Excerpt from the Lansing State Journal article:
================================

Sims, the No. 9 ranked small forward in the country according to Rivals.com, is
considering MSU, as well as Michigan, North Carolina and several other top
national programs.

Isaiah Dahlman, a junior from Braham, Minn., also has taken notice of MSU's
tournament success.

"It's real important to me to go to school that's going to have a chance to win
a national championship," said Dahlman, Rivals.com's No. 6-ranked shooting
guard. "I knew Michigan State was a school like that and they're definitely
showing that now.

"It would be a lot of fun to be on the floor with those guys with the way
they're playing."

Brown and Ager along with seniors Kelvin Torbert and Alan Anderson give the
Spartans the players to match the athleticism of any group in the country.

"You know, we're just out there having fun and playing ball," Brown said. "Our
(point guards) are pushing the ball right now, and the wings are getting out
ahead and running.

"Hopefully, it will continue."

But it's not just the style of play that's illuminating MSU in the national
spotlight, it's the consistency.

This Final Four appearance makes four out the last seven, a claim that no other
school can make.

"We're talking about the teams that are still the elite few," Telep said.
"There's Duke, Kansas, UCLA, Kentucky, Carolina then there's a UConn and maybe
now a Michigan State that's working their way up.

"When you talk about all of (Tom) Izzo's Final Fours and a national title, it's
hard to leave them out of the conversation."

And now with this most recent trip to St. Louis, every Spartan that Izzo's
signed during his 10 seasons as head coach that has stayed for four years will
have played in a Final Four.

Fun, Fun, Fun
By FightOnState.com Staff
Date: Apr 1, 2005

The most anticipated Blue-White weekend in recent memory just became even more
interesting. Besides the debut of Justin King and Derrick Williams in the
spring scrimmage, the Penn State sports marketing folks are adding their own
unique twist to the weekend's festivities.

If you thought there was going to be a circus atmosphere surrounding Penn
State's spring football game this year due to the presence of heralded freshmen
Justin King and Derrick Williams, you were right.
But that is only the beginning.

In their ongoing attempt to make Nittany Lion athletics more fan friendly, the
folks at Penn State sports marketing are staging a full-blown carnival on the
Beaver Stadium grounds the night before and the day of the April 23 Blue-White
game.

“Full-blown,” in this instance, meaning a midway on Curtin Road, rides,
concession and activity stands, musical acts, clowns, balloons and everything
else that goes along with your typical carnival. There will also be a comedy
show featuring “Blue Collar” star Ron White at the Jordan Center Friday night.

The carnival is one of many activities being held in conjunction with the
Blue-White game, which kicks off at 2:00 p.m. An hour and a half before
kickoff, Nittany Lion players will hold an autograph and photo session inside
Beaver Stadium.

The athletic department is also taking the occasion of the weekend to honor Penn
State's undefeated 1994 team.

Back to the present, everyone is anxious to get their first glimpse of King and
Williams in the Blue and White. King is a defensive back and return man who is
capable of playing offense, as well. Williams is already being described as the
most explosive receiver on the team. Both enrolled at PSU in January after
graduating early from high school.

Penn State began its push to make a stronger connection with fans Sept. 3, when
it staged the university's first-annual Football Eve at Beaver Stadium the
night before the Nittany Lions' 2004 football season opener against Akron. The
event, which included the infamous “Place of Hell” speech from Joe Paterno, a
performance by the Blue Band and a fireworks show, drew a crowd estimated at
more than 20,000 people.

The Blue-White weekend Carnival will run from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, and from
10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday.







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D$ is actually practicing?  I haven't heard a word on his recovery, so
this is interesting.  Anyone got the skinny on this?

