2005 Penn State Nittany Lions football team
Encyclopedia
The 2005 Penn State Nittany Lions football team represented the Pennsylvania State University
in the 2005–2006 college football season
. The team's head coach was Joe Paterno
. It played its home games at Beaver Stadium
in University Park, Pennsylvania
.
and Michigan State
, which helped springboard momentum into the 2005 season that gave many optimism for the 2005 Nittany Lions.
.
Nine defensive starters return from a unit did not allow more than 21 points in a game in 2004. Also returning was safety Chris Harrell
who suffered a neck injury in 2003 and missed the 2004 season.
Michael Robinson, Alan Zemaitis
, and Paul Posluszny
were elected tri-captains of the football team in 2005. Posluszny was the first junior captain since 1968.
Penn State started the season unranked in both the AP
and the Coaches
college football preseason polls.
this year.
23–13. In his debut as a full-time starter at quarterback, Michael Robinson struggled, finishing 9 of 15 for 90 yards and an interception that set up the Bulls' first touchdown. Robinson also ran for 39 yards on 18 carries but was sacked three times and lost two fumbles. Tony Hunt
finished with a career-high 140 yards on 15 carries. Alan Zemaitis
scored the Lions' first touchdown of the year on a fumble recovery.
The Nittany Lions also tried to show off two highly touted freshmen. Justin King
, who played both ways in the game, made his first contribution with a 61 yard run on a reverse. Derrick Williams finished with 38 yards on three catches.
Punter Jeremy Kapinos
landed three punts inside the 11 and was named the Big Ten
Special Teams Player of the Week.
42–24. The offense struggled in the first half, but Robinson hooked up with Justin King
for a 59-yard touchdown in the third quarter, followed by a 41-yard bomb to Derrick Williams
on the next possession. In the fourth quarter, Deon Butler
hooked up with Robinson for a 45-yard touchdown. Robinson finished 11 of 17 for 220 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
Penn State's backup quarterback, sophomore Anthony Morelli
, made his season debut, finishing 4 of 5 passes and scoring the Lions' final touchdown on a 1-yard keeper.
to only 172 total yards for a 40–3 win. Michael Robinson finished 14 of 23 for 274 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. Two of those touchdowns were to Deon Butler
in the second quarter for 54 and 24 yards. Terrell Golden caught the third touchdown, a 47 yarder in the third quarter.
Robinson was pulled halfway through the third quarter for backup Anthony Morelli
, who finished 8 of 13 for 107 yards, including a 55-yard touchdown to Ethan Kilmer
.
, but in the first half Robinson threw three interceptions and lost a fumble to dig a deep hole for the Lions. But the offense would recover in the second half and outscore the Wildcats 17–6 in the fourth quarter to escape with the win.
The defining drive came with two minutes left, trailing by two points. On a fourth-and-15, Robinson threw a 20-yard strike to tight end Isaac Smolko
. Five plays later, Robinson would lob a 36-yard pass out to Derrick Williams
who caught the ball, ducked to avoid a defender, and dashed into the end zone. Anwar Phillips
would pick off Northwestern's Brett Basanez
to seal the win.
Williams' touchdown reception from Robinson was selected the Pontiac
Game Changing Performance of the week.
Linebacker Paul Posluszny
recorded a career-high 22 tackles, the most by a Penn State player since 1977, and was named the Big Ten
Defensive Player of the Week.
Penn State went to the power running game and tallied 364 yards on the ground en route to a 44–14 thumping of the Golden Gophers
. Tony Hunt
ran for 114 yards, and Michael Robinson ran for 112 yards, his first 100-yard rushing game, including a hard hit on Gophers safety Brandon Owens. Robinson never went down, but Owens was knocked out and needed help off the field, ending his football career with uprooted nerves in his spinal column. Hunt and Derrick Williams
each scored two rushing touchdowns.
The defense held the Gophers to just 287 total yards and 13 first downs. (In contrast, Penn State had 35 first downs.) Minnesota tailback Laurence Maroney
entered the game as the nation's leader in rushing yards and all-purpose yards, rushing for at least 100 yards in the last six games, and was considered by some to be the frontrunner for the Heisman
. The Lions' defense held Maroney to only 46 yards on 16 carries.
After recording nine tackles, Paul Posluszny
was named the Walter Camp
National Defensive Player of the Week as well as the Big Ten
Co-Defensive Player of the Week.
17–10 in front of 109,839 fans, during a student White Out, at the time the second-largest Beaver Stadium
crowd (topped later the same season by the home game versus Wisconsin). Michael Robinson threw for 78 yards and carried the ball 14 times for 52 yards and a touchdown. Calvin Lowry
intercepted Ohio State QB Troy Smith
and returned the ball to the 2-yard line, setting up Robinson's touchdown.
Ohio State, needing to score a game-tying touchdown, began their final possession on their own 11 yard line with under 4 minutes to play. After moving the ball into Penn State territory, Tamba Hali
sacked Smith at midfield, forcing a fumble recovered by Scott Paxson
and allowing the Nittany Lions to run out the clock. Led by Paul Posluszny
who had 14 tackles and a sack in the game, the Penn State defense held the Buckeyes to only 230 total yards.
Posluszny was named the Big Ten
Co-Defensive Player of the Week, the first time that a Big Ten player has been named in three consecutive weeks. The team was named the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week
by the Football Writers Association of America
.
The game was ESPN
's second largest audience for a regular season college football game. That morning's ESPN's College Gameday, which broadcast from University Park for the first time since 1999, was the most-viewed edition of that program in its history.
defeated the Nittany Lions 27–25 on the game's final play to hand Penn State its first and only loss of the season. It would cap a wild fourth quarter where the two teams would combine for 39 points and four lead changes. Down 10–3 in the fourth, the Lions would quickly strike twice, the first would be a Michael Robinson two yard keeper set up by a Tony Hunt
61-yard run. On the Wolverines next drive, Alan Zemaitis
would strip Michigan quarterback Chad Henne
during the tackle and returned it 35 yards for the score. Kicker Kevin Kelly
would put Penn State up 18–10 after a picking up a bad snap on the extra point
and running it in for the two-point conversion
.
Michigan would score on its next two drives to go up 21–18, but the defense would get the ball back to Robinson, who would put together a 81-yard drive, including a 4th down and 7 yard conversion, and score on a 3-yard keeper with :53 left to give the Lions a 25–21 lead.
However, the game would come down to seconds. Michigan's final drive, fueled by a Steve Breaston
kick return to midfield, started with an apparent interception that was later reviewed to be out of bounds. The Wolverines called timeout after a Henne pass completion with the clock stopped at :28. Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr
called the officials over, and after a protest by Carr and a long conference, the officials reset the game clock to 0:30. Those extra two seconds would turn out to impact the outcome of the game. Six plays later, with 0:01 on the clock, Michigan would score the game-winning touchdown on a Henne pass to Mario Manningham
.
Derrick Williams
was lost for the rest of the season when he broke his left arm when tackled on a kickoff return late in the game.
