Campus Confidential

By Adam Abramson

The time is now for Penn Sate. Much was made of the circus with the crime and the punishment of having to clean up the stadium, but that can easily be forgotten when the season rolls around.

This year is a gut check for the leaders of that team. Are they going to sulk into mediocrity or will they use the embarrassment to motivate themselves, become a unit and win some big football games?

I've never said this before, but I'm actually interested in watching some Nittany Lion football this year. Guys like wide receivers Derrick Williams (video) and Deon Butler give you plenty of options to keep your offense from being as vanilla as the uniforms in State College (don't construe this as me trashing the unis). All-in-all, the vanilla factor and hanging out in the pit of mediocrity fall on the shoulders of senior quarterback Anthony Morelli.

Last year was his first full campaign and it wasn't so hot (54% completions, 11 TDs, 8 INTs). Morelli came to State College with a ton of hype that he has to live up to this year or else his legacy will be nonexistent. With the stable of receivers he has (Williams and Butler have some fantastic backups in Chris Bell and Jordan Norwood), there's no excuses. I know tackle Levi Brown is gone, but there are two seniors and two juniors on this year's line, that's enough experience. Sophomore guard Lou Eliades is no slouch, either.

At running back, PSU will miss Tony Hunt's outstanding senior campaign. Seniors Austin Scott and Rodney Kinlaw will handle the load and they should do just fine. On a very important side note, Scott may have the most insane bio I've ever read on an athletic department's Web site:

Like an understudy in a Shakespeare play, Austin Scott learned his lines and knew them well. The curtain went up on the highly-anticipated 2006 FedEx Orange Bowl but, the play's lead at running back, Tony Hunt, went down in the first series with an ankle injury. Like any good understudy, Scott was ready in the blink of an eye to take his place on center stage and make sure the show did not skip a beat. He did not disappoint, as the only thing skipping beats were the hearts of Nittany Nation watching the thriller.

I rest my case.

On defense, the pieces are there; they just have to lead by example. Dan Connor, possibly the nation's best linebacker, corners Justin King and Lydell Sargeant and safety Anthony Scirrotto anchor a unit that's young up front, but should be in or around the Top 15 again this season. Granted, they will miss Paul Posluszny, but they'll get over it.

I'm tired of seeing Penn State teams under achieve, but I think this year's unit can be pretty special. The schedule isn't kind: at Michigan and home dates with Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Ohio State make it tough to achieve 10 wins, but that needs to be the goal.

Player I would shred you with on NCAA Football 2008 (that I'm getting today): Dan Connor

80s theme song: "If This Is It" - Huey Lewis and the News (1983 on the album "Sports" - in a Patrick Bateman voice) … With seniors at four of your most important positions (QB, RB, MLB, S), please let me know if JoePa's kids are the real deal.

Save this date: October 27 vs. Ohio State

25. Boston College; 24. UCLA; 23. Hawaii; 22. Florida State; 21. Georgia; 20. Oklahoma; 19. South Carolina; 18. Oregon; 17. Rutgers; 16. Arkansas; 15. Louisville