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Blue White Illustrated contributor

Minutes after his team’s 44-14 loss to Penn State ended, Youngstown State quarterback Kurt Hess assessed what it was like to be a freshman making his first career start — on the road against a storied program and a legendary coach in front of 100,000 fans, no less.

“When we come on the road (against) a top-25 team, Big Ten, Penn State and JoePa – everything – we’ve just got to come out, and we’ve got to play tough and see how tough we are, how tough we’re playing and how mentally strong we are,” Hess said. “When things don’t go our way, we need to come back and respond, respond to things that they may do. They may make a big play, and how are we going to respond to that?”

Sound familiar?

No, Penn State isn’t Youngstown State. When the Nittany Lions travel to Alabama this Saturday, they won’t face the same insurmountable odds the Penguins faced in the opener. But Penn State will get a taste of what Youngstown State and its young quarterback experienced at Beaver Stadium.

True freshman Rob Bolden will make his second start for the Lions in front of 100,000 passionate fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium. He and his team will take on a heavy favorite; Alabama’s not only the returning national champion, but the top-ranked team in the nation. The Crimson Tide dominated their opener, rolling up a 28-point halftime lead on the way to a 48-3 victory over San Jose State.

Senior tailback Evan Royster summed up what could become Penn State’s mantra this week.

“We need to come out stronger,” Royster said. “We can’t have the slow start. We really just need to come out and put some points on the board early so we don’t put ourselves behind.”

First, the positives: Penn State saw quite a few as the Lions won their ninth consecutive opener and improved to 38-7 in season openers under Joe Paterno.

Bolden woke up the crowd on what could have been a lazy September afternoon against an overmatched opponent. He completed 20 of 29 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns – the best passing performance by a true freshman starter in school history. Senior captain Brett Brackett caught eight passes for 98 yards and two scores, a career day in all three categories.

Chaz Powell returned the second-half kickoff 100 yards to give Penn State a 23-7 lead. Senior kicker Collin Wagner was perfect, hitting field goals from 44, 49 and 48 yards.

Still, the slow started nagged.

Youngstown took a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter on Hess’ screen pass to Dominique Barnes (the Lions last allowed an 80-yard reception against Michigan State in 2003). Penn State scored its first touchdown with 1:20 left in the first half. Then there was the sluggish running game, which tallied 132 yards on 29 carries.

“I think the linebackers for Youngstown did a really good job against the run,” Paterno said. “I think until they got tired they played really well against the run. They made good tackles and played off blocks well. We may have been a little better than I think we were on the offensive line, but we certainly did not dominate them in the run game. They made us throw the football and thank goodness (Bolden) did a pretty good job.”

Alabama, meanwhile, rushed for 257 yards on 41 carries in its opener – more impressive because Mark Ingram, the team’s Heisman Trophy winner, missed the game following arthroscopic knee surgery. Paterno said Alabama “may be as good a football team that we’ve played against since we played Miami in the Fiesta Bowl back in 1986.”

Strong enough to capitalize on any opponent’s slow start.

“Alabama isn’t blind,” defensive tackle Ollie Ogbu said. “They’ll see what was successful (for Youngstown State) and do the same thing.”

Chaz Powell saw the end zone and a wide-open field in front of him, but he didn’t think he would score. What he saw wasn’t the issue. What he felt—a Youngstown State player closing in on him, and then, literally, a nip on his heels—was the problem.

But Powell turned up his speed and adjusted his angle, and the result was a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to open the second half and break open the game for Penn State, which went on to win 44-14 Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

Said Youngstown State coach Eric Wolford, who had spent halftime telling his team how important the first five minutes of the second half would be, “That is my nightmare right there.”

And it wasn’t just because Penn State increased its lead to 23-7. The play energized the Beaver Stadium crowd, which had watched the Nittany Lions get off to such a slow start that they trailed Youngstown State—a Football Championship Subdivision team—for a 15-minute chunk of the first half.

