UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — In 2016, a conglomerate of men's volleyball coaches that included Penn State head coach Mark Pavlik and his colleagues at Ohio State, UCLA, and USC wondered if there was a way to get the Big 10 and Pac-12 teams together for one weekend to compete in an epic series of volleyball. The teams do not compete in those traditional conferences in men's volleyball, but their names and pedigrees as some of the top academic institutions in the country with their athletic departments' brand recognition made an event involving the four programs seem like a no-brainer.
The B1G/Pac-12 Challenge was born. The schedule was set for a four-year cycle to bring the iconic programs together at a new host location each year. The traditional B1G programs – Penn State and Ohio State – face off against Pac-12 staples UCLA and USC in a four-match showcase. Each team has a chance to host the event, with Penn State's first chance being the initial challenge in 2016 and then again in 2020.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a shift in men's volleyball across the country to a stricter schedule featuring mostly in-conference opponents, the event was canceled in the 2021 season. Pavlik acknowledges that the return to a national schedule this season is special for all teams, including the four featured at the B1G/Pac-12 Challenge.
"We really enjoy it. Anytime you can get those four iconic logos together, eyeballs turned to it," Pavlik said. "I think it's something that has served the game well. I think anytime you can bring the four of us together, people will watch, and we've just carried it on since then."
Going into this year's challenge, all four teams - UCLA, USC, Penn State and Ohio State - have yet to lose a match. It's the first time that all four teams have entered the challenge undefeated. It's going to be a test for the student-athletes in each program to rise up to the challenge of playing premier opponents at an early stage in the season.
One such player for Penn State is sophomore middle blocker Toby Ezeonu, who has made a big statement in his first four matches against BYU and Grand Canyon having a .395 hitting percentage and collecting 12 total blocks. While Ezeonu has been making large strides in the last 18 months - according to Pavlik - it will be an exciting battle as Ezeonu faces more players from the west coast with a similar style of play.
"It's going to be interesting to see what Toby does over the course of the match and matches against someone that is very similar to him - high flyer, long limb," Pavlik said. "This will challenge Toby as far as, 'Alright, now you've seen it, how do you make your athletic ability work for you?' I think this is going to be a nice challenge for Toby, it will be interesting to see how he responds to it."
"Toby has progressed very, very well his first 18 months in this game, and now he's figuring out how to do it when it's being counted on for him to score some points," Pavlik added. "I'm really looking forward to seeing this battle."
During the 2021 season, Pavlik has said this group has been one of the most unique ones he has worked with. While a large amount of the starting lineup is returning from the previous season - including four players with All-American recognition in redshirt senior libero Will Bantle, senior setter Cole Bogner, senior opposite Cal Fisher and senior outside hitter Brett Wildman - the team continues to build off of last season and take advantage of the opportunities the players have been given to prepare them for the journey ahead.
"It's the evolution of this group and where we've gone from last year to this year, the experience that every one of them have gained - either by coming back and working in the summer in Rec Hall or by going out to Anaheim training with the National Team, training with the National Training Development Team, Men's National Team - whatever it may be, they're not the same guys that they were when they left in May," Pavlik said. "It's really exciting to see how they've taken advantage the opportunities that they have had, over the course of May to September, and then what they do with their training in the fall. Maybe the best way to put it is when I made those comments last year, the path that I would hope they would take, they've taken. What they're getting out of that pat was something I hoped that it would."
"They're just coming back, bigger, stronger, more bonded. This group is a tight group," Pavlik said.
Penn State will play No. 12 USC on January 21 at 10:30 EST and will play No. 2 UCLA on January 22 at 10:30 EST.