. The Illini scored an early field goal, but would never regain the lead. Michael Robinson led the charge with four touchdown passes on his first six completions, connecting with Ethan Kilmer
, Patrick Hall
, and twice with Deon Butler
. Robinson would rush for two more in the second quarter before sitting out the rest of the game.
In the second half, Anthony Morelli
quarterbacked a more conservative offense, attempting only two passes and constantly handing off to Austin Scott who had 57 rushing yards. Very late in the fourth quarter, the Illini scored their only touchdown of the game, to make the final score 63–10.
The defense did their share of scoring too. In the second quarter, Tim Shaw hit Illini quarterback Tim Brasic and forced a fumble, picked up by Dan Connor who ran it in 18 yards for the touchdown. In the third quarter, Nolan McCready would return an interception 77 yards for the final Lions touchdown.
For his six touchdown performance, Robinson was named the Big Ten
Offensive Player of the Week. Robinson's six touchdowns ties a school record set in 1917, and his career-high four touchdown passes ties an 88-year old school record. The Nittany Lions' 56 first-half points broke the school record of 55 set in 1947.
33–15. Ethan Kilmer
had six special teams tackles and a forced fumble that led to a field goal. Kevin Kelly
was four for four on field goals. Rodney Kinlaw
would return a kickoff 58 yards that set up a touchdown.
Michael Robinson would finish 13 of 29 for 213 yards passing and rushed for 96 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown. Tony Hunt
would gain 129 yards on 24 carries, his fourth 100-yard rushing game this season. Fullback BranDon Snow would score his first two career touchdowns on runs of 2 and 4 yards.
behind the strong performance of both the offense and defense. The Lions struck first with a 43-yard pass from Michael Robinson to Deon Butler
on the first drive. Butler would finish with five catches for 125 yards. Robinson finished 13 of 28 for 238 yards, two interceptions and two touchdowns, both to Butler, and also rush for 125 yards on 16 carries. Tony Hunt
rushed for 151 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns.
Wisconsin tailback Brian Calhoun
, a Heisman Trophy
candidate, entered the game ranked fifth nationally in all-purpose yardage and rushing yardage and led the nation with 21 touchdowns. However, the defense limited Calhoun to only 38 yard rushing. The Lions defense was also constantly in the Badgers backfield, tallying nine sacks, four by Tamba Hali
who also had nine tackles. Wisconsin's net rushing yardage was minus-11 yards. Alan Zemaitis
and Calvin Lowry
each intercepted the Badgers once.
Hali was named the Walter Camp
National Defensive Player of the Week and the Big Ten
Defensive Player of the Week. He was also named Player of the Week by Sporting News, Sports Illustrated
and USA Today
.
's College Gameday broadcast from East Lansing
, covering a Penn State game for the second time this season.
The Lions captured the Big Ten title and a BCS bowl berth with a 31–22 win over the Spartans
. Alan Zemaitis
intercepted Spartans quarterback Drew Stanton
three times and also tallied seven tackles. Nickelback Donnie Johnson also had an interception to preserve a 17–0 Lions lead at the half. Johnson's biggest play however may be a blocked punt earlier in the second quarter that was recovered by backup fullback Matt Hahn in the end zone, his first career touchdown.
Michael Robinson finished 10 of 20 for 105 yards and a touchdown and also rushed for 90 yards on 13 carries, including a 33-yard touchdown run, the longest rushing touchdown of his career. Tony Hunt
finished with 89 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown, pushing him past 1,000 yards rushing this season.
Zemaitis was named Walter Camp
National Defensive Player of the Week and the Big Ten
Defensive Player of the Week. Johnson was named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week.
kicked the game-winning field goal to end the triple overtime thriller 26–23 against the Seminoles. It was Kelly's third attempt to win the game, after missing at the end of regulation and in the first overtime. The teams traded touchdowns in the second overtime, and Florida State kicker Gary Cismesia missed in the first and third overtimes.
Austin Scott led the Penn State rushing attack, filling in for an injured Tony Hunt
who left the game on the first possession. Scott finished with 26 carries for 110 yards and two touchdowns. Michael Robinson was 21 of 39 for 253 yards passing, including a 24-yard touchdown pass to Ethan Kilmer
, who made an acrobatic catch in the end zone over the back of a Seminoles defender at the end of the first half.
Penn State's receivers also posted a number of career highs. Kilmer set career highs with six catches for 79 yards and a touchdown. Jordan Norwood
had career highs with six receptions for 110 yards, and Justin King
made a career-high five receptions for 27 yards.
Paul Posluszny
injured his knee in the fourth quarter while attempting to leap over a blocker, causing partial tears of his posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) and medial collateral ligament (MCL). The injury would not require surgery but needed six to eight weeks to rehabilitate.
number 3 in both the final AP
and Coaches
college football polls, earning Penn State its 13th Top 5 finish under Joe Paterno.
The team's unexpected success helped Penn State finish in the top four in football attendance for the 15th consecutive year, averaging 104,859 for seven home games. Three crowds topped 109,000: 109,865 vs. Wisconsin, 109,839 vs. Ohio State, and 109,467 vs. Purdue, ranking two through four as the largest crowds ever at Beaver Stadium. Penn State finished the season with a sellout crowd of 77,773 at the FedEx Orange Bowl.
Instead of declaring early for the NFL draft, Levi Brown and Paul Posluszny
both announced their intentions to return for their senior season.
.
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
in the 2005–2006 college football season
2005 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 2005 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the least amount of controversy surrounding the Bowl Championship Series title game in many years.To an extent it was a return to classic football...
. The team's head coach was Joe Paterno
Joe Paterno
Joseph Vincent "Joe" Paterno is a former college football coach who was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011. Paterno, nicknamed "JoePa," holds the record for the most victories by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision football coach with...
. It played its home games at Beaver Stadium
Beaver Stadium
Beaver Stadium is an outdoor college football stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania, United States, on the campus of The Pennsylvania State University. It is home to the Penn State Nittany Lions of the Big Ten Conference. The stadium is named for James A...
in University Park, Pennsylvania
University Park, Pennsylvania
University Park, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States, and is the location of the flagship campus of the Pennsylvania State University....
.
Previous season
The Nittany Lions were coming off of back-to-back losing seasons, finishing 3–9 in 2003 and 4–7 in 2004, capping a stretch from late 1999 where Minnesota upset the #2 Nittany Lions with a late field goal until the goal line stand at Indiana that featured four of five seasons being losing seasons and the lone winning season in 2002 featuring many frustrating close losses. This stretch was called "The Dark Years", sometimes including 2002 as well. The team finished the 2004 season with wins over IndianaIndiana University Bloomington
Indiana University Bloomington is a public research university located in Bloomington, Indiana, in the United States. IU Bloomington is the flagship campus of the Indiana University system. Being the flagship campus, IU Bloomington is often referred to simply as IU or Indiana...
and Michigan State
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
, which helped springboard momentum into the 2005 season that gave many optimism for the 2005 Nittany Lions.
