Blue White Illustrated

day against Indiana State was "crazy, he " said. "It was something I'd dreamed of my whole life. Just going out there and being in front of that crowd was surreal. Holding is an important position, and I do it to the best of my ability. " He's gotten plenty of opportunities, having played in every game the past two seasons. He was the holder on all of the team's 62 placements last year, and he played in the secondary and on kick coverage. Keiser's winning streak continued as he prepared for the start of his junior season. The scholarship, momentous though it may have been, was not the most newsworthy part of his off-season. He also got married. "A blessing from God, Keiser " said. It's an odd coincidence that Penn State's all-time interceptions leader happens to be a walk-on safety from Selinsgrove High. Neal Smith intercepted 19 passes from 1967 to 1969 and was named a first-team All-American as a senior. His record has survived the decades even though college teams are throwing more passes now than they ever did back then, and even though the regular season has been expanded to 12 games annually, two more per year than college teams played in the 1960s. But there's no need to delve quite so deeply into the past to appreciate just how big an impact walk-ons can have on a team's success. Last season produced a number of stellar examples at Penn State. McGloin led the Big Ten in passing attempts and passing yardage and won the Burlsworth Trophy, which goes to the nation's top player who began his career without a scholarship. Tight end Matt Lehman was the team's fourth-leading receiver and Derek Day its fourth-leading rusher. Alex Butterworth handled every one of the team's 51 punts. None of those players had to foot the bill for their entire college education; all were put on scholarship eventually. And even though Penn State will soon have a lot fewer scholarships to hand out, that tradition has continued. During preseason practice, Penn State announced that five run-ons had received scholarships: junior guard Bryan Davie, sophomore defensive lineman Carl Nassib, junior cornerback Devin Pryor, junior defensive tackle Tyrone Smith and sophomore running back Deron Thompson. O'Brien said the coaching staff took part in a lengthy evaluation process before deciding who would get those scholarships. "We don't just hand 'em out like candy," he said. "You have to earn that scholarship, and these guys have earned it. "I met with a couple of key people on our staff and talked to them about these guys who I felt deserved it, both on and off the field, for how they represent our team and how far they've come on the field. Regardless of whether they were starters, [scout team] guys or special teams core players, I felt like it was important for us to reward these guys. "I brought them into my office for oneon-one meetings, and I told each of them. They were very appreciative. They're all great kids. And then I announced it to the team that same day. It's always a fun experience to do that, because these guys have earned it, and the team really enjoyed hearing that these guys had been awarded scholarships for this year. " Keiser said the best way for a run-on to make an impact is to display more than just physical skills. The right attitude is crucial, too, because O'Brien "likes guys who work as hard as they can, every single day. " The coaches also like guys who exhibit intangible qualities and off-the-field skills – skills that run-ons are just as apt to display as their more heavily re- cruited teammates. Keiser was an Academic All-Big Ten choice last fall with a 3.76 GPA, and that in itself makes him a role model for the younger run-ons. Which, as it happens, is exactly what he wants to be. "I'm trying to be a leader for those players by doing my role every single day and coming out here and focusing on doing my job the best that I possibly can," Keiser said. "I think that that's how you're supposed to be a leader – by example." There's no shortage of followers right now. The Nittany Lions have about 40 nonscholarship players on their roster, and that number is going to go up next year when the NCAA's 65-player scholarship cap officially takes effect. The NCAA has put Penn State at a big disadvantage – that was the whole point – but the coaching staff insists the team can enjoy success even as the sanctions run their course, pointing out that the runons will have a significant role to play in whatever comes next. "It's a challenge," London admitted. "But it's something that we're going to embrace and move forward with. These were the rules that we were given to play by, and we're going to play by those rules. Especially with Coach O'Brien's expertise with handling a smaller roster in the NFL, we feel that we're well-equipped so that no matter how many scholarships we have, we have great kids, great student-athletes and will be very competitive on the football I field."

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