OD


dave@... wrote:

>Fun, Fun, Fun
>By FightOnState.com Staff
>Date: Apr 1, 2005
>
>The most anticipated Blue-White weekend in recent memory just became even more
>interesting. Besides the debut of Justin King and Derrick Williams in the
>spring scrimmage, the Penn State sports marketing folks are adding their own
>unique twist to the weekend's festivities.
>
>If you thought there was going to be a circus atmosphere surrounding Penn
>State's spring football game this year due to the presence of heralded freshmen
>Justin King and Derrick Williams, you were right.
>But that is only the beginning.
>
>

it took the university all this time to determine that reed and richardson
were not even present on the night of the now infamous bow and arrow incident.
what the hell?

bobbyd


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Fortunately for our Founding Fathers, their document is safely concealed in
the Smithsonian. For Collins, the picture frame holds something infinitely more
valuable.

A full football scholarship to Penn State University.

That one, Collins decides, deserves a more detailed explanation.

At the tender age of 12, Rashaad Collins knows he can play Division I college
football. The piece of paper on the bedroom wall says so.

Handed to him personally by PSU head coach Joe Paterno after a private
workout in the summer of 2003, the scholarship has no statue of limitations,
does
not expire and will be good to the day Collins decides he doesn't want to play
football anymore.

"It's comforting, you know, just knowing there's somebody out there that
believes in you that much," Collins says. "Coach P is my boy."

http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2005/04/01/sports/sports04.txt

read it for yourself.

bobbyd


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Damn, that Paterno just can't relate to today's youth!

Coach P (!!!) is my "boy." (!!!)

Thanks for the smile.

Tony D
PSU 79

___________

Tony Defina
Northrop Grumman
410-993-3273
tony.defina@...

-----Original Message-----
From: ORIGINET@... <ORIGINET@...>
To: We_Are_Penn_State@yahoogroups.com <We_Are_Penn_State@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Fri Apr 01 15:21:21 2005
Subject: [We Are...Penn State] help is on the way


Fortunately for our Founding Fathers, their document is safely concealed in
the Smithsonian. For Collins, the picture frame holds something infinitely more
valuable.

A full football scholarship to Penn State University.

That one, Collins decides, deserves a more detailed explanation.

At the tender age of 12, Rashaad Collins knows he can play Division I college
football. The piece of paper on the bedroom wall says so.

Handed to him personally by PSU head coach Joe Paterno after a private
workout in the summer of 2003, the scholarship has no statue of limitations,
does
not expire and will be good to the day Collins decides he doesn't want to play
football anymore.

"It's comforting, you know, just knowing there's somebody out there that
believes in you that much," Collins says. "Coach P is my boy."

http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2005/04/01/sports/sports04.txt

read it for yourself.

bobbyd


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]




Tell your Penn State friends about us! If they
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Oh, and by the way.  Almost forgot it was April 2nd eve until you sent this.

Nobody has much imagination anymore.

Tony D
PSU 79


> -----Original Message-----
> From: ORIGINET@... [mailto:ORIGINET@...]
> Sent: Friday, April 01, 2005 3:21 PM
> To: We_Are_Penn_State@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [We Are...Penn State] help is on the way
>
>
>
> Fortunately for our Founding Fathers, their document is
> safely concealed in
> the Smithsonian. For Collins, the picture frame holds
> something infinitely more
> valuable.
>
> A full football scholarship to Penn State University.
>
> That one, Collins decides, deserves a more detailed explanation.
>
> At the tender age of 12, Rashaad Collins knows he can play
> Division I college
> football. The piece of paper on the bedroom wall says so.
>
> Handed to him personally by PSU head coach Joe Paterno after
> a private
> workout in the summer of 2003, the scholarship has no statue
> of limitations, does
> not expire and will be good to the day Collins decides he
> doesn't want to play
> football anymore.
>
> "It's comforting, you know, just knowing there's somebody out
> there that
> believes in you that much," Collins says. "Coach P is my boy."
>
> http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2005/04/01/sports/sports04.txt
>
> read it for yourself.
>
> bobbyd
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
> ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor
> --------------------~-->
> Give the gift of life to a sick child.
> Support St. Jude Children's Research Hospital's 'Thanks & Giving.'
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> Tell your Penn State friends about us! If they
> want to subscribe, have them send a message to:
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>
> All "We Are...Penn State" messages are archived at:
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/We_Are_Penn_State/messages
>
>
>
> We Are...Penn State
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

ORIGINET@... wrote:

>Fortunately for our Founding Fathers, their document is safely concealed in
>the Smithsonian. For Collins, the picture frame holds something infinitely more
>valuable.
>
>A full football scholarship to Penn State University.
>
>
>
The Forrests?  As in Gump? :-)

OD

Yeah, but if I were an intelligent, rational kid, I'd do the same thing as
the "young, impressionable" kid.  I'd choose a place where there is a great
chance of personal and team success.