Preseason
The team returned 18 starters from last year's squad. Eight starters returned on offense, led by starting quarterback Michael Robinson who has also played at wide receiver, tailback, and punt returner during his first three years at Penn State. Robinson played exclusively under center after the graduation of Zack MillsZack Mills
Zachary Eric Mills is a former American football quarterback. He was an All-Big Ten selection and four-year starter at Penn State University...
.
Nine defensive starters return from a unit did not allow more than 21 points in a game in 2004. Also returning was safety Chris Harrell
Chris Harrell
Christopher Mychal Harrell is a professional American football player, playing strong safety in the National Football League. Currently allocated to the Berlin Thunder of NFL Europa, Harrell signed as a free agent with the Arizona Cardinals shortly after the 2006 NFL draft...
who suffered a neck injury in 2003 and missed the 2004 season.
Michael Robinson, Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
, and Paul Posluszny
Paul Posluszny
Paul Michael Posluszny , commonly known as "Poz", is an American football linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
were elected tri-captains of the football team in 2005. Posluszny was the first junior captain since 1968.
Penn State started the season unranked in both the AP
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
and the Coaches
Coaches Poll
The USA Today Coaches' Poll is the current name for a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and Division I college basketball teams....
college football preseason polls.
Recruiting class
Pre-season awards
- Alan ZemaitisAlan ZemaitisAlan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
-
- Second-team Sporting News All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - Third-team Street & Smith's All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team Sporting News All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
- Second-team Sporting News All-America
Schedule
Penn State did not play Big Ten teams Indiana and Iowa2005 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
The 2005 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa during the 2005 college football season. The Hawkeyes played their home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa and were coached by Kirk Ferentz....
this year.
Coaching staff
- Joe PaternoJoe PaternoJoseph Vincent "Joe" Paterno is a former college football coach who was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011. Paterno, nicknamed "JoePa," holds the record for the most victories by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision football coach with...
– Head Coach - Dick AndersonDick Anderson (American football coach)Dick Anderson is an assistant football coach at Penn State and former head coach at Rutgers University. While at Rutgers, Anderson compiled a record of 27 wins, 34 losses and 4 ties, with his highlight victory being a 21-16 win over Penn State in 1988—Rutgers' first win over the Nittany Lions in 70...
– Offensive Line (Guards and Centers) - Tom BradleyTom Bradley (American football)-External links:*...
– Defensive Coordinator and Cornerbacks - Galen HallGalen HallGalen Samuel Hall is an American college and professional football coach and former player. He is a native of Pennsylvania, and an alumnus of Penn State University, where he played college football...
– Offensive Coordinator and Running Backs - Larry Johnson, Sr.Larry Johnson (coach)Larry Johnson is an American football coach, currently serving as defensive line coach at Penn State University. He is the father of NFL running back Larry Johnson and former Penn State wide receiver Tony Johnson.-Collegiate coaching career:...
– Defensive Line - Bill Kenney – Offensive Tackles and Tight Ends
- Mike McQuearyMike McQuearyMike McQueary is an assistant football coach at Pennsylvania State University . McQueary was a record setting former quarterback for Penn State. He led the team for two seasons, 1996 and 1997, and set several records that still stand...
– Wide Receivers and Recruiting Coordinator - Brian NorwoodBrian NorwoodBrian Norwood is an American football coach . He currently serves as Assistant Head Coach to Art Briles at Baylor University. Both Norwood and Briles served as assistants to Mike Leach at Texas Tech in 2000...
– Safeties - Jay PaternoJay PaternoJoseph Vincent "Jay" Paterno, Jr. is the passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Penn State Nittany Lions football team. He is the son of legendary former coach Joe Paterno.-Playing career :...
– Quarterbacks - Ron VanderlindenRon VanderlindenRon Vanderlinden is an American college football coach. He is currently the co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Penn State University. Vanderlinden previously served as the head coach at the University of Maryland from 1997 to 2000....
– Linebackers - John Thomas – Strength and Conditioning
September 3: South Florida
Penn State opened the season by defeating the BullsSouth Florida Bulls football
The South Florida Bulls are a Division I FBS college football program that plays its home games in Tampa, Florida. The team began playing in 1997, holding its first team meeting under a shade tree as the school had no proper football facilities on campus...
23–13. In his debut as a full-time starter at quarterback, Michael Robinson struggled, finishing 9 of 15 for 90 yards and an interception that set up the Bulls' first touchdown. Robinson also ran for 39 yards on 18 carries but was sacked three times and lost two fumbles. Tony Hunt
Tony Hunt
Antonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
finished with a career-high 140 yards on 15 carries. Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
scored the Lions' first touchdown of the year on a fumble recovery.
The Nittany Lions also tried to show off two highly touted freshmen. Justin King
Justin King (American football)
King was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the 4th round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He signed a three-year $1.52 million contract that included a $376,000 signing bonus.-2008 Season:...
, who played both ways in the game, made his first contribution with a 61 yard run on a reverse. Derrick Williams finished with 38 yards on three catches.
Punter Jeremy Kapinos
Jeremy Kapinos
Jeremy D. Kapinos is an American football punter for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He was first signed by the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2007...
landed three punts inside the 11 and was named the Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Special Teams Player of the Week.
September 10: Cincinnati
Michael Robinson went bombs away to the Lions' speedy freshmen as Penn State defeated the BearcatsCincinnati Bearcats
The Cincinnati Bearcats are the NCAA athletic teams representing the University of Cincinnati. Since July 1, 2005, the school's athletic teams have been members of the Big East Conference....
42–24. The offense struggled in the first half, but Robinson hooked up with Justin King
Justin King (American football)
King was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the 4th round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He signed a three-year $1.52 million contract that included a $376,000 signing bonus.-2008 Season:...
for a 59-yard touchdown in the third quarter, followed by a 41-yard bomb to Derrick Williams
Derrick Williams
Derrick Williams is an American football wide receiver who is currently a free agent. He was selected by the Detroit Lions with the 18th pick of the 3rd round of the 2009 NFL Draft...
on the next possession. In the fourth quarter, Deon Butler
Deon Butler
Vincent Deon Butler is an American football wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Seahawks in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State....
hooked up with Robinson for a 45-yard touchdown. Robinson finished 11 of 17 for 220 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
Penn State's backup quarterback, sophomore Anthony Morelli
Anthony Morelli
Anthony Michael Morelli is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2008...
, made his season debut, finishing 4 of 5 passes and scoring the Lions' final touchdown on a 1-yard keeper.
September 17: Central Michigan
Penn State displayed an aerial attack rarely seen in Beaver Stadium as the Lions defense held the ChippewasCentral Michigan University
Central Michigan University is a public research university located in Mount Pleasant in the U.S. state of Michigan...
to only 172 total yards for a 40–3 win. Michael Robinson finished 14 of 23 for 274 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. Two of those touchdowns were to Deon Butler
Deon Butler
Vincent Deon Butler is an American football wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Seahawks in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State....
in the second quarter for 54 and 24 yards. Terrell Golden caught the third touchdown, a 47 yarder in the third quarter.