The Beaver Stadium operations crew wasted no time using Powell’s run to full advantage, blasting Zombie Nation over the loudspeakers when Powell was still at the 25-yard-line.

“That is a boost for us,” Powell said. “Just to come out and show them that you guys might have had us in the first half, but our job is to come out there and put points on the board.”

Special teams haven’t exactly been Penn State’s strength recently. The Nittany Lions hadn’t returned a kickoff for a touchdown since 2008, when Derrick Williams went 94 yards for a score against Illinois. And they hadn’t had a 100-yard kickoff return in 35 years, since Rich Mauti—father of current Penn State linebacker Michael Mauti—did so at Temple in 1975.

And for Powell, a redshirt junior, the turn in the spotlight came at the end of a week of upheaval. A wide receiver the past two seasons, he was moved to defensive back in the preseason—and listed as the starting cornerback on the depth chart Penn State released Aug. 29. But injuries to wide receiver Curtis Drake (broken leg) and Christian Kuntz (knee) and tight end Andrew Szczerba (back) left the Nittany Lions short on pass catchers, so Powell switched back to offense as the team prepped for Youngstown State.

Which was fine with him.

“I put the team first and myself second,” Powell said. “I’m willing to play any position they need me to.”

Saturday, that position was game breaker. He filled it well as a kickoff returner, even though he was running so close to the sideline that Youngstown State challenged the touchdown, saying Powell had stepped out of bounds.

Powell knew he was close, but he also knew he wasn’t out. He was just making sure no potential Youngstown State tackler could get the angle on him.

“It’s a game of inches,” Powell said. “That’s what it comes down to.”

The quiet confidence Robert Bolden Sr. displayed in his son during that conversation convinced me that Bolden would not perform on the Beaver Stadium turf like any freshman quarterback I had ever seen play at Penn State.

“Robert has been preparing for this opportunity for quite a period of time,” Bolden told the Pa. Sports Network’s listening audience. “I’m proud to say that Robert is a young man that has a lot of confidence in his abilities, but knows how to keep everything in perspective.

“He has the ability to keep his emotions under control and he’s taken the necessary steps to become prepared for this opportunity.”

It seems that Robert Bolden Sr. knew exactly how his son would perform in front of 100,000 rabid Penn State football fans on the opening day of the 2010 football season at Beaver Stadium.

For the first 25 minutes of the first half Penn State’s offense seemed totally off balance. Evan Royster and Penn State’s running game was able to produce just 24 yards on eight rushing attempts in the first quarter and Penn State’s offensive line wasn’t able to control the line of scrimmage against a Youngstown State defensive front that put 8-men in the box close to 90-percent of the time.

It wasn’t hard to realize that Youngstown State had made the decision, that it wanted to find out early in this contest, if Joe Paterno had made the right decision to start a freshman quarterback named Bolden.

At around the 8-minute mark of the second quarter, Penn State changed its offensive strategy. Paterno put the offense in the hands of his freshman quarterback Bolden.

With Youngstown State employing 8-men in the box and sending its strong safety on a delayed blitz, Bolden led the Penn State offense on an 8-play 68-yard TD drive that was capped off with a 20-yard TD pass to Penn State’s senior flex-TE/Slot-WR, Brett Brackett.

In that 8-play 68-yard drive, Bolden completed all four of his pass attempts for 56 yards and a touchdown.

What impressed me the most about Bolden’s performance during that drive was his poise in the pocket and his ability to spot the open receiver, while standing tall in the pocket reading the man-to-man coverage.

Not once did Bolden lose his patience in the pocket and he did an outstanding job of going through his progressions and finding the open receiver. On the 20-yard TD pass to Brackett, Bolden did an excellent job of looking off two receivers before firing the touchdown strike to Brackett.