I'm not sure I understand if you were suggesting there was something new or
unusual or bad about that.  It's part of why we kept our edge for 30 years.


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

In a message dated 3/30/2005 8:20:42 PM Eastern Standard Time,
ORIGINET@... writes:

it is  really interesting that you guys always have a character issue when a
kid  says no to penn state. what i want to know is simple and
straightforward.
why the hell was joe recruiting the kid in the first place. i am talking
specifically about players we recruited and the kid said NO. and this list
includes
both bright and slocum.



Yes.  No one can possibly give a rational answer to this.  We  love them
until they go to Michigan or Va Tech.  Then they are worthless  scum.


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

"We  love them
until they go to Michigan or Va Tech.  Then they are worthless  scum."

No, they are worthless scum only if they fo to Michigan. If they go to Va Tech,
they are Jokies.

Tony D
PSU 79
___________

Tony Defina
Northrop Grumman
410-993-3273
tony.defina@...

In a message dated 3/30/2005 12:58:47 PM Eastern Standard Time,
old.dude@... writes:

South  Florida is written off by everyone...I hope not the Nit Lions.
They  played a lot of youngsters last year who will be better this year
-- and  they have a real starting QB (and a pretty decent  backup).


I think they lost something like 14 starters coming into this season.   I
also know they have recruited well.... but it sounds like we're catching them 
at
the right time.


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

nittanykat@... wrote:

>
>In a message dated 3/30/2005 12:58:47 PM Eastern Standard Time,
>old.dude@... writes:
>
>South  Florida is written off by everyone...I hope not the Nit Lions.
>They  played a lot of youngsters last year who will be better this year
>-- and  they have a real starting QB (and a pretty decent  backup).
>
>
>I think they lost something like 14 starters coming into this season.   I
>also know they have recruited well.... but it sounds like we're catching them 
at
>the right time.
>
>
>
>
Agreed.  They might have played a lot of backup, but they're in our
house without 3 of their starting DL members.  I like this game because
they are a decent team that we should handle -- and hopefully Morelli
gets a fair amt of PT in this and the other 2 cupcakes.

I have to assume we open 3-0, but the leap in ability between games 1-3
and at NW is sizable.  All the more reason to find PT for Morelli -- it
would be nice to have a second gun to turn to if Mike isn't getting it done.

No matter what, our D should keep us close enough to pull it out.

OD

Interesting write-up in CFN on South Florida.  They indicate there are
questions and holes but their rendition makes it sound as if they have a
veteran squad (one that could actually compete for a bowl game -- I
think NK is right and we're catching them at a good time).  This could
be one of those teams that "loses" a lot of guys who really weren't
playing very much by game 9.  However, any team missing a kicker is
going to have some trouble.

Then again, we had a proven returning kicker and he couldn't get it down
from 20 yards.  Go figure.

http://www.collegefootballnews.com/2005/Spring_Preview/Springlooks_BigEast.htm

OD

In a message dated 4/2/2005 12:09:06 PM Eastern Standard Time,
old.dude@... writes:

I have  to assume we open 3-0, but the leap in ability between games 1-3
and at NW  is sizable.  All the more reason to find PT for Morelli -- it
would  be nice to have a second gun to turn to if Mike isn't getting it  done.


I've been thinking the same thing.  Mike will probably do fine against  the
first 3 teams and even Northwestern.  But if he starts with his crappy  games
once we get into the Big Ten schedule, Morelli may have rotted on the  bench
for another half season.  In that case, Joe may be reluctant to go to  him
again.  It's key we win those first four and that A.M. gets playing  time in
them!




