Anthony Morelli

Perhaps the best sign that a team is good and progressing toward great is when it doesn't capitalize on all of its opponent's mistakes but still wins on the road. Each time Penn State failed to take advantage of opportunities yesterday against Indiana, the feeling had to be, "This is going to come back to haunt them. " But the Nittany Lions finally scared off the road-game ghosts by outlasting the pesky Hoosiers, 36-31, most notably with a late fourth-quarter drive yesterday at Memorial Stadium.

Anthony Morelli has learned to hide behind the protective facade that widely criticized athletes often construct for themselves. The Penn State quarterback peers out from behind it during interviews. His body language doesn't just suggest caution, it shouts it. His rote answers come in rapid-fire bursts. He seldom smiles. He rarely jokes. He doesn't engage with reporters the way his media-savvy predecessor, Michael Robinson, did. That's what happens when you're the quarterback of a Penn State team that lost four games, when you get blamed for the defeats, when you've been called dumb and disappointing, when your performances haven't matched your physical gifts.

When Anthony Morelli signed a letter of intent with Penn State yesterday, it was a stroke of good fortune for coach Joe Paterno, whose Nittany Lions were desperate to successfully recruit a quarterback as highly regarded as the strong-armed, 6-foot-4, 210-pounder from Pittsburgh's Penn Hills High School. Morelli, who grew up idolizing Dan Marino, gave Pitt an oral commitment in August, but Penn State quickly moved in when Morelli announced in mid-January that he was having second thoughts about joining the Panthers and was willing to listen to other suitors.

When quarterback Anthony Morelli ran onto the field to play in the fourth quarter of Penn State's opening-day win over Akron, many wondered what Penn State coach Joe Paterno was thinking. Why squander a year of eligibility on a prized recruit who had three quarterbacks ahead of him on the depth chart, including two with starting experience - Zack Mills and Michael Robinson? Now, with Penn State's fourth losing season in the last five years nearing a merciful conclusion, Paterno has admitted he made a mistake.

He launched the website in 2007, Anthony Morelli says, as a space for him to vent. And its URL left no doubt about the subject: ThePsychoExWife.com - a place of no names, only acronyms, but plenty of wicked description. "Imagine, if you will, Jabba the Hut, with less personality," he blogged about his ex. "She spends her time . . . drinking her days away bemoaning her victim status, when she isn't stuffing the children with fast food, buying them toys, or pushing them towards the TV or computer.

Penn State announced yesterday three senior captains for the football team. Linebacker Dan Connor, who graduated from Strath Haven High, quarterback Anthony Morelli, and receiver Terrell Golden were selected as the leaders. Penn State coach Joe Paterno had said he was struggling with the decision of picking captains for the season so he let the team vote. The Nittany Lions, who are ranked No. 17 in the Associated Press preseason poll, will start their season Sept. 1 against Florida International.

Penn State quarterback Anthony Morelli has accepted an invitation to play in Saturday's East-West Shrine Game, to be played at the University of Houston (7 p.m., ESPN). Former Eagles coach Dick Vermeil will coach the East. In addition to Morelli, the other East quarterbacks are LSU's Matt Flynn and Delaware's Joe Flacco. Rutgers offensive linemen Jeremy Zuttah and Pedro Sosa are also on the East roster. Morelli completed the 2007 season with 2,651 passing yards, just 28 shy of the Penn State single-season mark of 2,679 set by Kerry Collins in 1994.

Anthony Morelli, 62, whose produce stand sparked a father-and-son operation for three generations, died Thursday at Kennedy Memorial Hospitals/Stratford Division. Born in Camden, Mr. Morelli began his produce business in 1943. "He would load his truck up with produce and sell it to different establishments years back," said a daughter, Janet Snapp. His first patrons were those at the Naval Shipyard in Camden, where he began selling almost 50 years ago. When Mr. Morelli moved to Glendora in the 1950s, he purchased a corner lot on Black Horse Pike, set up an umbrella stand and began working alongside his father, Antonio.

Following in Joe Flacco's footsteps, Pat Devlin became the latest high-profile recruit to transfer out of a Division I-A program and onto the roster of Division I-AA Delaware when the former Penn State quarterback committed to the Blue Hens yesterday. Devlin, a former high school all-American at Downingtown East High, gave coach K.C. Keeler his pledge after a visit to the Newark campus over the weekend, according to a source close to Devlin. With this move, the redshirt sophomore is hoping to repeat Flacco's success at Delaware.

For three seasons Michael Robinson has yo-yoed from wide receiver to quarterback as Penn State looked to get one of its best athletes on the field. Now as a senior and with four-year starting quarterback Zack Mills gone, it appears to be Robinson's team to run. Coach Joe Paterno is never one to tip his hand, especially before spring practice, which begins on Monday. But as Paterno begins his 40th season as the Nittany Lions' head coach, he suggested that Robinson is likely be the quarterback for the upcoming season, but wouldn't say for sure.

He launched the website in 2007, Anthony Morelli says, as a space for him to vent. And its URL left no doubt about the subject: ThePsychoExWife.com - a place of no names, only acronyms, but plenty of wicked description. "Imagine, if you will, Jabba the Hut, with less personality," he blogged about his ex. "She spends her time . . . drinking her days away bemoaning her victim status, when she isn't stuffing the children with fast food, buying them toys, or pushing them towards the TV or computer.

When you look at Penn State quarterbacks in this decade, senior Daryll Clark perhaps is at the top of the list, having led the Nittany Lions to a 19-4 record as a starter. Unfortunately for Clark, critics tend to focus on the 4 and hardly pay attention to the 19, given that Clark's defeats have come in high-profile games - Iowa and Southern Cal last year, Iowa and Ohio State this season. The 6-foot-3, 232-pound fifth-year senior had his two worst performances of 2009, both at home, against the Nittany Lions' only ranked opponents.

Following in Joe Flacco's footsteps, Pat Devlin became the latest high-profile recruit to transfer out of a Division I-A program and onto the roster of Division I-AA Delaware when the former Penn State quarterback committed to the Blue Hens yesterday. Devlin, a former high school all-American at Downingtown East High, gave coach K.C. Keeler his pledge after a visit to the Newark campus over the weekend, according to a source close to Devlin. With this move, the redshirt sophomore is hoping to repeat Flacco's success at Delaware.

This week, both Joe Paterno and Al Golden were asked to compare their opponents to the previous two versions they faced. The coach and his former pupil provided what you would expect from opposing coaches in the prelude to a game: effusive praise. Temple is not only the best team 16th-ranked Penn State (3-0) will face thus far this season, Paterno said, but also "the best Temple team I think I've seen in a while. " And for Golden, there is no way to equate the Nittany Lions to last year's version.

For three years, Daryll Clark has gone to bed and dreamt Happy Valley dreams. For Penn State quarterbacks, it's almost a rite of passage. You wait your turn and when the guy ahead of you finally graduates, the dream becomes reality. "Once you sign on the dotted line to come to Penn State," Clark said, "the dream is to finally get a chance to run the show. " A 6-foot-2, 225-pound junior, Clark has been a dutiful apprentice his first three seasons in State College. He's been the patient team player that coach Joe Paterno often rewards when the time comes.

Penn State quarterback Anthony Morelli has accepted an invitation to play in Saturday's East-West Shrine Game, to be played at the University of Houston (7 p.m., ESPN). Former Eagles coach Dick Vermeil will coach the East. In addition to Morelli, the other East quarterbacks are LSU's Matt Flynn and Delaware's Joe Flacco. Rutgers offensive linemen Jeremy Zuttah and Pedro Sosa are also on the East roster. Morelli completed the 2007 season with 2,651 passing yards, just 28 shy of the Penn State single-season mark of 2,679 set by Kerry Collins in 1994.

Anthony Morelli has dodged a rush of reporters again. The Penn State quarterback did not attend yesterday's Alamo Bowl news conference, leaving the offensive players who showed up with the task of explaining his whereabouts instead of talking about how the Nittany Lions plan to deal with Texas A&M on Saturday. Because it has been 46 days since Morelli last met with the media - on Nov. 10, after Penn State beat Temple, 31-0 - the remaining Lions braced for the "Where's Anthony?"

If documentarian D.A. Pennebaker were to film a biography of Joe Paterno, it would not be titled Don't Look Back. Paterno, now in his 42d season as the head football coach at Penn State, never shies away from spinning a tale or two about the days of old. But on Thursday, the 80-year-old coach met with a handful of beat reporters to reflect on his career on the eve of his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame on Tuesday. So it was expected that Paterno would wax poetic about his past.

The story of how Penn State reeled in Anthony Morelli had everything: drama, dinner - and cannolis. Don't forget the cannolis. It was January 2004, and the Nittany Lions were scrambling to find a top-ranked high school quarterback after Chad Henne spurned Penn State for Michigan a month earlier. Morelli, though, was an in-state quarterback as highly regarded as Henne, from Wyomissing, Pa., and the Pittsburgh native had just de-committed from Pitt. He called up Penn State's football offices, expressed his interest, and soon after took an official visit to the State College campus.

The stage was set. The actors were in place. But there was no fairy-tale ending for Anthony Morelli. It was just another letdown for the Penn State protagonist/antagonist. And again, the Nittany Lions' quarterback was done in by his fatal flaw - his inability to perform under tense conditions. Morelli's last gasp attempt to lead Penn State on a come-from-behind drive proved fruitless, and the Lions coughed up a 35-31 loss to Michigan State yesterday. This was after the Lions led, 24-7, early in the third quarter.