I know its easy to go overboard in my evaluation of Bolden’s performance, we all have to keep it in perspective and realize Youngstown State is a FCS [1-AA] team, but I think it is fair to say that no one could have expected Bolden to finish the afternoon 20 for 29 for 239 yards and two TD passes.

I’m excited about the potential Bolden showed in today’s opener against Youngstown State and I believe this football team has the potential to surprise some national college football analysts this fall, if Penn State’s coaching staff can find a way to put together a consistent performance from its offensive line.

That to me is still the No. 1 concern of this Nittany Lion football team. This coming Saturday down in Tuscaloosa, Ala, Penn State’s offensive line must do a much better job of controlling the line of scrimmage and find a way to bring a much better balance to the offense.

Aginst the Crimson Tide’s defense Penn State can’t go in at half time with just 50 rushing yards on 15 rushing attempts and averaging just 3.3 yards per rushing attempt and still expect to have a legitimate change of staying close to the defending national champions.

But that is a topic for later next week.

Thankfully, Bolden’s performance wasn’t the only pleasant surprise from the Nittany Lions performance against Youngstown State.

Going into preseason practice, we heard all the coaches and players saying the right things how much of a commitment Penn State was going to give to its special team’s performance this fall.

That was great to hear, but to be honest I wanted to see it with my own eyes before I was ready to believe what I was being told.

Well seeing is believing. Penn State did make the necessary commitment to special teams in preseason practice and I believe this is the area where Penn State has made the biggest improvement from the end of the 2009 season.

In every phase, Penn State’s special teams made a 100-percent improvement.

In Chaz Powell and Stephfon Green, Penn State now has the potential to have one of the best kickoff return units in the Big Ten conference.

I love the change in personnel Penn State has made with its punt return game. Devon Smith and Justin Brown have breakaway potential every time they get their hands on the football.

I’ll admit it, I’m still shaking my head that Collin Wagner converted on field goals of 44, 48 and 49 yards. Last year Wagner was only able to convert on one of five field goal attempts over 40 yards.

Plus, how could you not be impressed with the leg of redshirt freshman, Anthony Fera, on kickoffs. Once he got the nervousness out of his system, Fera showed the ability to send his kickoffs in and sometimes through the end zone.

But what impressed me the most about Penn State’s special teams’ play was the punt and kickoff coverage units.

At the beginning of preseason practice, Paterno told the media special teams were going to be stressed throughout preseason practice. He, also, indicated that there were going to be some personnel changes on the punt and kickoff coverage units.

That is exactly what happened against Youngstown State. Penn State used some of its best skill position players on both special teams coverage units.

Drew Astorino, D ‘Anton Lynn, Derrick Thomas, Stephen Obeng-Agyapong, Andrew Dailey, Shawney Kersey, Gerald Hodges and Mike Yancich were all on the kickoff coverage unit.

It appears Paterno and his entire coaching staff learned their lessons well off the special teams’ miserable performance during the 2009 season, which was the worst I had seen in the 28 years I’ve been covering Penn State football.

A couple of other areas where Penn State received positive performances against Youngstown State came from TE/WR Brackett and the fact five freshmen were able to get in the game against the Youngstown State.

With the status of redshirt junior TE Andrew Szczerba uncertain with some type of back problem, Brackett did an excellent job of filling his role at the flex-TE or slot-WR position.

At 6-foot-6, 232 pounds, Brackett provides Penn State’s passing game with some match up problems, particularly when a team like Youngstown State blitzes and employs man-to-man coverage in the secondary.

Brackett was able to exploit that situation throughout the entire game and finished with eight [8] catches for 98 yards and two TD catches.

What was really impressive about the Bolden to Brackett passing connection was the fact in nearly half of Brackett’s eight catches, he was not Bolden’s primary receiver.

Finally, I was pleased that five true freshmen saw action against Youngstown State.

In addition to Bolden, RB Silas Redd, OLB Khairi Fortt, DE Kyle Baublitz and fullback Glenn Carson all got the opportunity to play.

