Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541276
D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 5 19 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M FIVE YEARS AGO, 2020 Penn State's COVID-shortened season got off to a dismal start, but it had an upbeat conclusion — or at least as upbeat as possible under the circumstances. After dropping their first five games, the Nittany Lions made a midseason U-turn and went on to win their last four. Because the campaign didn't start until late October, it ex- tended deep into December, with the Lions defeating Rutgers (23-7, Dec. 5), Michigan State (39-24, Dec. 12) and Illinois (56-21, Dec. 19). The season-ending win over the Illini took place in an empty Beaver Stadium, save for the teams and a surprise visitor to the Illinois sideline — incoming coach Bret Bielema, whose hire had been officially announced earlier that same day. A winter storm had dumped 18 inches of snow on State College a few days earlier, but the field was clear by kickoff, and receiver Jahan Dotson took full advantage, racking up 189 yards and 2 touchdowns on only 6 catches. Dotson also gained 50 yards on his lone punt return of the evening. In the end, Penn State's 2020 campaign was a struggle, and the COVID-mitigation measures that allowed the Lions to play a full nine-game season — they were one of only two Big Ten teams to do so — only added to the feeling of disorientation. They ended the year with their first losing record since 2004, but the fact that they were able to play an entire season felt like an accomplishment in itself. "There are so many people who worked hard to get this done," coach James Franklin said. "At the end of the day, it's about people following the policies put in place, the proce- dures put in place, and asking 18- to 23-year-old guys to do it on a consistent basis. I know they're sick of me telling them to put their mask on or social distance or this or that. It's just constant. "I thought we had a really good plan and a really good policy, and at the end of the day, people made the choice to follow it." 10 YEARS AGO, 2015 The greatest season in Penn State women's soccer history ended with coach Erica Walsh's team winning its first national championship. The Nittany Lions shut out Rutgers, 2-0, in the College Cup semifinals on Dec. 4 in Cary, N.C., and they posted a 1-0 win over Duke two days later to claim a long-awaited title. Against the Blue Devils, All-America forward Raquel Rodri- guez scored in the 72nd minute to provide the Nittany Lions with the only goal they would need. The winner of the MAC Hermann Trophy, which goes to college soccer's player of the year, Rodriguez worked her way past a pair of defenders on the left side of the penalty area and sent a left-footed shot past goalie EJ Proctor into the bottom-right corner of the net. It was the ninth winning goal of the senior's career. "When you get to a national championship game, you never expect it to be easy. I thought that Duke gave us absolutely ev- erything we could handle today," said Walsh, now Erica Dam- bach. "They came out in the first 20 minutes with the crowd behind them. They put us on our back foot, and we had to struggle through that time and could not quite find our rhythm. Once we got past that time, I really felt like we got back on top of the game. That is an extremely good Duke team that we were able to beat today." 25 YEARS AGO, 2000 In its sixth season under coach Jerry Dunn, the Penn State men's basketball team rolled to a 9-1 start, with its lone loss coming against NC State in late November. The Nittany Lions defeated in-state rivals Pitt (88-74, Dec. 6) and Temple (66-60, Dec. 9) and later traveled to New York for the ECAC Holiday Classic, where they wrapped up the calendar year with wins over Princeton (65-52, Dec. 26) and Hofstra (74-71, Dec. 27) at Madison Square Garden. Hofstra was vying for its third consecutive Holiday Classic championship, and it had a chance to take the Nittany Lions to overtime after Joe Crispin, the tournament MVP, missed a pair of free throws with 2.2 seconds remaining. But Norman Richardson's three-point attempt bounced off the rim at the buzzer, and PSU prevailed. "I like to think that we've earned some respect," Dunn said afterward. "That's something that we have to remind ourselves of, that it's a work in progress. There's nothing wrong with having a great football tradition. We're just trying to get to the point where we have the same kind of tradition [in basketball]." — Matt Herb This Month In Penn State Athletics History Jahan Dotson totaled 189 receiving yards on just 6 catches in Penn State's 2020 season finale against Illinois. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS