Ollie Ogbu

More Penn State football players received recognition yesterday. Senior middle linebacker Dan Connor, a Strath Haven graduate, was selected as a first-team all-American by Collegefootballnews.com and a second-team all-American by the Sporting News. Sophomore defensive end Maurice Evans and junior outside linebacker Sean Lee were chosen third-team all-Americans by Collegefootballnews.com. Four players made the Sporting News' freshman all-Big Ten team: defensive end Aaron Maybin, defensive tackle Ollie Ogbu, tailback Evan Royster, and guard Stefen Wisniewski.

After a rough summer that saw him miss a number of personal appearances because of an intestinal disorder, coach Joe Paterno left no doubt regarding his intended whereabouts during Penn State's 2010 football season. "I'm on the field," Paterno said Tuesday at his weekly teleconference. "I haven't missed one play in practice. And I don't intend to miss any games, any plays. " The 83-year-old Paterno, beginning his 45th season as head Lion, had to cancel three alumni outings around the state, including one in Philadelphia, because of his illness.

In listening to Penn State players talk this week about Alabama's running game, they made it clear they were treating running back Trent Richardson with the same respect as 2009 Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram. That will come in handy for Saturday night's game between the two prestigious programs. Ingram is likely out; coach Nick Saban said Wednesday he was "probably not going to be ready to play" against the 18th-ranked Nittany Lions as he continues to recover from left knee surgery.

LANDOVER, Md. - The first hint that something wasn't right Saturday with Penn State came on the coin toss when linebacker Bani Gbadyu , and not co-captain Ollie Ogbu , represented the Nittany Lions' defense at midfield. Confirmation came after the game from Joe Paterno . Ogbu was one of four players who weren't on time for the team bus to FedEx Field. "Four of the kids were very late when the bus was leaving, so I told them we weren't going to play them in the first half," he said.

When Penn State opens its season today against Youngstown State, it will break in more than just a new quarterback and three starting linebackers. Four of the Nittany Lions' starting offensive linemen were in different positions a year ago. The uncertainty surrounding the unit has lessened since camp began. In a span of 3 weeks, the "not very good" offensive line - coach Joe Paterno's words on Aug. 12 - has made big strides, according to Paterno. "If that comes from him, that means we're doing something right," said Quinn Barham, the line's new left tackle and a former center and guard.

STATE COLLEGE - Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Bradley likes to rotate eight and even nine linemen during games, the better to always have fresh legs on the field. With the season-ending knee injury suffered by redshirt sophomore Jerome Hayes, however, the Nittany Lions have lost a hybrid player whose versatility allowed Bradley to use him in a variety of ways. It's almost as if the depth chart has been drained of more than one body. Hayes had to be assisted from the field during the third quarter of a 38-7 homecoming rout of Wisconsin in Beaver Stadium.

There were lots of questions and a few answers amid 79-degree weather at Penn State's Blue-White game yesterday at Beaver Stadium. The starting-quarterback battle raged between Downingtown East product Pat Devlin and Daryll Clark. The team also needs to find a replacement for injured linebacker Sean Lee. There was talk of the dropped rape and sexual-assault charges against ex-running back Austin Scott. And there were questions about coach Joe Paterno's lack of a contract - and its effect on recruiting.

There are worse things than having two of your starting defensive linemen suspended. For instance, there is having them suspended and not knowing exactly when, and if, they will return. That's the predicament Penn State finds itself in after coach Joe Paterno gave the non-announcement yesterday that end Maurice Evans and tackle Abe Koroma are still in limbo after the pair sat out Saturday's game against Oregon State. Paterno declined to confirm or deny that the juniors would play Saturday when the Nittany Lions travel to Syracuse, nor would he give a timetable for a decision, simply saying that he would "play it day-by-day for a while.

In the revolving door that is Penn State's defensive line, Jared Odrick has stuck his foot out and stopped the spinning. That is, unless the tackle injures his foot doing so. It's been that kind of two months. Since late July, Penn State has lost six linemen. Two tackles were booted off the team, an end and a tackle suffered season-ending injuries, and another end and tackle are serving suspensions. Maurice Evans and Abe Koroma, who have been suspended, have been charged with possession of a small amount of marijuana and aren't expected to dress for 16th-ranked Penn State's date with Temple tomorrow.

When Penn State kicks off its annual Blue-White game at 2 p.m. today, there will be a blue sky above, and 81-year-old Joe Paterno patrolling the sidelines at Beaver Stadium in black cleats and rolled-up khakis. But the potential for change will be in the air. An underclassman is threatening to steal the quarterback job from a senior. Several other spots are open after an unprecedented number of players were suspended this semester. And the possibility that this may be Paterno's last spring as head coach will hover over the proceedings like an ominous cloud.