However, I’ll admit I was totally surprised that Carson played on offense at the fullback position.

This was a good opening day performance from an extremely young Penn State football team, that has 57 scholarship players on its roster with freshmen or sophomore eligibility.

Bolden’s performance was exceptional, but if this offensive line doesn’t mature quickly over the next week before playing defending national champion, Alabama, next Saturday evening may end up being the type of learning experience this Penn State football team was hoping it wouldn’t have to experience this fall.

That being said, I can’t wait to watch the next three years of Penn State football with Bolden under the controls at quarterback.

“He’s [Bolden] going to break every one of Penn State’s passing records before he’s done,” Green said in the Penn State media room after the game.

Here’s hoping Green’s right with his evaluation.

Youngstown State is coming off a 6-5 season, but has a new face in the form of head coach Eric Wolford. Wolford will make his debut with YSU on Saturday, as will redshirt freshman quarterback Kurt Hess.

This will be the second meeting for the Nittany Lions and the Penguins. YSU traveled to Beaver Stadium in 2006 for the first time and suffered a 37-3 loss.

The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network with Eric Collins, Chris Martin, and Charissa Thompson commentating.

Freshman Debut

Saturday marks the premiere of true freshman quarterback Robert Bolden. The decision to start Bolden officially came Wednesday, after much speculation on which of the three competing quarterbacks would win the starting spot.

“Based on what we have seen to this point, Bolden has a slight edge right now, but we are confident all three quarterbacks are ready to go and hope to give them an opportunity to play until we settle on the one that gives us the best chance to win,” Paterno said.

According to Paterno, sophomore quarterbacks Kevin Newsome and Matt McGloin will still have a chance to earn the starting nod on a daily basis.

Bolden, who is the first starting true freshman quarterback since Wally Richardson in 1992, has the confidence of his fellow teammates.

Starting wide receiver Derek Moye said that Bolden has picked up the offense quickly and efficiently and that the offense is equipped for his talents.

Offensive Line Settling

Despite a lot of movement this off-season in the offensive line (guards to tackles, tackles to guards, centers to guards.), members of the line say they’re confident going into Saturday’s match-up.

A revamped Penn State starting offensive line will now feature seniors Quinn Barham and Lou Eliades at the tackle positions, junior DeOn’tae Pannell and senior Stefen Wisniewski at the guards, and senior Doug Klopacz at the center.

Wisniewski has the most on-field experience, and says the line has made great improvements in the off-season.

“You know, some of the guys have started to work well together, which is big, starting to gel a little bit and get a little more experience. It’s amazing how much experience you get in the three and a half weeks of camp, practicing all the time, going to meetings all the time, talking to each other all the time,” said Wisniewski.

Defense is the best offense

On the other side of the ball, the defense is planning to come back strong for the 2010 season. With multiple returning starters, the defense is planning to help out an untested offense.

Former cornerback Chaz Powell was recently moved to offense after injuries left a gap in the wide receiver position.

According to wide receivers coach Mike McQueary, the movement was a “natural transition” for Powell.

“He’s going to play a lot of football there, just like he did last year,” McQueary said.

Free safety (and roommate of Powell) Nick Sukay says its been a change to see Powell back on offense.

“One day he’ll be in blue with us, and the next he’s in white with the offense,” Sukay said. “We have confidence in him and the coaches though,  and we’re used to going against Chaz from all of last year.”

Coach McQueary revealed in last night’s Penn State Football Show that sophomore Shawney Kersey has “taken the next step”. McQueary said that he has made a dramatic move forward and really reached a new level in practice.

Also of note, senior Nate Stupar and junior Mike Mauti will be the two linebackers on the field in the nickel this season. Despite missing the 2009 season due to an ACL tear, Mauti is “ready to go”, according to fellow linebacker Chris Colasanti. Sophomore Derrick Thomas will also be filling in at the nickelback.