Robinson was pulled halfway through the third quarter for backup Anthony Morelli
Anthony Morelli
Anthony Michael Morelli is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2008...
, who finished 8 of 13 for 107 yards, including a 55-yard touchdown to Ethan Kilmer
Ethan Kilmer
Ethan Michael Kilmer is a former American football safety of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
.
September 24: Northwestern
Michael Robinson led a come-from-behind 34–29 win against the WildcatsNorthwestern Wildcats football
The Northwestern Wildcats football team, representing Northwestern University, is a NCAA Division I team and member of the Big Ten Conference, with evidence of organization in 1876...
, but in the first half Robinson threw three interceptions and lost a fumble to dig a deep hole for the Lions. But the offense would recover in the second half and outscore the Wildcats 17–6 in the fourth quarter to escape with the win.
The defining drive came with two minutes left, trailing by two points. On a fourth-and-15, Robinson threw a 20-yard strike to tight end Isaac Smolko
Isaac Smolko
Isaac Joseph Smolko is an American football tight end who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 2006...
. Five plays later, Robinson would lob a 36-yard pass out to Derrick Williams
Derrick Williams
Derrick Williams is an American football wide receiver who is currently a free agent. He was selected by the Detroit Lions with the 18th pick of the 3rd round of the 2009 NFL Draft...
who caught the ball, ducked to avoid a defender, and dashed into the end zone. Anwar Phillips
Anwar Phillips
Anwar M.S. Phillips is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at Penn State....
would pick off Northwestern's Brett Basanez
Brett Basanez
Brett Stephen Basanez is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at Northwestern....
to seal the win.
Williams' touchdown reception from Robinson was selected the Pontiac
Pontiac
Pontiac was an automobile brand that was established in 1926 as a companion make for General Motors' Oakland. Quickly overtaking its parent in popularity, it supplanted the Oakland brand entirely by 1933 and, for most of its life, became a companion make for Chevrolet. Pontiac was sold in the...
Game Changing Performance of the week.
Linebacker Paul Posluszny
Paul Posluszny
Paul Michael Posluszny , commonly known as "Poz", is an American football linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
recorded a career-high 22 tackles, the most by a Penn State player since 1977, and was named the Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Player of the Week.
October 1: Minnesota
Minnesota Golden Gophers football
The University of Minnesota Golden Gophers are one of the oldest programs in college football history. They compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. The Golden Gophers have claimed six national championships and have an all time record of 646–481–44 as...
. Tony Hunt
Tony Hunt
Antonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
ran for 114 yards, and Michael Robinson ran for 112 yards, his first 100-yard rushing game, including a hard hit on Gophers safety Brandon Owens. Robinson never went down, but Owens was knocked out and needed help off the field, ending his football career with uprooted nerves in his spinal column. Hunt and Derrick Williams
Derrick Williams
Derrick Williams is an American football wide receiver who is currently a free agent. He was selected by the Detroit Lions with the 18th pick of the 3rd round of the 2009 NFL Draft...
each scored two rushing touchdowns.
The defense held the Gophers to just 287 total yards and 13 first downs. (In contrast, Penn State had 35 first downs.) Minnesota tailback Laurence Maroney
Laurence Maroney
Laurence Maroney is an American football running back who is currently a free agent in the National Football League. He was drafted by the New England Patriots 21st overall in the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college football at Minnesota.-Early years:Maroney attended Normandy Senior High School in St...
entered the game as the nation's leader in rushing yards and all-purpose yards, rushing for at least 100 yards in the last six games, and was considered by some to be the frontrunner for the Heisman
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
. The Lions' defense held Maroney to only 46 yards on 16 carries.
After recording nine tackles, Paul Posluszny
Paul Posluszny
Paul Michael Posluszny , commonly known as "Poz", is an American football linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
was named the Walter Camp
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
National Defensive Player of the Week as well as the Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Co-Defensive Player of the Week.
October 8: Ohio State
Penn State defeated the BuckeyesOhio State Buckeyes football
The Ohio State Buckeyes football team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of The Ohio State University. The team is a member of the Big Ten Conference of the NCAA, playing at the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly Division I-A, level. The team nickname is derived from the state...
17–10 in front of 109,839 fans, during a student White Out, at the time the second-largest Beaver Stadium
Beaver Stadium
Beaver Stadium is an outdoor college football stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania, United States, on the campus of The Pennsylvania State University. It is home to the Penn State Nittany Lions of the Big Ten Conference. The stadium is named for James A...
crowd (topped later the same season by the home game versus Wisconsin). Michael Robinson threw for 78 yards and carried the ball 14 times for 52 yards and a touchdown. Calvin Lowry
Calvin Lowry
Calvin Sinclair Lowry is an American football safety who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
intercepted Ohio State QB Troy Smith
Troy Smith
Troy James Smith is an American football quarterback for the Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens of the NFL in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Ohio State.Smith has also played for the San Francisco 49ers. He...
and returned the ball to the 2-yard line, setting up Robinson's touchdown.
Ohio State, needing to score a game-tying touchdown, began their final possession on their own 11 yard line with under 4 minutes to play. After moving the ball into Penn State territory, Tamba Hali
Tamba Hali
Tamba Boimah Hali is an American football outside linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs in the National Football League. He was the 20th overall pick out of Penn State in the 2006 NFL Draft...
sacked Smith at midfield, forcing a fumble recovered by Scott Paxson
Scott Paxson
Scott M. Paxson is an American football nose tackle of the National Football League who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 2006...
and allowing the Nittany Lions to run out the clock. Led by Paul Posluszny
Paul Posluszny
Paul Michael Posluszny , commonly known as "Poz", is an American football linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
who had 14 tackles and a sack in the game, the Penn State defense held the Buckeyes to only 230 total yards.
Posluszny was named the Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Co-Defensive Player of the Week, the first time that a Big Ten player has been named in three consecutive weeks. The team was named the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week
The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week is a weekly award given by the Football Writers Association of America to an American College Football team to honor that team's win and performance. Beginning in 2002, the members of the FWAA began naming a National Team of the Week...
by the Football Writers Association of America
Football Writers Association of America
The Football Writers Association of America is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the NCAA...
.
The game was ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
's second largest audience for a regular season college football game. That morning's ESPN's College Gameday, which broadcast from University Park for the first time since 1999, was the most-viewed edition of that program in its history.