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I am a bit confused by that write up. I generally trust CFN and  maybe they
are right.  But II watched one of USF's games late last  year.  I think it was
the December Pitt game.    At  that game the announcer said USF was losing 14
or 15 starters.  But the  article you linked indicates they are ok everywhere
but on the line and  kicking.

What I DID like about that writeup is that Cincinnati lost 19 STARTERS
including the QB.  Wow.  I need a bunch of tix for that game - I have  relatives
who are coming east from Cincinnati...  but I reckon I'll be able  to pick up
plenty.  Should be an easy win.

Hey, everyone talks about how the Big East sucks without Miami/Va  Tech.
There's a lot of talk that they should have lost their BCS  bid.  So they are
bad
-- and USF and UC are picked 6th and 7th in this bad  league!  Only Rutgers
is lower!





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

For the record, I heard them say the same thing, NK.  My hunch is that
USF either started some players in their final home game who were thus
labeled 'starters,' or perhaps it's the starters list from game 1
(remember they wanted to hype the hell out of that game).  I read back
over several CFN game-by-games and it sounded like they (USF) were
playing younger guys at the end.

Regardless, we should be fine -- I'd just like it to be a nice tune-up
that affords AM a chance to get considerable PT.  A 31-3 win would be nice.

Not that I ask too much! :-)

OD

nittanykat@... wrote:

>I am a bit confused by that write up. I generally trust CFN and  maybe they
>are right.  But II watched one of USF's games late last  year.  I think it was
>the December Pitt game.    At  that game the announcer said USF was losing 14
>or 15 starters.  But the  article you linked indicates they are ok everywhere
>but on the line and  kicking.
>
>What I DID like about that writeup is that Cincinnati lost 19 STARTERS
>including the QB.  Wow.  I need a bunch of tix for that game - I have 
relatives
>who are coming east from Cincinnati...  but I reckon I'll be able  to pick up
>plenty.  Should be an easy win.
>
>Hey, everyone talks about how the Big East sucks without Miami/Va  Tech.
>There's a lot of talk that they should have lost their BCS  bid.  So they are
bad
>-- and USF and UC are picked 6th and 7th in this bad  league!  Only Rutgers
>is lower!
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

(U-WIRE) UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Two Penn State football players under
judicial review for their potential involvement in a January bow-and-arrow
incident at an on-campus apartment received good news Thursday.

Guard Tyler Reed and offensive tackle Andrew Richardson, whom coach Joe
Paterno indefinitely suspended from the team late last week as a result of
the incident, received clearance Thursday from the Office of Judicial
Affairs, three sources close to the situation told The Daily Collegian.

<http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/news?slug=uwire-pennstateclearsfootballpla&pr
ov=uwire&type=lgns>

Brian Ś86


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

...and move.

Brian Ś86

Penn State students campaign to preserve university creamery
By MARTHA RAFFAELE The Associated Press



STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Enduring long lines for fresh ice cream at Penn State's
ice cream shop is a time-honored ritual for students, alumni and tourists.

The creamery is nearly as well known as football coach Joe Paterno. It
boasts ice cream "so fresh that only four days, on the average, elapse
between the cow and your newly dipped cone."

So it's no surprise the University Creamery's impending move is stirring up
a tempest in a sugar cone.

Two Penn State students worry that an important piece of history will be
lost when the University Creamery closes and a larger facility, the Berkey
Creamery, opens half a block down the street in summer 2006 as part of a new
food science building.

Senior Matthew Ritsko, 22, and graduate student Chris Miller, 22, hope to
collect 10,000 signatures from current students and alumni on a "Save the
Creamery" Internet petition they began circulating in late February. The
petition had more than 1,600 signatures as of Friday.

They also would like to nominate the site at Borland Lab, the current food
science building, to the National Register of Historic Places in their bid
to persuade the university to maintain two creamery locations.

"It's going to be a shame to bring back my kids and my grandkids to campus
and say, 'This is where the creamery used to be. Here's a plaque,'" Ritsko
said.

The recent uproar has taken Penn State officials by surprise.

