Blue White Illustrated

POINT MEN wenty years is a long time ago for just about anyone born in the early 1970s. But it still seems almost like yesterday to the two 40ish- year-old quarterbacks of Penn State's star-crossed, undefeated 1994 football team, which was denied a national championship despite winning the Big Ten title and the Rose Bowl with one of the greatest o;enses in college football history. Kerry Collins :nished fourth in the Heis- man Trophy voting with his on-:eld ex- ploits and leadership. He was so pro:cient and durable that his backup, redshirt sophomore Wally Richardson, never played until the game was locked up. Naturally, they saw the season from di;erent per- spectives. Yet their memories of 1994 are similar in many instances. "My greatest memory of that team is just the quality and character of the guys we had," Collins recalled early this summer from his farm in North Carolina. "They were focused [and] had a great work ethic and humility. It was just a special bunch of guys who put together a special year." Richardson, now director of Penn State's Football Letterman's Club, remembered the team's positive attitude. "We were con:dent, but not cocky," he said. "We worked hard and we were always well pre- pared. We felt we were not supposed to lose." It's almost forgotten that the 1994 season was only the second for Penn State in the Big Ten Conference. The inaugural season was a major disappointment to the team and its fans despite a 10-2 record and a 31-13 upset of Tennessee in the Citrus Bowl. That's because of the embarrassing back-to-back losses to the league's dom- inant powers, Michigan and Ohio State. Penn State fell at home to the Wolverines, 21-13, then, following a bye week, lost to the Buckeyes in Columbus, 24-6. Even as the '94 season approached, those losses were fresh in the minds of the Lions' 44 returning lettermen. Players had stewed over them throughout winter workouts, spring practice and preseason drills. They were on a mission not only to avenge the losses to Michigan and Ohio State but to stick it to their critics in the conference and the national media. In their opener at Minnesota, the Nittany Lions came out smoking, unveiling a blis- tering quick-strike o;ense. They scored a touchdown on a crisp opening drive of 77 yards on 14 plays, and they maintained that pace throughout the :rst two quarters. The game was over by hal>

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