October 15: Michigan
The WolverinesMichigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...
defeated the Nittany Lions 27–25 on the game's final play to hand Penn State its first and only loss of the season. It would cap a wild fourth quarter where the two teams would combine for 39 points and four lead changes. Down 10–3 in the fourth, the Lions would quickly strike twice, the first would be a Michael Robinson two yard keeper set up by a Tony Hunt
Tony Hunt
Antonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
61-yard run. On the Wolverines next drive, Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
would strip Michigan quarterback Chad Henne
Chad Henne
Chad Steven Henne is an American football quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League.He graduated from Wilson Senior High School and attended the University of Michigan...
during the tackle and returned it 35 yards for the score. Kicker Kevin Kelly
Kevin Kelly (American football)
Kevin Patrick Kelly is a former four-year starting placekicker for coach Joe Paterno's Penn State Nittany Lions football team. He is from Bristol, Pennsylvania...
would put Penn State up 18–10 after a picking up a bad snap on the extra point
Extra Point
Extra Point is a twice-daily, two-minute segment on ESPN Radio that covers generic sports-related topical news and opinion. The AM edition airs Monday through Saturday at various times between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. ET, and the PM edition airs Monday through Friday between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET...
and running it in for the two-point conversion
Two-point conversion
In American and Canadian football, a two-point conversion is a play a team attempts instead of kicking a one-point convert immediately after it scores a touchdown...
.
Michigan would score on its next two drives to go up 21–18, but the defense would get the ball back to Robinson, who would put together a 81-yard drive, including a 4th down and 7 yard conversion, and score on a 3-yard keeper with :53 left to give the Lions a 25–21 lead.
However, the game would come down to seconds. Michigan's final drive, fueled by a Steve Breaston
Steve Breaston
Steven William Breaston is an American football wide receiver and punt returner for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cardinals in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
kick return to midfield, started with an apparent interception that was later reviewed to be out of bounds. The Wolverines called timeout after a Henne pass completion with the clock stopped at :28. Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr
Lloyd Carr
Lloyd H. Carr is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Michigan from 1995 through the 2007 season. Under Carr, the Wolverines compiled a record of 122–40 and won or shared five Big Ten Conference titles...
called the officials over, and after a protest by Carr and a long conference, the officials reset the game clock to 0:30. Those extra two seconds would turn out to impact the outcome of the game. Six plays later, with 0:01 on the clock, Michigan would score the game-winning touchdown on a Henne pass to Mario Manningham
Mario Manningham
Mario Cashmere Manningham is an American football wide receiver for the New York Giants of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Giants in the third round of the 2008 NFL Draft...
.
Derrick Williams
Derrick Williams
Derrick Williams is an American football wide receiver who is currently a free agent. He was selected by the Detroit Lions with the 18th pick of the 3rd round of the 2009 NFL Draft...
was lost for the rest of the season when he broke his left arm when tackled on a kickoff return late in the game.
October 22: Illinois
Penn State scored touchdowns on its first four possessions en route to a 63–10 rout of the Fighting IlliniIllinois Fighting Illini
The Fighting Illini are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The University offers 10 men's and 11 women's varsity sports....
. The Illini scored an early field goal, but would never regain the lead. Michael Robinson led the charge with four touchdown passes on his first six completions, connecting with Ethan Kilmer
Ethan Kilmer
Ethan Michael Kilmer is a former American football safety of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
, Patrick Hall
Patrick Hall
Patrick Hall is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Bedford from 1997 to 2010.-Early life:...
, and twice with Deon Butler
Deon Butler
Vincent Deon Butler is an American football wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Seahawks in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State....
. Robinson would rush for two more in the second quarter before sitting out the rest of the game.
In the second half, Anthony Morelli
Anthony Morelli
Anthony Michael Morelli is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2008...
quarterbacked a more conservative offense, attempting only two passes and constantly handing off to Austin Scott who had 57 rushing yards. Very late in the fourth quarter, the Illini scored their only touchdown of the game, to make the final score 63–10.
The defense did their share of scoring too. In the second quarter, Tim Shaw hit Illini quarterback Tim Brasic and forced a fumble, picked up by Dan Connor who ran it in 18 yards for the touchdown. In the third quarter, Nolan McCready would return an interception 77 yards for the final Lions touchdown.
For his six touchdown performance, Robinson was named the Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Offensive Player of the Week. Robinson's six touchdowns ties a school record set in 1917, and his career-high four touchdown passes ties an 88-year old school record. The Nittany Lions' 56 first-half points broke the school record of 55 set in 1947.
October 29: Purdue
Special teams stood out as Penn State defeated the BoilermakersPurdue Boilermakers football
The Purdue Boilermakers football team is the intercollegiate football program of the Purdue University Boilermakers. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I Bowl Subdivision, and the team competes in the Big Ten Conference. The Boilermakers have an all-time record of...
33–15. Ethan Kilmer
Ethan Kilmer
Ethan Michael Kilmer is a former American football safety of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
had six special teams tackles and a forced fumble that led to a field goal. Kevin Kelly
Kevin Kelly (American football)
Kevin Patrick Kelly is a former four-year starting placekicker for coach Joe Paterno's Penn State Nittany Lions football team. He is from Bristol, Pennsylvania...
was four for four on field goals. Rodney Kinlaw
Rodney Kinlaw
Rodney Eddrick Kinlaw is a professional American Football running back. He currently plays for the Mönchengladbach Mavericks of the German Football League. He has also played for the Edmonton Eskimos and Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League...
would return a kickoff 58 yards that set up a touchdown.
Michael Robinson would finish 13 of 29 for 213 yards passing and rushed for 96 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown. Tony Hunt
Tony Hunt
Antonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
would gain 129 yards on 24 carries, his fourth 100-yard rushing game this season. Fullback BranDon Snow would score his first two career touchdowns on runs of 2 and 4 yards.
November 5: Wisconsin
On senior day with the Big Ten title on the line in front of the season's second student White Out, Penn State cruised to a convincing 35–14 win over the BadgersWisconsin Badgers football
The Wisconsin Badgers are a college football program that represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. They play their home games at Camp Randall Stadium, the fourth-oldest stadium in college football...
behind the strong performance of both the offense and defense. The Lions struck first with a 43-yard pass from Michael Robinson to Deon Butler
Deon Butler
Vincent Deon Butler is an American football wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Seahawks in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State....
on the first drive. Butler would finish with five catches for 125 yards. Robinson finished 13 of 28 for 238 yards, two interceptions and two touchdowns, both to Butler, and also rush for 125 yards on 16 carries. Tony Hunt
Tony Hunt
Antonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
rushed for 151 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns.
Wisconsin tailback Brian Calhoun
Brian Calhoun
Brian Calhoun is a gridiron football running back for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the third round of the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college football at Wisconsin....
, a Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
candidate, entered the game ranked fifth nationally in all-purpose yardage and rushing yardage and led the nation with 21 touchdowns. However, the defense limited Calhoun to only 38 yard rushing. The Lions defense was also constantly in the Badgers backfield, tallying nine sacks, four by Tamba Hali
Tamba Hali
Tamba Boimah Hali is an American football outside linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs in the National Football League. He was the 20th overall pick out of Penn State in the 2006 NFL Draft...
who also had nine tackles. Wisconsin's net rushing yardage was minus-11 yards. Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
and Calvin Lowry
Calvin Lowry
Calvin Sinclair Lowry is an American football safety who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
each intercepted the Badgers once.
