimore Ravens (1): Trace McSorley (R)
Buffalo Bills (1): Kyle Carter (1)
Carolina Panthers: Chris Hogan (7; former MLAX player)
Chicago Bears (1): Allen Robinson II (6)
Cleveland Browns (1): Anthony Zettel (4)
Dallas Cowboys (2): Sean Lee (10), Connor McGovern (R)
Denver Broncos (1): DaeSean Hamilton (2)
Detroit Lions (2): Jesse James (5), Amani Oruwariye (R)
Green Bay Packers (2): Sam Ficken (1), Adrian Amos (5)
Indianapolis Colts: Ross Travis (4; former MBB player)
Kansas City Chiefs (1): Jordan Lucas (4)
Los Angeles Chargers (1): Trevor Williams (4)
Los Angeles Rams (1): Nick Scott (R)
Miami Dolphins (3): Saeed Blacknall (1), Mike Gesicki (2), Mike Hull (4)
Minnesota Vikings (1): Curtis Cothran (1)
New Orleans Saints (1): Christian Campbell (1)
New York Giants (3): Saquon Barkley (2), Grant Haley (2) , Nate Stupar (7)
Oakland Raiders (2): Jason Cabinda (2), Koa Farmer (R)
Philadelphia Eagles (5): Ryan Bates (R), Shareef Miller (R), Miles Sanders (R), DeAndre Thompkins (R), Stefen Wisniewski (9)
Pittsburgh Steelers (1): Marcus Allen (2)
San Francisco 49ers (2): Kevin Givens (R), Robbie Gould (15)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3): Chris Godwin (3), Carl Nassib (4), Donovan Smith (5)
Tennessee Titans (3): Austin Johnson (4), DaQuan Jones (6), Cameron Wake (11)
Washington Redskins (2): Troy Apke (2), Garrett Sickels (2)