Built in 1889 at a different location, the creamery had moved twice by the
time it became part of Borland Lab, which opened in the early 1930s. A squat
brick building added in 1961 is where the ice cream and other dairy products
now are sold.

"This is not a move to tick people off. It's a necessity," university
spokesman Tysen Kendig said.

Most people experience the creamery as customers in the sales room, which
offers creamery-brand milk, yogurt, cheese and ice cream by the quart and
half-gallon plus hand-dipped ice cream cones and soda-fountain drinks.

But the operation also includes an on-site milk plant that has outgrown
Borland Lab, said creamery manager Thomas Palchak. When the new building is
completed, the plant will nearly double in size, allowing it to accommodate
new equipment and further its mission of providing research and training to
the dairy industry, he said. Additionally, the sales room will more than
double.

"It will be much more inviting to students," Palchak said. "The lines will
be faster and more efficient."

Palchak said he understands the sentimental attachment people have to the
current location; he met his wife at Borland Lab when they were both food
science students in 1978. To that end, the new location will pay homage to
the creamery's history with a display of time-capsule artifacts and more
recent memorabilia, such as ice cream scoops autographed by former President
Clinton and Gov. Tom Ridge.

There is no chance of keeping the current store open, however. Borland Lab
is being turned over to Penn State's college of arts and architecture, and
"we're tenants for the next 15 months," Palchak said.

The prospect of a creamery move made 1971 alumnus Carl Heintz a little
wistful, although he was unaware of the petition. Heintz, a culinary arts
professor at a western New York state community college, tackled a heaping
cone of White House ice cream packed with maraschino cherries during a
recent visit.

"I wouldn't appreciate changing the creamery," he said.

Robert Teisher, a 21-year-old junior, stopped in for a root beer float,
which he described as "addicting." Teisher recalled visiting the creamery on
school field trips from his hometown of Muncy, about an hour's drive away.

"This place has been here forever. ... There's too much nostalgia," he said.

But other students are more bemused by the campaign than anything else.

"Borland Lab is in desperate need of upgrading," said Aubri Carmichael, a
23-year-old food science major. "It's only moving a block down the street."

---

On the Net:

Penn State University Creamery: http://www.creamery.psu.edu

"Save the Creamery" petition:
http://www.petitiononline.com/psucrmry/petition.html


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

>> The sales room will more than double. "It will be
much more inviting to students," Palchak said. "The
lines will be faster and more efficient." <<

So what's the problem? Are these the same folks who
complained about leaving Rec Hall when the BJC opened?
Are these the same folks who whined that the new upper
deck at the Beav was blocking the view of Mount
Nittany?

Penn State Proud, Trader Kevin





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Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Personals - Better first dates. More second dates.
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On Sunday, April 3, 2005, at 07:54  AM,
We_Are_Penn_State@yahoogroups.com wrote:

> So what's the problem? Are these the same folks who
> complained about leaving Rec Hall when the BJC opened?
> Are these the same folks who whined that the new upper
> deck at the Beav was blocking the view of Mount
> Nittany?
>
> Penn State Proud, Trader Kevin

I'm still whining about the destruction of Pollack Fields, the best
athletic fields in the world. -- Brian

I think I was most depressed when Hooters became the first thing you see when
you drive into downtown.  Nothing wrong about wanting to keep dear old state the
way it was.  I loved Rec Hall and the view of Mt. Nittany.  I realize things
like this have to happen but I don't blame anyone for whining about it.  It's
cool to take your kids to places like Rec Hall and the Creamery where you spent
some of your college years.  The more those things go away and the less special
PSU is to you.