Hali was named the Walter Camp
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
National Defensive Player of the Week and the Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Player of the Week. He was also named Player of the Week by Sporting News, Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
and USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
.
November 19: Michigan State
ESPNESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
's College Gameday broadcast from East Lansing
East Lansing, Michigan
East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located directly east of Lansing, Michigan, the state's capital. Most of the city is within Ingham County, though a small portion lies in Clinton County. The population was 48,579 at the time of the 2010 census, an increase from...
, covering a Penn State game for the second time this season.
The Lions captured the Big Ten title and a BCS bowl berth with a 31–22 win over the Spartans
Michigan State Spartans football
The Michigan State Spartans football program represents Michigan State University in college football as members of the Big Ten Conference at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level...
. Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis
Alan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
intercepted Spartans quarterback Drew Stanton
Drew Stanton
Drew Emeric Stanton is a quarterback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League. He played collegiately for the Michigan State Spartans.-Early life:...
three times and also tallied seven tackles. Nickelback Donnie Johnson also had an interception to preserve a 17–0 Lions lead at the half. Johnson's biggest play however may be a blocked punt earlier in the second quarter that was recovered by backup fullback Matt Hahn in the end zone, his first career touchdown.
Michael Robinson finished 10 of 20 for 105 yards and a touchdown and also rushed for 90 yards on 13 carries, including a 33-yard touchdown run, the longest rushing touchdown of his career. Tony Hunt
Tony Hunt
Antonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
finished with 89 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown, pushing him past 1,000 yards rushing this season.
Zemaitis was named Walter Camp
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
National Defensive Player of the Week and the Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Player of the Week. Johnson was named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week.
January 3: 2006 Orange Bowl – Florida State
It was nearly 1:00 a.m. local time as Kevin KellyKevin Kelly (American football)
Kevin Patrick Kelly is a former four-year starting placekicker for coach Joe Paterno's Penn State Nittany Lions football team. He is from Bristol, Pennsylvania...
kicked the game-winning field goal to end the triple overtime thriller 26–23 against the Seminoles. It was Kelly's third attempt to win the game, after missing at the end of regulation and in the first overtime. The teams traded touchdowns in the second overtime, and Florida State kicker Gary Cismesia missed in the first and third overtimes.
Austin Scott led the Penn State rushing attack, filling in for an injured Tony Hunt
Tony Hunt
Antonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
who left the game on the first possession. Scott finished with 26 carries for 110 yards and two touchdowns. Michael Robinson was 21 of 39 for 253 yards passing, including a 24-yard touchdown pass to Ethan Kilmer
Ethan Kilmer
Ethan Michael Kilmer is a former American football safety of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
, who made an acrobatic catch in the end zone over the back of a Seminoles defender at the end of the first half.
Penn State's receivers also posted a number of career highs. Kilmer set career highs with six catches for 79 yards and a touchdown. Jordan Norwood
Jordan Norwood
Jordan Shea Rashad Norwood is a Filipino-American American football wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. He was signed by the Browns as an undrafted free agent in 2009. He played college football at Penn State.Norwood has also been a member of the Philadelphia...
had career highs with six receptions for 110 yards, and Justin King
Justin King (American football)
King was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the 4th round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He signed a three-year $1.52 million contract that included a $376,000 signing bonus.-2008 Season:...
made a career-high five receptions for 27 yards.
Paul Posluszny
Paul Posluszny
Paul Michael Posluszny , commonly known as "Poz", is an American football linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
injured his knee in the fourth quarter while attempting to leap over a blocker, causing partial tears of his posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) and medial collateral ligament (MCL). The injury would not require surgery but needed six to eight weeks to rehabilitate.
Rankings
| Poll | Pre | Wk 1 | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 8 | Wk 9 | Wk 10 | Wk 11 | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AP | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | 16 | 8 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Coaches | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | 18 | 10 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Harris | Not released | NR | 19 | 9 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | Not released | |||
| BCS | Not released | 10 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | |||||||
Watchlists
- Dan ConnorDan Connor (American football)Daniel Murphy Connor is an American football linebacker for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Panthers in the third round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State....
-
- Chuck Bednarik AwardChuck Bednarik AwardThe Chuck Bednarik Award is presented annually to the defensive collegiate football player adjudged by the Maxwell Football Club to be the best in the United States...
watchlist
- Chuck Bednarik Award
- Tamba HaliTamba HaliTamba Boimah Hali is an American football outside linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs in the National Football League. He was the 20th overall pick out of Penn State in the 2006 NFL Draft...
-
- Ted Hendricks AwardTed Hendricks AwardThe Ted Hendricks Award is given annually to college football's top defensive end. The award is named after Ted Hendricks, who is a member of both the College Football Hall of Fame as well as the Pro Football Hall of Fame and is presented by his own 501 foundation, called the Ted Hendricks...
finalist - Bronko Nagurski TrophyBronko Nagurski TrophyThe Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been awarded annually since 1993 to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the membership of the Football Writers Association of America to be the best defensively in the National Collegiate Athletic Association; the award is presented by the Charlotte...
finalist
- Ted Hendricks Award
- Tony HuntTony HuntAntonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
-
- Maxwell AwardMaxwell AwardThe Maxwell Award is presented annually to the collegiate American football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best football player in the United States. The...
watchlist
- Maxwell Award
- Jeremy KapinosJeremy KapinosJeremy D. Kapinos is an American football punter for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He was first signed by the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2007...
-
- Ray Guy AwardRay Guy AwardThe Ray Guy Award is presented annually to college football's top punter by the Greater Augusta Sports Council. The award is named after punter Ray Guy, a former All-American at Southern Mississippi and an all-pro player for the Oakland Raiders.-Criteria:...
watchlist
- Ray Guy Award
- Joe PaternoJoe PaternoJoseph Vincent "Joe" Paterno is a former college football coach who was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011. Paterno, nicknamed "JoePa," holds the record for the most victories by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision football coach with...
-
- AFCAAmerican Football Coaches AssociationThe American Football Coaches Association is an association of over 11,000 football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "maintain the highest possible standards in football and the profession of...
