Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1072455
F O O T B A L L Early exits part of a 'complementary process' At the end of Penn State's 1985 football season, Shane Conlan had a decision to make. Having just completed his redshirt junior season, the All-America outside linebacker was torn over what to do next. The Nittany Lions were set to re- turn most of the key players from a team that had been one win away from claiming the national championship in '85, and his return would help establish them as legitimate contenders for the '86 title. But he was eligible for the NFL Draft and had sought Joe Pa- terno's advice on whether he should leave school early. It wasn't until the coach sat down with him that every- thing snapped into focus. Paterno ex- plained that his contacts in the league saw Conlan going no higher than the second round of the '86 draft. The third round was a possibility, too, and so was the fourth. Conlan decided to come back. It worked out pretty well. Penn State won the na- tional championship the next year, thanks in large part to Conlan's performance throughout the season and especially in the Lions' upset victory over Miami in the Fiesta Bowl. He was later drafted eighth overall by the Buf- falo Bills, winning Defensive Rookie of the Year honors from The Associated Press in 1987 and going on to become a three-time All-Pro. Over the years, the Nittany Lions have seen other high-profile players follow Conlan's lead, delaying entry into the NFL in the hope of improving their draft credentials or making one last championship run at the college level. Brandon Short returned in 1999, for example, as did Paul Posluszny in 2006. In an- N E W S & N O T E S A N A L Y S I S B Y M A T T H E R B FLORIDA FAREWELL Miller finished with eight tack- les in the Citrus Bowl, his final game with the Nittany Lions. Photo by Steve Manuel