Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545675
A U G U S T 2 0 2 6 6 9 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / L I N E B A C K E R S / / / / / / / Signs Of Trouble The downward spiral had started in the first half of Penn State's game against the Ducks on Sept. 27. Rojas sustained a quad contusion on a chop block by an Oregon running back and headed to the sideline for treatment. After some time on the stationary bike and plenty of Icy Hot, he returned despite the pain, finishing with 7 tackles and a pass breakup in the 30-24 loss. During a light practice the next day, Rojas managed to "limp jog" his way through two runs meant to flush out the muscles. He'd felt a burning sensation in his leg while stretching, but unaware of the injury's severity, he spent the team's Monday off day reha- bilitating, then started Tuesday's practice with what he described as a "hot brace" around his thigh. On the first play of the prac- tice session, Rojas tried to shed a block and crumpled to the turf. What he'd assumed was only a bruised quad had become much more. The injury was confirmed by Franklin after Penn State's Wednesday practice. Franklin's policy was to never discuss injuries unless they were season-ending, and unfortunately for both player and team, this one fell into that category. The Nittany Lions headed to Los Angeles the next day without Rojas. Already frus- trated by the loss to the Ducks, and now without one of its best players, the team was in trouble. "We were finally like, 'Okay, we're not going to lose the big game again. We have a great team. We brought everyone back,'" Rojas said. "I think we were so focused on not losing the big games in the beginning of the season, and then once we did against Oregon, everyone was like, 'Here we go again.'" Unable to stop UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava on the ground or through the air, the Nittany Lions unraveled. Ia- maleava amassed 294 yards of total of- fense, and Penn State wasn't able to rally from a 20-point first-half deficit, falling to the Bruins, 42-37. A week later, North- western pulled off a 22-21 upset at Beaver Stadium. The unwinding was total, and there was little Rojas could do about any of it. The atmosphere in the Lasch Build- ing "just felt very dull and dead," he said. "Not people giving up, but people ques- tioning what's going on. What are we going to do? People thinking about their future. I think people just started trying to play for themselves rather than trying to stick together. "I tried to be there for the guys, my roommates. When I was here, I was try- ing to still coach up the LBs and help them out, whatever they needed. But it was hard. I didn't have much say, obvi- ously, when we lost those games because I didn't play. It was just an awkward feel- ing in the building. It was surprising. It was strange. The building felt down." That feeling was magnified when Franklin was ousted. Rojas was blind- sided by the decision, and it wasn't just the dismissal itself that upset him and his teammates. "We loved him, all of us," Rojas said. "And the way it happened was frustrating — out of the blue and no backup plan, either. It was just a mess." Taking on the weight of a third emo- tional burden — his injury, the team's Scholarship Players (9) No. Player Yr. Ht. Wt. 10 Caleb Bacon R-Sr. 6-4 242 9 Cael Brezina Jr. 6-3 233 8 Kooper Ebel Sr. 6-4 233 34 Chris Fileppo So. 6-4 219 — Keian Kaiser Fr. 6-4 215 32 John Klosterman R-Sr. 5-11 223 13 Tony Rojas R-Jr. 6-2 236 26 Cam Smith R-Fr. 6-0 222 25 Alex Tatsch So. 6-2 235 Rojas expects to be "full-go" for the start of preseason practice. He hasn't seen game action since the Lions faced Oregon last September. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/ PENN STATE ATHLETICS Quick Facts Position coach: Tyson Veidt (first season) Returning starter: Tony Rojas (20 career starts) Departing starters: Amare Campbell (13), Dominic DeLuca (14) Projected new starters: Caleb Bacon, Kooper Ebel Top reserves: Cael Brezina, John Klos - terman, Alex Tatsch Newcomers: Chris Fileppo, Keian Kaiser, Bacon, Brezina, Ebel, Klosterman