Bill O Brien

Penn State 2013 signee Zayd Issah, a highly sought linebacker from Central Dauphin High School in Harrisburg, was arrested after he allegedly tried to pass counterfeit money to buy food at a McDonald's restaurant. Issah, who is 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds, was one of 12 players who signed national letters of intent on Feb. 6 to play football with the Nittany Lions. It was not known how the arrest will affect Issah's career at Penn State, where coach Bill O'Brien had expected him to compete for a backup role in his first season.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - The first drill on the first day of Penn State's spring practice Monday was simple enough: Wide receivers took on a cornerback one-on-one. The quarterbacks threw. The entire team stood on the sideline watching. Three repetitions in, coach Bill O'Brien didn't like what he saw. So he blew his whistle and stormed across the field. His face turned red. His voice echoed through Holuba Hall, the Nittany Lions' 118,000-square-foot indoor practice facility. "I'm not taking that this year," O'Brien shouted.

STATE COLLEGE - Coach of the year Bill O'Brien had plenty of awards to accept and galas to attend this offseason. He's sure happy that's over. "I'm just excited to be off the banquet circuit and get back on the field coaching," O'Brien said to laughs at his spring news conference Monday. Indeed, spring practice is now under way for Penn State in snowy State College, and O'Brien outlined numerous position battles, injuries and players who have impressed him: *  Quarterback battle: O'Brien reiterated that the best player is going to play, saying he does not want to redshirt highly touted recruit Christian Hackenberg if he is healthy.

After watching Matt McGloin learn his complicated pro-style offense and go on to shatter nine school passing records, Penn State coach Bill O'Brien will try to identify a replacement at quarterback when the Nittany Lions begin spring practice Monday. The Lions, who posted an 8-4 record (6-2 Big Ten) in O'Brien's rookie season, will have 15 practices leading up to the annual Blue-White Game on April 20 at Beaver Stadium. McGloin set a Penn State record last season with 3,266 passing yards, and tied another mark with 24 touchdown passes.

PENN STATE football coach Bill O'Brien will participate in a coaches caravan tour starting April 30, when there will be an evening reception in Philadelphia. O'Brien and other PSU coaches will make stops in 12 locations over 2 weeks. "We had a great turnout of Penn State alumni and fans during the coaches caravan last year and I enjoyed meeting so many people who have great pride and passion for Penn State," O'Brien said in a statement. "It's important for me to get around Pennsylvania and other areas where we have a lot of alumni and give them a chance to get to know me and to hear from them.

ATLANTIC CITY - Bill O'Brien has seen much happen in the nearly 14 months since he took over as Penn State's head coach, and NCAA sanctions against the program have kept things from being stable. But O'Brien, who was at Harrah's Atlantic City Resort on Friday to receive the college coach of the year award from the Maxwell Football Club, is encouraged by what he is seeing in terms of his players' offseason work and recruiting. "I wouldn't say it's easier, but it's much more comfortable because you have a better working knowledge of your players," O'Brien said.

Penn State football coach Bill O'Brien formally announced Thursday the hiring of Anthony Midget as an assistant coach in charge of safeties. Midget, 34, a former all-American cornerback at Virginia Tech, coached the last five seasons at Georgia State, his last year as defensive coordinator. He replaces John Butler, who was promoted to defensive coordinator of the Nittany Lions after Ted Roof left to take the same job at Georgia Tech. "Anthony will be a great addition to our staff," O'Brien said in a statement.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - When Penn State running backs coach Charles London recruits in Ohio, he sees a startling trend. "A lot of these kids from Ohio, they don't know guys from Ohio even go to Penn State," London said Wednesday. "They think they all go to Ohio State. " The names Ki-Jana Carter (Westerville), O.J. McDuffie (Marion), and Michael Zordich (Youngstown) don't ring a bell? Apparently not. Bill O'Brien cemented his first recruiting class at Penn State on Wednesday, inking 17 players, including five-star quarterback Christian Hackenberg.

When life changed for Penn State football in many ways after the assessment of NCAA sanctions against the program, Bill O'Brien quickly needed to make adjustments in the way he recruited high school football players. It's not that the Nittany Lions coach was worried about finding 15 players - a reduction of 10 from the maximum number allowed by the NCAA for FBS schools - but it was about finding the right 15 players. "You really can't [afford to] miss when you can sign only 15 scholarship players," O'Brien said Wednesday.

FORK UNION, Va. - At a small table inside the Estes Athletic Center on the Fork Union Military Academy campus, with teammates and family surrounding him, Christian Hackenberg signed a letter of intent to Penn State. He officially became a Nittany Lion at 8:50 a.m. Wednesday. And he said he was anxious to talk with Penn State coach Bill O'Brien and quarterbacks coach Charlie Fisher on Wednesday evening. "I feel better with Coach O'Brien, what he did with [quarterback Matt] McGloin, I can't wait [to get there]