Table of Contents
Dedication 6
Acknowledgments 7
Introduction 8
Opening Statements 10
Penn State Football Countdown 14
"The Greatest Show" 15
Marching Band Moments O. Richard Bundy 18
A Penn State Education Lee Stout 21
Greatest Athlete in Each Sport 27
Penn State National Champions! 31
Momentous Football Decisions 36
Top Reasons Why Joining the Big Ten Has Been Good for Penn State 41
Top Reasons Why Penn State Should Not Have Joined the Big Ten 43
Top Five Reasons Why Penn State and the New York Yankees Have the Greatest Uniforms in Sports Sweeny Murti 46
Why the Grand Experiment Works at Penn State Dave Joyner 47
A Top Place to Tailgate Joe Cahn 49
Tailgate Treats 50
Top Tailgate Foods Marc Fetters 52
Whatever Happened to … 53
I Am So Done With … 55
Historic Teams 57
On the World Stage 59
JoePa Has Outlasted … 61
Lessons from Joe Paterno Matt Millen 63
Top Coaches Not Named Joe Paterno 64
Most Inspirational Athletes 67
Top Comebacks from Injuries Wayne Sebastianelli 69
Greatest Freshman Seasons 72
Top Rec Hall Moments 74
What Made Rec Hall Special Dan Earl 78
Atlantic 10 Memories 79
Top Ten Penn State Wrestlers Jeff Byers 82
Top Penn State Wrestling Moments Jeff Byers 83
Greatest All-Time Penn State Basketball Players 85
Favorite Lady Lions Lisa Salters 88
PSU Memories Lisa Salters 90
Top Movies that Reference Penn State 91
Which Film/TV Fictional Coach Would Be a Great Replacement for JoePa? 92
Characters of the State 94
Memorable Personalities Steve Jones 96
Thrilling Endings 98
Heartbreaking Losses 102
Memorable Weather Games Joe Bastardi 107
Greatest Penn State Football Players from Pennsylvania 110
Greatest Penn State Football Players from Maryland 111
Greatest Penn State Football Players from New York 112
Greatest Penn State Football Players from New Jersey 113
Greatest Penn State Football Players from Ohio 114
Greatest Penn State Football Players from Delaware and West Virginia 115
Why Joe Paterno Is a Great Coach Lou Holtz 116
Top Football Nicknames 117
Salt and Pepper Bruce Clark 119
The Biggest Shoes to Fill 121
Top Assistants Under Joe Paterno 124
Top Reasons That Explain Penn State's Football Success Jim Caldwell 126
Penn Staters Who Coached Elsewhere 128
Our Favorite College Football Announcers 131
… And Those Announcers We Don't Like 134
An All-American Education 137
Traditions No More Lee Stout 139
Top Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia Moments Jeff Byers 144
Top Philadelphia vs. Pittsburgh Moments Scott Henry 146
Top Ten Penn State-Pitt Games 148
Pitt-Penn State Memories Chet Parlavecchio 154
Penn Staters by the Numbers 156
Saturday Night Live Alumni and Penn State 167
Top 25 Bryce Jordan Center Events (non-PSU athletic) Bernie Punt 169
Top Off-Court Memories Kelly Mazzante 172
We All Scream for Ice Cream Jennifer Pencek 174
We Are … Penn State-From an Outsider's Perspective Shannon Pencek 176
Top Ten Famous Nonsports Figures Who Attended Penn State 178
Why the 1982 Polls Got It Right by Voting Penn State Over SMU 180
Why the Voters Got It Wrong in 1994 182
1959-The Season That Almost Was Richie Lucas 184
Could'a … Should'a … Won the Heisman 186
Greatest Quarterback Controversies 191
Linebacker U 196
The Start of Something Special Jack Ham 198
Dynamic Duo Lydell Mitchell 200
Top Penn State Non-BCS Bowl Garnes 203
Top Major Bowl Victories 205
Most Memorable Calls Steve Jones 208
The Greatest Games Against the Big Ten 210
Road Trip Eats Frank Bodani 213
Best Pizza in the Keystone State Mike Munchak 215
All-Time Bars in State College Jeff Byers 217
What's in a Name? 219
JoePa Commercials 221
Fashion Statements Joe Paterno 223
Favorite JoePa Press Conference Moments Neil Rudel 225
Greatest Penn Staters for Each NFL Team 227
Pro Championship Game Performances by Penn Staters 231
Lion Killers 234
Surprising Football Heroes 238
Top Walk-ons Under Joe Paterno 240
Missed Basketball Opportunities 242
Family Ties 245
Why I Love Happy Valley Mike McQueary 249
All-Time Top Athletes from Centre County Ron Bracken 251
A Happy Valley Bucket List 253
Top Ten Things We'd Love to See it Penn State 255
All-Time Football Team 257
