The Nittany Lions are still alive.
While most of their Big Ten counterparts have been eliminated from the NCAA tournament, the Penn State men’s basketball team is still playing hoops in mid-March.
OK, so it’s the NIT, but who’s counting?
In today’s edition of Morelli OnLion, we’ll look at the Lions’ run through the NIT, take a look back at the wrestling squad’s performance at nationals, and feature another member of Penn State’s Class of 2009.
We’ll start with basketball.
Talor Battle led the Nittany Lions to a thrilling win over George Mason.
(Photo courtesy of Blue White Illustrated).
Into the Quarterfinals
While many fans were upset that the Nittany Lions were left out of the NCAA tournament, they have to be happy with what is transpiring in the NIT. The Nittany Lions have rolled off back-to-back wins over George Mason and Rhode Island. The overtime victory over George Mason was another thrilling game at the Bryce Jordan Center as Talor Battle’s last-second shot sent the game into OT, where the Lions won it.
I realize that playing in the “Not Important Tournament” may not excite most fans, but you have to take what you can get. The Lions are playing the hand they’ve been dealt, and this run has been fun to watch. It would have been very easy for them to pack it in after being left out of the NCAA tournament, but coach Ed DeChellis didn’t let them. Neither did senior Jamelle Cornley. Credit to both of them.
Now, things will get interesting. This evening, the Lions travel south to take on the Florida Gators in Gainesville. Remember, Florida is not far removed from back-to-back NCAA titles. Sure, it’s the NIT, but this would be a huge win for DeChellis and Co.
There are a couple of factors that will make tonight’s game interesting. First, I am curious to see how the Lions perform on the road. They haven’t fared well away from the BJC, although they have some quality road wins — Illinois and Michigan State come to mind. Secondly, Cornley did not play in the win over Rhode Island. He’s probably 50-50 for tonight’s game. Having him on the court certainly increases Penn State’s chances in a hostile environment like Gainesville.
If Penn State can pull off the win in Gainesville, then it’s on to the semifinals of the NIT, which are scheduled for next week in Madison Square Garden.
While some fans are still griping about not making the “real” tournament, you have to be happy with what the Nittany Lions have accomplished this season. If fans were told at the beginning of the year that they’d still be playing in late March, most would be happy.
Wrestlers Finish 17th
There was good news and bad news for the Penn State wrestling team, which took part in the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis over the weekend.
The bad news for the Nittany Lions was that they finished a disappointing 17th after placing third there just a year ago.
But there was some good news for the Lions as a pair of wrestlers became All-Americans. Freshmen Frank Molinaro and Quentin Wright fared well at the championships. Molinaro took eighth place, while Wright took sixth place.
Wright, the freshman from Bald Eagle Area, capped a stellar freshman campaign at nationals by going 4-3 to finish the season at 33-13. Molinaro went 4-2 at NCAAs to finish his season at 23-18.
“I think our kids wrestled hard with a lot of heart in the Big Tens and coming into here,” said Penn State coach Troy Sunderland. “There were a lot of positives.”
Clearfield native Brad Pataky went 3-2 at nationals to finish his season at 31-11.
Is Kevin Newsome ready to be the backup QB?
(Photo courtesy of Blue White Illustrated).
Spring Football
With the Nittany Lions beginning spring drills this week, we thought it would be a good time to look at some of the pressing questions the squad faces as it readies for the Blue-White Game on April 25.
Our first question is about the quarterback position.
Q: With Pat Devlin gone, is Kevin Newsome ready to be the backup QB?
A: He’d better be.
Newsome, a true freshman, has been on campus since January, which should help him immensely. Hopefully, he’s had an opportunity to learn from senior Daryll Clark, who was impressive in his first full year as a starter.
With the departure of Devlin to Delaware, the Nittany Lions lack a true backup quarterback. Newsome should be a perfect fit in Happy Valley. The 6-foot-2, 225-pounder is already learning the system and should be ready to back up Clark come September. If Newsome is not ready, Paterno will have a handful of walk-on QBs to choose from. The leader among that group is Matt McGloin.
Stay tuned.
Class of 2009: Nate Cadogan
If the name sounds familiar, that’s because it should.
Cadogan, an offensive lineman from Portsmouth (Ohio) was already part of the Penn State family through his older brother, Gerald, who was a two-year starter at left tackle for the Nittany Lions. But Nate decided that he wanted to start his own chapter of Penn State history in July, when he became the 16th member of Penn State’s Class of 2009.
The three-star prospect made his intentions clear during Penn State’s annual Lift of Life fundraiser on July 11, as he picked Penn State over BCS offers from Purdue, Syracuse and Cincinnati. His final two were Penn State and Purdue.
The 6-foot-6, 282-pound prospect was recruited for the Nittany Lions as an offensive lineman, and played several positions in high school, including tight end, offensive tackle, guard, defensive end and defensive tackle. Despite his play, Portsmouth finished the season with a 1-9 record.
Cadogan will enter the program with some big shoes to fill, as his older brother Gerald was an All-Big Ten performer at offensive tackle in 2008 and a standout representative of the university off the field. But following in Gerald’s footsteps is nothing new to Nate, who will welcome the challenge.
“I’m proud of him, just for setting a good example for me,” he said in November. “Everyone is telling me that I’ve got a lot to live up to — some big shoes to fill. But he’s telling me that I’ll be fine, as long as I work hard.”
Cadogan is rated by Rivals.com as the No. 57 offensive tackle in the country and the No. 43 player in Ohio. He was recruited for the Nittany Lions by assistant coach Jay Paterno. He took his official visit to Penn State on the weekend of Dec. 5.
Chris Morelli is the award-winning editor of Blue White Illustrated, a weekly publication devoted to Penn State athletics. He is also a regular on “Sports Central,” which airs on ESPN Radio in Altoona and State College. E-mail him at morellionlion@gmail.com. This column does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of BWI’s writers or publisher.