Coach of the Year finalist - Eddie Robinson Coach of the YearEddie Robinson Coach of the YearThe Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year award is given annually to a college football coach by the Football Writers Association of America. The award honors Eddie Robinson, former coach at Grambling State who holds the second best record for most Division I wins with 408 behind only Joe...
finalist - George Munger AwardGeorge Munger AwardThe George Munger Award was presented to the NCAA Division I college football coach of the year by the Maxwell Football Club from 1989 to 2009. The award was named after former University of Pennsylvania head coach George Munger...
semifinalist and finalist
- AFCA
- Paul PoslusznyPaul PoslusznyPaul Michael Posluszny , commonly known as "Poz", is an American football linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
-
- Bronko Nagurski TrophyBronko Nagurski TrophyThe Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been awarded annually since 1993 to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the membership of the Football Writers Association of America to be the best defensively in the National Collegiate Athletic Association; the award is presented by the Charlotte...
watchlist - Chuck Bednarik AwardChuck Bednarik AwardThe Chuck Bednarik Award is presented annually to the defensive collegiate football player adjudged by the Maxwell Football Club to be the best in the United States...
watchlist, semifinalist and finalist - Dick Butkus AwardDick Butkus AwardThe Butkus Award, instituted in 1985, is given annually to the top linebackers at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of football...
watchlist, semifinalist and finalist - Lombardi AwardLombardi AwardThe Rotary Lombardi Award is awarded annually to the best college football lineman or linebacker. The Lombardi Award program was approved by the Rotary Club in Houston in 1970 shortly after the death of Vince Lombardi. The committee outlined the criteria for eligibility for the award, which...
semifinalist and finalist
- Bronko Nagurski Trophy
- Michael Robinson
-
- Maxwell AwardMaxwell AwardThe Maxwell Award is presented annually to the collegiate American football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best football player in the United States. The...
watchlist - Davey O'Brien AwardDavey O'Brien AwardThe Davey O'Brien Award, officially the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, named after Davey O'Brien, is presented annually to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the Davey O'Brien Foundation to be the best of all National Collegiate Athletic Association quarterbacks. The...
semifinalist - Johnny Unitas Golden Arm AwardJohnny Unitas Golden Arm AwardThe Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award is given annually in the United States to the nation's outstanding senior quarterback in college football. It was established in 1987 by a foundation named for Johnny Unitas , the Hall of Fame quarterback who played his college career at the University of...
watchlist
- Maxwell Award
- Alan ZemaitisAlan ZemaitisAlan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
-
- Bronko Nagurski TrophyBronko Nagurski TrophyThe Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been awarded annually since 1993 to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the membership of the Football Writers Association of America to be the best defensively in the National Collegiate Athletic Association; the award is presented by the Charlotte...
watchlist - Chuck Bednarik AwardChuck Bednarik AwardThe Chuck Bednarik Award is presented annually to the defensive collegiate football player adjudged by the Maxwell Football Club to be the best in the United States...
watchlist - Jim Thorpe AwardJim Thorpe AwardThe Jim Thorpe Award, named in memory of multi-sport legend Jim Thorpe, has been awarded to the top defensive back in college football since 1986...
watchlist and semifinalist
- Bronko Nagurski Trophy
Players
- Jay AlfordJay AlfordJason Jamaal Alford is an American football defensive tackle who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the New York Giants in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State....
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- ESPN.com All-Bowl Team
- Second-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
(conference media selection)
- Levi Brown
-
- First-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
(conference coaches selection) - Second-team Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n
- First-team All-Big Ten
- Tamba HaliTamba HaliTamba Boimah Hali is an American football outside linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs in the National Football League. He was the 20th overall pick out of Penn State in the 2006 NFL Draft...
-
- AFCAAmerican Football Coaches AssociationThe American Football Coaches Association is an association of over 11,000 football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "maintain the highest possible standards in football and the profession of...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team Sporting News All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team Walter CampWalter CampWalter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Lineman of the Year - First-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
- FWAAFootball Writers Association of AmericaThe Football Writers Association of America is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the NCAA...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - Sports IllustratedSports IllustratedSports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
mid-season All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - Walter CampWalter CampWalter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
National Defensive Player of the Week (Nov. 5) - Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Player of the Week (Nov. 5) - Sporting News National Player of the Week (Nov. 5)
- Sports IllustratedSports IllustratedSports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
National Player of the Week (Nov. 5) - USA TodayUSA TodayUSA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
Player of the Week (Nov. 5)
- AFCA
- Tony HuntTony HuntAntonio Christopher Hunt is an American football running back for the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna of the Austrian Football League. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Penn State.-Early years:A standout player at T. C...
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- Second-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
(conference coaches selection)
- Second-team All-Big Ten
- Donnie Johnson
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- Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Special Teams Player of the Week (Nov. 19)
- Big Ten
- Jeremy KapinosJeremy KapinosJeremy D. Kapinos is an American football punter for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He was first signed by the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2007...
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- Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Special Teams Player of the Week (Sep. 3)
- Big Ten
- Calvin LowryCalvin LowryCalvin Sinclair Lowry is an American football safety who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
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- First-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
(conference coaches selection)
- First-team All-Big Ten
- Nolan McCready
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- ESPN The MagazineESPN The MagazineESPN The Magazine is a bi-weekly sports magazine published by the ESPN sports network in Bristol, Connecticut in the United States. The first issue was published on March 11, 1998....
CoSIDA Academic All-District
- ESPN The Magazine
- Scott PaxsonScott PaxsonScott M. Paxson is an American football nose tackle of the National Football League who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 2006...
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- First-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
(conference coaches selection)
- First-team All-Big Ten
- Paul PoslusznyPaul PoslusznyPaul Michael Posluszny , commonly known as "Poz", is an American football linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
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- 2005 Bednarik AwardChuck Bednarik AwardThe Chuck Bednarik Award is presented annually to the defensive collegiate football player adjudged by the Maxwell Football Club to be the best in the United States...
winner - 2005 Butkus AwardDick Butkus AwardThe Butkus Award, instituted in 1985, is given annually to the top linebackers at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of football...
winner - First-team ESPN The MagazineESPN The MagazineESPN The Magazine is a bi-weekly sports magazine published by the ESPN sports network in Bristol, Connecticut in the United States. The first issue was published on March 11, 1998....
CoSIDA Academic All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team Sporting News All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team Walter CampWalter CampWalter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
- FWAAFootball Writers Association of AmericaThe Football Writers Association of America is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the NCAA...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - ESPN The MagazineESPN The MagazineESPN The Magazine is a bi-weekly sports magazine published by the ESPN sports network in Bristol, Connecticut in the United States. The first issue was published on March 11, 1998....
CoSIDA Academic All-District - CBS SportsCBS SportsCBS Sports is a division of CBS Broadcasting which airs sporting events on the American television network. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on West 52nd Street in midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street.CBS...
mid-season All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - College Football NewsCollege Football NewsCollege Football News is a magazine and website published by College Football News, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. News coverage includes scores, statistics, rankings, and reports on college football games. Analysis includes comparisons between teams, predictions of game outcomes and...
mid-season All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - Sports IllustratedSports IllustratedSports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
mid-season All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - Walter CampWalter CampWalter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
National Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 1) - Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Player of the Week (Sep. 24) - Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 1) - Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 8)
- 2005 Bednarik Award
- Matthew RiceMatthew RiceMatthew Nathaniel Rice is an American football player, best known for playing the defensive end position. He played collegiately at Penn State University and attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Maryland.-Football:...