Looking Forward

While all coaches and players insist that they will not be focused on going up against the reigning national champion Alabama next week, Penn State fans should be encouraged to know that the Crimson Tide will most likely be playing without their best offensive and defensive players.

It is unlikely that returning Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram will be able to play against the Nittany Lions next week. The running back underwent an arthroscopic knee surgery earlier this week, and will definitely be out in the season opener. Whether he will be able to return for the match-up against Penn State is unknown.

Junior defensive end Marcell Dareus was suspended by the NCAA for Alabama’s first two games on Thursday. Dareus took two trips to Miami and received over $2000 in “improper benefits”. He has to pay $1787 to a charity of his choice before he regains eligibility. Alabama coach Nick Saban is currently appealing the NCAA’s decision and hoping to reduce his suspension to one game.

Preseason practices at Penn State contain carefully guarded secrets.

As I’ve often told BWI subscribers, I’m glad I have a good friend who used to be in the CIA and knows how to uncover information.

At times in the past, it was impossible to learn anything substantial about what was taking place on the practice field. Thankfully, that’s not been the case this year. For the first time I can remember, we’ve been able to post on the premium message board of our website, bluewhiteillustrated. com, regular daily updates.

Among other things, we’ve learned that a number of young players have distinguished themselves in preseason camp and have put themselves in position to have a direct impact on the upcoming season. The Nittany Lions’ problem areas are not hard to locate. It is going to be extremely difficult to replace twotime All-Big Ten quarterback Daryll Clark and to rebuild the offensive line after an off-season filled with experimentation.

At his preseason news conference Aug. 12, Paterno said that “at best we’re an average offensive line right now.” On defense, the big question concerns the graduation of all three starting linebackers from last year. Navorro Bowman, Josh Hull and Sean Lee were all taken in the NFL Draft in April and are presently making strong bids for roster spots with the San Francisco 49ers, St. Louis Rams and Dallas Cowboys, respectively. In addition, the Lions must replace Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Jared Odrick.

 The coaches are hoping redshirt junior Devon Still is up to the challenge, with backup help from redshirt sophomores James Terry and Brandon Ware. Fortunately for Penn State, there are plenty of candidates on hand to try to replace Clark, Bowman, Hull, Lee, Odrick and offensive linemen Dennis Landolt and Ako Poti. The Lions’ 105-man preseason roster has 61 members with freshman or sophomore eligibility going into the 2010 season. There are four candidates on hand to replace Clark at quarterback, and all four have freshman or sophomore eligibility. The candidates are redshirt sophomore Matt McGloin, sophomore Kevin Newsome and freshmen Robert Bolden and Paul Jones. Between them, Newsome and McGloin have thrown a total of 13 passes, completing eight for 66 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions.

Even with McGloin and Newsome lacking game experience going into preseason practice, there was skepticism that Bolden and Jones would receive legitimate shots at the starting quarterback job this fall. At Media Day, quarterbacks coach Jay Paterno did his best to convince people that all four quarterbacks would be given ample opportunity in preseason practice to win the starting job.

He emphasized that both freshmen would be in the mix. “They’re all in the mix,” Paterno said. “We’ve spent eight days working them hard and the whole team. We’ve practiced two and a half hours, two hours and 40 minutes some days, when normally it would be two and 15. But part of that extra 25 minutes is to make sure we have enough reps for all four of them.” Up until Aug. 17, when Penn State staged its second full scrimmage of the preseason, Paterno had the four quarterback candidates following that exact format. But later, the field of contenders was reduced to three, as it was reported that Jones would be redshirting this season. Jones’ family confirmed those initial reports to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

As of this writing, Penn State had not said anything about who will start at quarterback for the opener against Youngstown State this Saturday. But a consensus is emerging that seems to indicate a decision won’t be made until sometime during this week leading up to the game against the Penguins. It may surprise readers to learn that Joe Paterno is said to be seriously considering starting Bolden and possibly using a two-quarterback system in the opener. Reports coming out of preseason camp have indicated that Bolden has been as productive as Newsome and McGloin during the quarterback competition.

