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"You always hear evaluations from your own staff, from your own position coach telling you how good he thinks you are. Your head coach will sit down, talk to you, tell you how good he thinks you are. But a lot of times, that's different from how everyone else thinks you are," Urschel said. "I was very, very honored to get that. That might be my No. 1 accomplishment to date, or very close to it, certainly as a football player, and maybe overall." If that sounds counterintuitive, bear in mind that football has challenged Urschel in a way that his classes have not. "A lot of man hours have gone into football over the years," he said. "A lot of hard work, dedication, perseverance, and to see the results of that is very, very fulfilling. "That same struggle didn't happen academically. I've really worked to im- prove my game, really worked to be a good football player. I'm very, very pleased that I got that honor. It meant a lot to me, and I still have to play well this season, but that meant a lot to me and that's the honor that I take the most pride in. The 4.0 and stuff, that's just me going to class, doing what I'm good at." While he was developing himself into a full-time starter, Urschel began to think about delaying his entry into a Ph.D. program. He was sure to be accepted at a prestigious school, an MIT or a Princeton or a Stanford. But could he make it to the NFL? He was working with experienced coaches in O'Brien and offensive line coach Mac McWhorter, and they were reinforcing his confidence. He was also getting advice from his close friend and former teammate Stefen Wisniews- ki, now a third-year starting center with the Oakland Raiders. Wisniewski thought he had NFL potential, so Urschel started taking steps to ensure that he was peaking athletically. One of those steps was to lighten his academic load this summer in hope of freeing up time for football training. Said Urschel, "I'm consciously recognizing where I think I want my next accomplishments and achievements to be. I'm structuring my life and planning accordingly, so I'm focusing this summer on football. I'm really just ramping up my dedication level. I'm trying to spend every hour I can on football – training, working out, making sure I'm the best that I can be." Urschel has become so identified with academic pursuits that it's disarming SEE URSCHEL PAGE 77 | LETTERMEN RETURNING C: Ty Howle*; G: Miles Dieffenbach*, Angelo Mangiro, John Urschel*; T: Eric Shrive, Adam Gress*, Donovan Smith* LETTERMEN LOST C: Matt Stankiewitch*; Frank Figueroa; G: Mark Arcidiacono; T: Mike Farrell* RISING STAR Not often do you see a fifth-year senior in this category, but such is the case with Howle. The only start of his career came in the 2012 finale against Wisconsin when he filled in for Dieffenbach at left guard. After an outstanding spring practice session, Howle won the starting center job outright and is set to become a fixture along Penn State's offensive line. BIGGEST LOSS Next to graduated quarterback Matt McGloin, the offense's most significant loss is Stankiewitch. A 25-game starter at center, Stankiewitch was the leader of the offensive line in 2012, an All-Big Ten honoree and one of six finalists for the Rimington Trophy, given annually to the country's top center. NUMBERS GAME Penn State's five projected starters – Howle, Smith, Dieffenbach, Urschel and Gress – have amassed 50 career starts between them. Of those 50 starts, Urschel accounts for 26. OUTLOOK This looks to be one of the most experienced offensive lines that Penn State has fielded in close to a decade. All of the projected first-teamers have started at least one game for the Nittany Lions, and each one of them has played significant, meaningful minutes. And in Shrive and Mangiro, the Lions have a couple of backups who have seen time in the trenches and will reinforce Mac McWhorter's line in his second season as a Penn State assistant coach. Throw in former tight end Garry Gilliam, who was moved to offensive tackle during winter conditioning, and Penn State has three viable backups with legitimate game experience. So hopes are high for Penn State's big boys, especially after another summer in Craig Fitzgerald's strength and conditioning program. Early reports say the linemen have benefited the most from Ftizgerald's highly regarded regimen. As a group, the starters finished spring practice weighing an average of 308 pounds per man. * Starting experience in 2012 CENTER NO 60 66 55 NAME Ty Howle Angelo Mangiro Wendy Laurent YR Sr. So. Fr. HT 6-0 6-3 6-2 WT 292 303 283 YR Sr. So. So. HT 6-3 6-3 6-4 WT 307 303 280 Sr. Sr. So. 6-6 6-6 6-7 317 317 295 Jr. So. Jr. 6-3 6-3 6-3 297 303 284 So. Jr. 6-5 6-6 327 305 RIGHT GUARD NO 64 66 56 NAME John Urschel Angelo Mangiro Anthony Alosi RIGHT TACKLE 58 75 79 Adam Gress Eric Shrive Kevin Blanchard LEFT GUARD 65 66 68 Miles Dieffenbach Angelo Mangiro Bryan Davie LEFT TACKLE 76 77 Donovan Smith Garry Gilliam

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