ARE THE Penn State Nittany Lions taking the Temple Owls "lightly" in today's suddenly interesting in-state rivalry? Well, yes. And no. It depends on which way you choose to look at it. Temple's huge offensive line, which averages 6-5 and 319 pounds, is significantly larger than Penn State's trimmed-down defensive line. The Owls probably have the largest o-line the Lions will face until the Nov. 12 home game against Nebraska and the Nov. 26 regular-season finale at Wisconsin, programs that regularly produce blocking fronts as large as a row of tractors, and as difficult to budge or get around.

LANDOVER, Md. - The first hint that something wasn't right Saturday with Penn State came on the coin toss when linebacker Bani Gbadyu , and not co-captain Ollie Ogbu , represented the Nittany Lions' defense at midfield. Confirmation came after the game from Joe Paterno . Ogbu was one of four players who weren't on time for the team bus to FedEx Field. "Four of the kids were very late when the bus was leaving, so I told them we weren't going to play them in the first half," he said.

LANDOVER, Md. - It has been a constant demand of Joe Paterno throughout Penn State's up-and-down 2010 football season, the need to get game-changing plays from the special teams and defense. Late in the third quarter Saturday, with the sputtering Nittany Lions locked in a tie with Big Ten cellar-dweller Indiana in a rather peculiar game, Paterno's players finally heeded his wish. Safety Andrew Dailey blocked a punt that walk-on linebacker James Van Fleet returned 21 yards for a touchdown.

Joe Paterno, the old-school coach, loves those old-school players who aren't afraid to get in the face of any teammate if they feel he's not doing the job in games or slacking in practice, and telling him to pick it up. However, as Penn State (1-1) enters its third game of the season Saturday against Kent State (2-0) at Beaver Stadium, Paterno has yet to see those types of leaders and says he is "nervous" and "a little disappointed" about it. The 83-year-old coach wanted leaders to step up last week at Alabama, in a steamy, packed, and loud stadium.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Joe Paterno talked this week about playing the No. 1 team in the nation on the road and having "a little fun. " Certainly, the 83-year-old Paterno doesn't figure to be all smiles Saturday night on the Penn State sideline once the ball is kicked off for the matchup between his 18th-ranked Nittany Lions and top-ranked Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium. But for his young team, headed by an 18-year-old freshman quarterback, Paterno hopes to use the 101,000-seat venue as a classroom, albeit a very loud one, for a little more than three hours.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - If Brett Brackett hadn't been redshirted in 2006, and if Notre Dame's All-America wide receiver had been a little bit shorter, things might have turned out completely different for Brackett, who went to Penn State with the idea of playing quarterback. But the 6-6 Brackett wasn't dressing for games anyway, and the Nittany Lions had a road date at Notre Dame coming up, and the Fighting Irish had a 6-5 All-America wideout named Jeff Samardzija, and, well . . . fate has a way of taking as many funny bounces as a wet football.

In listening to Penn State players talk this week about Alabama's running game, they made it clear they were treating running back Trent Richardson with the same respect as 2009 Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram. That will come in handy for Saturday night's game between the two prestigious programs. Ingram is likely out; coach Nick Saban said Wednesday he was "probably not going to be ready to play" against the 18th-ranked Nittany Lions as he continues to recover from left knee surgery.

When Penn State opens its season today against Youngstown State, it will break in more than just a new quarterback and three starting linebackers. Four of the Nittany Lions' starting offensive linemen were in different positions a year ago. The uncertainty surrounding the unit has lessened since camp began. In a span of 3 weeks, the "not very good" offensive line - coach Joe Paterno's words on Aug. 12 - has made big strides, according to Paterno. "If that comes from him, that means we're doing something right," said Quinn Barham, the line's new left tackle and a former center and guard.

After a rough summer that saw him miss a number of personal appearances because of an intestinal disorder, coach Joe Paterno left no doubt regarding his intended whereabouts during Penn State's 2010 football season. "I'm on the field," Paterno said Tuesday at his weekly teleconference. "I haven't missed one play in practice. And I don't intend to miss any games, any plays. " The 83-year-old Paterno, beginning his 45th season as head Lion, had to cancel three alumni outings around the state, including one in Philadelphia, because of his illness.

Penn State has spent much of its first two games creating questions such as: When will the offensive line come together? Can the running game progress to where it will take pressure off the passing game? And when will the kicking game, especially on field goals and kickoff coverage, come around? Amid all these questions, the lack of uncertainty or drama in the front four thus far has to be helping coach Joe Paterno sleep a little better at night. Anchored by 300-pound all-American candidate Jared Odrick at tackle, the defensive line has shut down the first two opponents, Akron and Syracuse.