JimK

   ----- Original Message -----
   From: Brian Boger
   To: We_Are_Penn_State@yahoogroups.com
   Sent: Sunday, April 03, 2005 10:24 AM
   Subject: [We Are...Penn State] Re: Whining



   On Sunday, April 3, 2005, at 07:54  AM,
   We_Are_Penn_State@yahoogroups.com wrote:

   > So what's the problem? Are these the same folks who
   > complained about leaving Rec Hall when the BJC opened?
   > Are these the same folks who whined that the new upper
   > deck at the Beav was blocking the view of Mount
   > Nittany?
   >
   > Penn State Proud, Trader Kevin

   I'm still whining about the destruction of Pollack Fields, the best
   athletic fields in the world. -- Brian



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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

There are 2 PSU players on the NFL Europe teams. Ty Lenda on Amsterdam and
Kevin Thompson on Cologne. There were a couple of other PSU players in the
preseason but they were cut. One was Tony Johnson and they said he just
wasn't good enough and another James Boyd who has loads of talent but a
horrible attitude. Supposedly it was the same at PSU.

Jay H



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Jay Herman wrote:

>There are 2 PSU players on the NFL Europe teams. Ty Lenda on Amsterdam and
>Kevin Thompson on Cologne. There were a couple of other PSU players in the
>preseason but they were cut. One was Tony Johnson and they said he just
>wasn't good enough and another James Boyd who has loads of talent but a
>horrible attitude. Supposedly it was the same at PSU.
>
>
>
I have always suspected he had a 'tude problem and wondered if he showed
up at PSU with it...or got it when players like Arrington and himself
got little PT as freshmen and then had to play the wait wait wait game.
Because we (most of us) aren't there with the kids, it's hard to tell
whether it was the system that discouraged the kid or the kid that just
wasn't right in the head.

I do recall observig that when Arrington and Boyd were in the game, I
knew the 2 hardest hitters on the field were playing.  Sadly, not near
enough.

That said, Boyd's had plenty of time to grow up and make a name for
hismelf out of college, and you have to think maybe this is just one of
those kids who had a world of talent and took it for granted it would
all come easily...and never adapted.

OD

Old Dude:

>> I have always suspected Boyd had a 'tude problem
and wondered if he showed up at PSU with it...or got
it when players like Arrington and himself got little
PT as freshmen and then had to play the wait wait wait
game. Because we (most of us) aren't there with the
kids, it's hard to tell whether it was the system that
discouraged the kid or the kid that just wasn't right
in the head. <<

I have to believe the latter. There are plenty of kids
who perhaps sat too long (LJ2K comes to mind) but
played with great heart and attitude once they got the
chance. If it was all about what happened at PSU, why
would his attitude still suck?

Penn State Proud, Trader Kevin






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Show us what our next emoticon should look like. Join the fun.
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Dude, I got the scoop on that traveling call at church
basketball.

I was talking with our two refs and the best player on
my team, who was a star at Southern Illinois. He does
the color analysis on the radio for some of their
games.

The ref who blew the call was Tom O'Neill. He lives in
the neighboring town. These guys said he is a horrible
official. He got a job in the NBA, but was fired.

They said the call was awful, that Ray did not travel.
It should have been a good basket with him going to
the line to convert the three-point play.

I also found out some interesting things about college
basketball officials. Unlike football, hoops officials
do not work exclusively for one conference, nor are
there set crews as there are for football.

I know you'll find this hard to believe, but football
officials operate in a meritocracy. There are three
reviews of their performance in each game--one by the
conference and one by each team. The Big Ten has a
turnover of about 10% per year.

By contrast, basketball assignments are very
political. The more plugged in you are with the
coordinator of officials for various conferences, the
more money you can make.

In football, the highest-rated crews work the biggest
bowl games. In basketball, it helps to be connected to
get NCAA playoff games. And they're quite lucrative.
The Big Ten pays about a grand a game for the regular
season, the NCAA pays about $1,500 for the first two
rounds, $2,000 for the regionals, and $2,500 for the
Final Four. Plus very generous travel allowances.

So Carolina will be playing for all the marbles
tomorrow night, while Nova can only wonder, "If
only..."

Penn State Proud, Trader Kevin





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In a message dated 4/3/2005 7:45:03 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
cbot_kevin@... writes:
I have to believe the latter. There are plenty of kids
who perhaps sat too long (LJ2K comes to mind) but
played with great heart and attitude once they got the
chance. If it was all about what happened at PSU, why
would his attitude still suck?