Those reports gained credibility when Dave Revsine of the Big Ten Network tweeted after watching a Penn State practice that he wouldn’t be surprised if Bolden ended up winning the starting quarterback job. Joe Paterno himself lent some weight to the speculation when he said at Media Day that “we might be forced to play a freshman.” The coach went on to say he believed Newsome, because of his limited game experience, was in essence a freshman himself, just like Bolden and Jones. In an interview with BTN analyst Gerry DiNardo, Paterno said Penn State might use a two-quarterback system this fall.

“That’s an option we’re considering,” he explained. “It’s something we are looking at.” We may not get Paterno’s final word on the matter until Penn State takes the field for its first offensive series against Youngstown State. Another area on offense where underclassmen have put themselves in position to make a major impact this fall is at wide receiver. BWI has received reports throughout preseason workouts that sophomore Justin Brown and redshirt freshman Shawney Kersey have built upon what they accomplished in spring practice and have placed themselves in the middle of the coaches’ planned six- or seven-man rotation.

“We believe both Justin and Shawney have an opportunity to play an important role with our pass offense this fall,” receivers coach Mike McQueary said at Media Day. “They are both tall and have excellent speed and can help bring an extra dimension to our passing game this fall with their size and speed.” If you recall, it was Kersey who garnered many of the offensive headlines at this year’s Blue-White Game when he hauled in two 18- yard touchdown passes from Jones. “Justin and Shawney both have continued their improvement this summer during the first week of preseason practice,” McQueary said.

“Justin has learned to use his big frame to shield off defenders when he goes up for the ball, and Shawney has really caught the ball consistently, something he didn’t do well when he first arrived here. “Both players with their size and speed have the ability to create matchup problems. Right now, both Justin and Shawney have an excellent opportunity to become an important part of our rotation.”

Brown reportedly runs consistent 4.5-second 40-yard times, while Kersey has a rare combination of size (6-1, 200) and speed (4.4). As a sophomore at Woodbury (N.J.) High, Kersey ran an electronically timed 10.6-second 100 meters. Defensively, the new faces that have garnered all the headlines in August are the three underclassman linebackers: sophomore Gerald Hodges and redshirt sophomores Michael Mauti and Mike Yancich. Hodges, Mauti and Yancich are competing with senior Chris Colasanti, senior Bani Gbadyu and redshirt junior Nate Stupar to replace Bowman, Hull and Lee.

“We certainly believe we have the talent,” linebackers coach Ron Vanderlinden said at Media Day. “In fact, it may be the deepest we’ve been at linebacker with our overall talent since I arrived here. “It’s not like Stupar, Mauti, Yancich, Hodges, Bani and Chris haven’t been part of the program. They have, but the thing they lack right now is game experience, and that’s why we’re toying with the idea of playing as many as five or six linebackers at the beginning of the season to give them that game experience before we possibly set up a definitive starting unit.”

Going into Saturday’s game against Youngstown State, here’s how the two-deep is setting up at all three linebacker positions: At the Sam outside spot, it’s Stupar and Mauti; Colasanti and Yancich man the two-deep at inside linebacker, while Gbadyu and Hodges fill in the Fritz outside positions.

One would think after an 11-2 season, a bowl victory over LSU and a recruiting effort that received widespread acclaim as the best in the Big Ten, everything would be in place for Joe Paterno and his coaching staff to recruit their third consecutive top-15 class.

All the signs seemed to be pointing in that direction as Penn State turned its attention to the Class of 2011 this past winter. In fact, a No. 1- ranked player on the Nittany Lions’ recruiting board took an unofficial visit nearly two months before the Class of 2010 signed its letters. It was the first time in four recruiting seasons that had happened.