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- Second-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
(conference media selection)
- Second-team All-Big Ten
- Michael Robinson
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- Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Offensive Player of the Year (conference coaches selection) - Chicago Tribune Silver FootballChicago Tribune Silver FootballThe Chicago Tribune Silver Football is awarded by the Chicago Tribune to the college football player determined to be the best player from the Big Ten Conference. The award has been presented annually since 1924, when Red Grange of Illinois was the award's first recipient.The winner of the Silver...
Award winner - Second-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
- Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Offensive Player of the Week (Oct. 22)
- Big Ten
- Derrick WilliamsDerrick WilliamsDerrick Williams is an American football wide receiver who is currently a free agent. He was selected by the Detroit Lions with the 18th pick of the 3rd round of the 2009 NFL Draft...
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- ESPNESPNEntertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
/PontiacPontiacPontiac was an automobile brand that was established in 1926 as a companion make for General Motors' Oakland. Quickly overtaking its parent in popularity, it supplanted the Oakland brand entirely by 1933 and, for most of its life, became a companion make for Chevrolet. Pontiac was sold in the...
Game Changing Performance (Sep. 24)
- ESPN
- Alan ZemaitisAlan ZemaitisAlan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft...
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- Second-team Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - Second-team Walter CampWalter CampWalter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - Second-team Sporting News All-AmericaAll-AmericaAn All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n - First-team All-Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
- Walter CampWalter CampWalter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
National Defensive Player of the Week (Nov. 19) - Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Defensive Player of the Week (Nov. 19)
- Second-team Associated Press
Coaches
- Joe PaternoJoe PaternoJoseph Vincent "Joe" Paterno is a former college football coach who was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011. Paterno, nicknamed "JoePa," holds the record for the most victories by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision football coach with...
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- AFCAAmerican Football Coaches AssociationThe American Football Coaches Association is an association of over 11,000 football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "maintain the highest possible standards in football and the profession of...
Coach of the Year - Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
Coach of the Year - Bobby Dodd Coach of the YearBobby Dodd Coach of the Year AwardThe Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award is an annual college football award given to the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision head coach whose team excels on the field, in the classroom, and in the community. The award is named for Bobby Dodd, longtime head football coach at Georgia Tech and was...
- Home Depot Coach of the Year
- Sporting News College Football Coach of the Year
- Walter CampWalter CampWalter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
Coach of the Year - George Munger AwardGeorge Munger AwardThe George Munger Award was presented to the NCAA Division I college football coach of the year by the Maxwell Football Club from 1989 to 2009. The award was named after former University of Pennsylvania head coach George Munger...
winner - Dave McClain Big TenBig Ten ConferenceThe Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Coach of the Year
- AFCA
Other awards
- 2005 Lambert TrophyLambert-Meadowlands TrophyThe Lambert-Meadowlands Trophy is an annual award given to the best team in the Northeast in Division I FBS college football.The Lambert Trophy was established by brothers Victor and Henry Lambert in memory of their father, August. The Lamberts were the principals in a distinguished Madison Avenue...
winner - FWAAFootball Writers Association of AmericaThe Football Writers Association of America is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the NCAA...
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week (Oct. 8)
Post season
Penn State finished the season ranked2005 NCAA Division I-A football rankings
Three human polls and one formulaic ranking make up the 2005 NCAA Division I-A football rankings, in addition to various publications' preseason polls. Unlike most sports, college football's governing body, the National Collegiate Athletic Association , does not bestow a National Championship title...
number 3 in both the final AP
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
and Coaches
Coaches Poll
The USA Today Coaches' Poll is the current name for a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and Division I college basketball teams....
college football polls, earning Penn State its 13th Top 5 finish under Joe Paterno.
The team's unexpected success helped Penn State finish in the top four in football attendance for the 15th consecutive year, averaging 104,859 for seven home games. Three crowds topped 109,000: 109,865 vs. Wisconsin, 109,839 vs. Ohio State, and 109,467 vs. Purdue, ranking two through four as the largest crowds ever at Beaver Stadium. Penn State finished the season with a sellout crowd of 77,773 at the FedEx Orange Bowl.
Instead of declaring early for the NFL draft, Levi Brown and Paul Posluszny
Paul Posluszny
Paul Michael Posluszny , commonly known as "Poz", is an American football linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
both announced their intentions to return for their senior season.
NFL draft
Six seniors would go on and be drafted in the 2006 NFL Draft2006 NFL Draft
The 2006 National Football League Draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with additional coverage offered by ESPNU and, for the first time, by...
.
| Round | Pick | Overall | Name | Position | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 20 | 20 | Tamba Hali Tamba Hali Tamba Boimah Hali is an American football outside linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs in the National Football League. He was the 20th overall pick out of Penn State in the 2006 NFL Draft... |
Defensive end Defensive end Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years... |
Kansas City Chiefs Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a... |
| 4th | 3 | 100 | Michael Robinson | Running back Running back A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running... |
San Francisco 49ers San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and... |
| 4th | 5 | 102 | Calvin Lowry Calvin Lowry Calvin Sinclair Lowry is an American football safety who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft... |
Free safety | Tennessee Titans Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter... |
| 4th | 25 | 122 | Alan Zemaitis Alan Zemaitis Alan Zemaitis is a professional American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft... |
Cornerback Cornerback A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position... |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West... |
| 6th | 31 | 200 | Tyler Reed Tyler Reed Tyler Blake Reed is an American football guard who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the sixth round of the 2006 NFL Draft... |
Offensive guard | Chicago Bears Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League... |
| 7th | 1 | 209 | Ethan Kilmer Ethan Kilmer Ethan Michael Kilmer is a former American football safety of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL Draft... |
Free safety | Cincinnati Bengals Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL... |
All-star games
| Game | Date | Site | Players |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60th Hula Bowl Hula Bowl The Hula Bowl was an independently administered post-season invitational college football game held each year in Hawaii from 1947 to 2008. The game was last played at Aloha Stadium in the Hālawa district of Honolulu, Hawaii. At one point the longest-running sporting event in Hawaii, it had been... |
January 21, 2006 | Aloha Stadium Aloha Stadium Aloha Stadium is a stadium located in the Halawa CDP, City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Currently Aloha Stadium is home to the University of Hawaii Warriors football team... , Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and... |
Calvin Lowry, Scott Paxson, Matthew Rice |
| 57th Senior Bowl Senior Bowl The Senior Bowl is a post-season college football exhibition game played in Mobile, Alabama which showcases the best NFL Draft prospects of those collegiate players who have completed their eligibility. First played in 1950 in Jacksonville, Florida, the game moved to Mobile's Ladd Peebles Stadium... |
January 28, 2006 | Ladd Peebles Stadium Ladd Peebles Stadium Ladd Peebles Stadium is a stadium in Mobile, Alabama. It is primarily used for American football, and is the home field for the Senior Bowl, the GoDaddy.com Bowl, the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic, and the University of South Alabama Jaguars... , Mobile, Alabama Mobile, Alabama Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest... |
Tamba Hali, Anwar Phillips, Michael Robinson * |
| * Alan Zemaitis was also invited to play in the Senior Bowl but did not attend | |||