Penn State Proud, Trader Kevin

there have been players on every single team dating back to 1966 that were
disgruntled. however, there is a big difference between being disgruntled and
being a negative energy force on the team.

we had more negative energy forces from 1997 until recently i believe then we
did in the 30 years prior to 1997. i think its the attitude of kids in
general these days. they just tend to point fingers at others and are less
likely to
accept blame or responsibility. in the old days, those who were not playing
still tried to prove the coach wrong. now they give up. constant complaining
tends to foster a negative attitude. however, part of this was probably fostered
by situations where guys like arrington sat. penn state did grow a rep all by
itself for making young guys sit and wait there turn. and in turn, great high
school players have come to believe they will get a fairer shot at other
schools.

maybe we are changing this with poz, connor, rubin and the like. but its
gonna take time to change the perception of penn state as it now exists. of
course
the ostriches will tell ya once we start winning great high school players
will willing come to penn state to spend years on the bench. uh huh.

isnt it interesting that dan connor was considered to be one of the greatest
high school players in the country and he is. and how many of the greatest
high school players in the country came to penn state in the last five years?
how
many said NO?

bobbyd


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

bobby d:

>> we had more negative energy forces from 1997 until
recently i believe then we did in the 30 years prior
to 1997. i think its the attitude of kids in general
these days. <<

You may be onto something here. The problem has been
self-correcting in college basketball. Excerpt from a
column by Teddy Greenstein in Friday's Chicago
Tribune:

Billy Packer said he believes the swarm of early
entries into the NBA draft has helped weed out the
potential troublemakers.

"Coaches no longer take any baloney from the so-called
superstar athlete," he said. "That's why we're seeing
a culture that's back to team play, energy, and
listening to the coach. I think the fans really can
relate to it. There are no prima donnas anymore."

When Packer, who will call his 24th Final Four this
weekend, says the college game never has been
"healthier or more fun," he has some data to support
his argument.

CBS' overall ratings for the NCAA tournament are 6.3,
up 8.6 percent from last year and its highest since
1998.

Packer also has an interesting suggestion for spicing
up the NBA:

"At the highest level, the game should be played
four-on-four, rather than five-on-five," Packer said
Thursday. "That's a wild one, but think about it: The
original game was played nine-on-nine because
[inventor James] Naismith had 18 kids in his class.
There never has been any reason why the game was
five-on-five.

"Naismith never imagined 6-foot-9-inch guys being able
to run and jump. If you make that game four-on-four,
you would be able to exploit the skills of the game."





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As a freshman in West Halls in 1969, we had tennis courts in nearly every
direction. They're long gone as well, have been since the mid-seventies. My
freshman English teacher, Mrs. Ricker, categorized the university as an
architectural disaster area. I can only imagine what she's thinking now, if
she's still alive.

Jim Hauze '74

I completely agree about the Pollack fields

>
> On Sunday, April 3, 2005, at 07:54  AM,
> We_Are_Penn_State@yahoogroups.com wrote:
>
>> So what's the problem? Are these the same folks who
>> complained about leaving Rec Hall when the BJC opened?
>> Are these the same folks who whined that the new upper
>> deck at the Beav was blocking the view of Mount
>> Nittany?
>>
>> Penn State Proud, Trader Kevin
>
> I'm still whining about the destruction of Pollack Fields, the best
> athletic fields in the world. -- Brian
>

Trader Kevin wrote:

>Dude, I got the scoop on that traveling call at church
>basketball.
>
>
>
>
Well, TK, that makes me feel a *little* bit better.

I had the pleasure of watching the 76ers game today...these guys put a
whole new meaning into the word "traveling."  Way I see it, Ray still
had another 3 steps coming!

I don't watch the pro game because of what it has become, but it was
raining so I figured, 'why not.'  Now I know why.  I guess it's
entertainment, but it's clear the little hotshots can take a few steps
if it's part of making an exciting play...the big guys can change the
pivot foot 3 or 4 times (take steps as needed).   And young nobodies get
called for everything.

Thanks for the post, though.  Nice to hear there's some consensus, even
if Nova us sitting at home wondering.

OD