That player was All-America running back Savon Huggins of St. Peter’s Prep in Jersey City, N.J., who took an unofficial visit to campus the weekend of Dec. 12. Huggins offered a very positive review of the program following his visit. “I went through all of the facilities, talked to all of the coaches and had a one-on-one with [junior tailback] Stephfon Green that was good,” he said.

“I got to see what Penn State is, and I like what I heard. I talked with Coach Paterno, watched practice, ate lunch and breakfast. I really enjoyed the whole time I spent down there.” Penn State did not give Huggins a written scholarship offer at that time, but he was informed that an offer would be forthcoming after the coaches viewed his highlight tape. It was hinted that he would be the only running back Penn State would recruit in its Class of 2011.

That offer was issued to Huggins in late January, and Penn State confirmed that he was to be the only running back the team would recruit. With Evan Royster set to graduate after the season, it appeared Penn State was in perfect position to land Huggins. But nearly seven months later, the Lions have just four verbally committed players in their class, and Huggins is not among them.

The senior running back now seems emblematic of a flawed approach to this year’s recruiting effort. Concerns first began to surface in late February and early March, by which time Paterno and his staff had issued only five or six written scholarship offers.

Those who closely followed Penn State’s recruiting during the previous two decades most likely weren’t surprised; it’s what they had always done when the team was expecting to have 15 or fewer scholarships to offer. But there were signs even then that seemed to indicate Penn State’s hands-off recruiting strategy wasn’t working. In the spring, Huggins told several recruiting websites that he had hoped to receive “a little more love” from Penn State. Likewise, Angelo Mangiro, the top-rated offensive lineman in New Jersey, told Blue White Illustrated in late March that he was concerned Penn State had not yet tendered him a written scholarship offer. “I’m still keeping them in the picture because they are notorious for being slow,” Mangiro told BWI.

“I don’t even mind that much, but I’m a little anxious for it.” In Mangiro’s case, Penn State’s deliberate pace didn’t prove costly. He verbally committed to the Nittany Lions on July 25, choosing them over Ohio State, Pitt and Rutgers. But overall, Penn State’s recruiting results during the spring and summer were worrisome. By the middle of June, 47 prospects had been tendered written scholarship offers, according to BWI’s reporting.

Now, with just a few days remaining until Penn State opens its 2010 season, 23 of those 47 prospects have already selected other schools. That leaves approximately 20 players who have written scholarship offers from Penn State and who are still considering the Lions. For Penn State to fill the eight to 10 scholarship spots remaining in its Class of 2011, Paterno and his assistant coaches will have to sign nearly half of the uncommitted players on their list.

What has really impacted Penn State’s recruiting negatively has been Paterno’s health. He was forced to cancel speaking engagements in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Hershey in May and June, and Penn State’s recruiting rivals seized on the opportunity to place doubts in players’ minds about Paterno’s tenure and the stability of his coaching staff. Exacerbating the situation, the focus of media attention following Paterno’s appearance at Big Ten Media Day in early August was on concerns about his health.

“I’m thinking you’re going to be Penn State’s coach until the day you die,” a USA Today reporter said. “What do you think of that?” The preoccupation with Paterno’s health has hurt Penn State’s recruiting by shifting the spotlight away from its success last year, as well as the fact that the Lions’ outlook on the field the next three or four years is as bright as it has ever been. Not only are there 61 players with freshman or sophomore eligibility on Penn State’s roster going into the 2010 season, but Paterno has also assembled quite possibly the deepest and most talented group of quarterbacks, wide receivers and linebackers he’s had on campus in more than a decade.

All the talk surrounding recruiting has been about Paterno’s possible retirement and what that might mean to the stability of the program. Opponents have been able to assert that Penn State has no plan for the future. To turn things around, the Lions need to convince recruits the program is not on a downward spiral.

