The valedictorian of 'Linebacker U'

Early edition: The list of greats at Penn State is long. Paul Posluszny may belong at the top.

By DAVID MURPHY
Published December 29, 2006

TAMPA — If you listen to the legions of Penn State fans who pack Beaver Stadium each fall, God is the one responsible for creating these creatures known as linebackers.

The stars align in the western Pennsylvania sky, an athlete emerges from the womb, and 18 years later he heads off to State College to play in the middle of Joe Paterno’s defense.

The process has been repeated 1,000 times. But every now and then, on that perfect occasion, it results in this: a barrel-chested kid with a nose for the ball who looks like he got lost on the way to central casting, one who eats ballcarriers like Cheese Doodles and gets straight A’s in the classroom, one who answers  each question as if he hasn’t heard it 100 times before, one who eats so many cans of tuna that a teammate calls him “Mercury Man.”

Every now and then, we get Paul Posluszny.

“We knew he was a good high school football player, and we knew he was a good kid,” Paterno said. “Did he turn out to be better? Probably.”

If you are looking for a reason to shake off that New Year’s Eve hangover and flip on the television for the Outback Bowl’s 11 a.m. start, the 6-foot-2, 238-pound player wearing No. 31 in the middle of the Penn State defense should suffice.

At a school nicknamed “Linebacker U,” Posluszny has accomplished what few others have. He is the first linebacker in Penn State history, and the second in college football history, to win the Bednarik Award twice. He’s the first Lions linebacker to be named Associated Press first-team All-American twice. He’s the school’s all-time leader in tackles, and the first in school history to have three 100-tackle seasons.

Last year, one alumnus went so far as to call Posluszny “the best linebacker to ever play at Penn State.”

The alumnus’ name?

Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Jack Ham.

“Playing football, I think linebacker has got to be the best position,” Posluszny said Friday. “You have the best chance to make a play, every play. You’re right in the middle. You get to hit, you get to cover, it’s just a perfect mixture of everything.”

They are words that would make Ham proud, and Posluszny speaks them in a tone that   fluctuates between serious and aw-shucks. The attention is not new. Even without postseason accolades and Sports Illustrated covers, a linebacker has a difficult time walking across a college campus unnoticed.

Yet Posluszny seems more bemused than bored with the whole thing.

He is a finance student who carried a 3.57 grade-point average through the spring semester and graduated early in December. He is barely 22, and, like many other graduating seniors, has no clue whether life will land him in Miami or Seattle or somewhere in between.

Yet here he is, pelted with inane questions from adults twice his age, bombarded with autograph requests from his peers.

“He’ll be sitting in class, and kids will be asking him for his signature,” kicker Kevin Kelly said. “And he’s too nice to say no.”

Posluszny says he gets it from his family, that growing up in Aliquippa, Pa., with humble parents and an older brother will help temper anyone’s psyche.

When he was a freshman, an older player encouraged him to watch what he ate. Four years later, his diet — chicken, tuna, eggs —  is legendary around the locker room.

Sophomore Sean Lee says he has adopted some of Posluszny’s eating habits, but he draws the line at   raw tuna.

“I’ll throw up,” Lee said.

Posluszny’s penchant for consuming the protein-packed canned fish prompted fellow linebacker Dan Connor to nickname him “Mercury Man.”

Connor also calls Posluszny “the most disciplined, hard-working player I’ve ever seen,” which explains why he is projected to be a top 10 NFL draft pick in April.

But first, there is one last game.

“I love being at Penn State, and I’ve really cherished everything that I’ve had,” Posluszny said. “I’m looking forward to playing the game, but after it, it’s going to be an awkward feeling.”

Then he paused.

“But I’m not going to cry or anything,” he said. “You can’t do that in front of people.”

Outback Bowl

Penn State vs. Tennessee, 11 a.m. Monday, Raymond James Stadium, Tampa. TV: ESPN.
 

[Last modified December 29, 2006, 22:18:59]