They are still involved with a number of impact prospects, so the opportunity still exists to salvage this year’s recruiting effort. But they need to make their case on the field, starting with Saturday’s season opener. And they need to take an aggressive approach between now and signing day in the hope of changing perceptions about the future of Penn State football.

Glance at Penn State’s football roster, and you’ll quickly notice redshirt freshman kicker Anthony Fera is one of just three players who lists Texas as his home state.

Did the Longhorns let a top instate prospect get away? Well, yes and no. Fera, a 6-2, 212-pounder from Cypress, came to Penn State as one of the top-rated high school kickers in the nation. But, in reality, he’s always been a Pennsylvania kid. “We’re all originally from Philadelphia, my whole family,” Fera said.

His father, Tony, played soccer at Widener University. Fera also has an uncle and several aunts who attended Penn State. The Fera family moved to Texas when Anthony was just 5. Almost 15 years later, he has a rather unique opportunity to return home and earn a spot in his team’s starting lineup. After the graduation of secondteam All-Big Ten punter Jeremy Boone, the Nittany Lions have a seemingly wide-open competition for the new starter.

Ryan Breen, who appeared to be next in line for the job, left Penn State for personal reasons in the spring. That left a handful of young prospects vying for the position. “We’re all competing right now,” Fera said. “We’re all out there trying to progress – Alex Butterworth, A.J. Firestone, Russ [Nye] and I.” Fera’s journey veered off path when police cited him for possession of alcohol by a minor this spring. At the same time, his kicking credentials are top-notch.

Fera was selected a 2008 Under Armour All-American and earned first-team All-State honors as a junior and senior at St. Pius X High School. Ranked the No. 2 kicker in the country by both Scout.com and Rivals.com, Fera connected on 37 of 39 extra-point attempts and eight of nine field goals, including a 58- yarder, as a senior. He also averaged 44.1 yards on 36 punts, and 55 of his 60 kickoffs went for touchbacks.

“It’s better to be able to do all three,” Fera said. “It really helps at this level.” He always had a Penn State connection, but Fera said he became more interested as a high school sophomore, when he and his father attended a White Out game at Beaver Stadium.

After originally committing to play football at Michigan, Fera changed his mind and opted to become a Nittany Lion. He served as the backup to kicker Collin Wagner in 2009 but wasn’t called into action. In early April, university police cited Fera for drinking rum near his residence at the Nittany Apartments. He was suspended from spring practice, which left wide receiver Graham Zug and Temple transfer Nye to punt during the Blue-White Game. Fera said he has put the experience behind him.

“You have to learn from those types of things,” he said. “Now I’m back at full-go. I worked out before practice and worked on my own [during the suspension]. I wanted to show that I didn’t just quit.” His competition at punter is an eclectic mix: Butterworth, a threetime Indiana All-Stater, is a freshman from Indianapolis. Nye, a sophomore who wasn’t part of the squad’s 105-man preseason roster, graduated from State College Area High School. And then there’s Firestone, an extremely versatile freshman from Mercersburg Academy. He actually played on both lines, kicked and punted in high school. Joe Paterno summed up the situation on Aug. 12 at Media Day.

“We’ve got three kids out there punting,” he said. “I think we’re going to have a punter, but you never know until he’s out there before a lot of people. “I think we’re going to have a punter. I think we’ll be all right. They have potential. Three kids all have good legs. They’re a little erratic, but we’ll probably end up with a decent punter.”

Penn State typically does. Boone went from being a walk-on freshman to an All-Big Ten performer. His predecessor, Jeremy Kapinos, played for the Green Bay Packers the past two seasons. Fera said his biggest challenge in the preseason was making the adjustment from kicking to punting.

“You have to walk straight,” he said. “I tend to swing my leg across, because I still have my kicking motion.” Nonetheless, Fera’s not picky about his job. After a not-so-brief stay in Texas, he may get a chance to start for his “home” team. He’s happy to be needed. “Wherever I can get a chance on the field,” Fera said. “It doesn’t matter to me.”