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"He's rubbing it in. He's been rubbing it in the past couple of weeks." Christian and Erick have a mutual love for golf, but the younger Hackenberg has responsibilities this week that will keep him off of the links. Even a quick nine on one of the area's many courses is out of the question. Said Hackenberg, "Nah. Business trip." For college kids, the majority of whom have never been outside of the United States, let alone to Europe, those words don't exactly roll off the tongue. Yet, as the Nittany Lions adjust to a new coach- ing staff, inexperienced personnel and a 3,327-mile trip in order to win the first game of the season, the tone is one that head coach James Franklin felt was nec- essary to hammer home early and oCen this preseason. "This is not going to be a once-in-a- lifetime experience," Franklin said even before the team departed Tuesday night from Harrisburg. "For us, this is a busi- ness trip to go play a football game no different than if we were playing at State College High School. We'd be excited to play Central Florida wherever the game would be, and it's not going to be a once- in-a-lifetime experience because we're going to work really hard to make sure all of our players graduate with a meaning- ful degree from Penn State so they can afford to go back at some point on vaca- tion with their family or their friends and enjoy the countryside." Whatever intentions former Penn State head coach Bill O'Brien may have had when he initiated plans for this trip in the aCermath of the NCAA's sanctions against the program, the game does not have a bowl-like atmosphere. Not that Franklin's approach has been too heavy handed - his smiling de- meanor has remained throughout - but the point has been one demonstrated through his own example. Greeted by the media Wednesday morning immediately aCer making his way through customs, bombarded by questions focusing on the physical and mental challenges facing his team this week, Franklin predicted the Nittany Lions would have "the best practice we've ever had today." Publicly setting high ex- pectations for his team even before leav- ing the airport, Franklin used the opportunity to change the conversation into a Power of Positive Thinking seminar. Late Wednesday aCernoon, as players headed to the locker room for a quick shower and a long-overdue bus trip to the team hotel, Franklin further demon- strated his approach. A few questions into a news conference that would last less than 10 minutes, a reporter proposed to Franklin a theory that the Nittany Lions' experience in handling adversity could help alleviate some of the team's inevitable tiredness. Quickly, Franklin corrected the word choice. "They're not [tired]," he said. "They're not." Acknowledging the "mental tough- ness" and "resiliency" the Nittany Lions have developed through the program's tumultuous recent history, he said the immediate challenges of transitioning to a five-hour time difference would be ac- complished by executing the plan devel- oped long in advance of this trip. "We're in great shape. We had a great plan coming over here," he explained, noting the fully reclining seats that al- lowed as close to complete rest and re- laxation as is possible in a flying metal tube. "The planes were unbelievable, and we got a bunch of rest on the plane over. We kept them up today to try to get ad- justed to the clock as quickly as we pos- sibly can. We'll get a great night's sleep tomorrow, and we'll be raring and ready to go." ACer Wednesday's walk-through and a full night's rest at the luxurious, five-star Powerscourt Hotel roughly 30 minutes south of the team's practice facilities, Penn State continued its preparation Thursday aCernoon. That work will con- tinue on Friday in advance of the game, which kicks off at 1:30 p.m. IST Saturday against the Knights at Croke Park. With the Nittany Lions focused on the game itself, the scenes of the Irish coun- tryside are destined to be viewed only through the windows of Franklin's fleet of buses. "This trip is not about enjoying the countryside," he said. "This is an oppor- tunity to take a special trip. I think it's going to be great for the fans, but we're going to play a football game. There will be some activities we have, but very little of that." NATE BAUER 2013 RECORD 7-5 Penn State is facing a lot of challenges, especially on the offensive side of the ball, but the presence of Christian Hackenberg mitigates some of those questions. With a tough defense back- ing up the revamped offense, Hack should lead the way to a close win. PENN STATE 30, UCF 27 PHIL GROSZ 2013 RECORD 6-6 This is a toss-up game between two teams that are mirror images of each other. Penn State's big advantage is that Christian Hackenberg has already proven himself to be an effective big- game quarterback, while UCF's Pete DiNovo is making his college debut. PENN STATE 20, UCF 13 MATT HERB 2013 RECORD 9-3 When the other matchups seem too close to call, look to special teams to make the difference. Penn State is striving to make big improvements and may do just that. But UCF's kicking game has been solid the past few years. UCF 20, PENN STATE 17 TIM OWEN 2013 RECORD 7-5 On paper, the matchups are about as even as they can get for a season opener. However, UCF has a first-time starter at quarterback, and he's facing a defense that is said to be greatly im- proved since last season. PENN STATE 21, UCF 20 RYAN SNYDER 2013 RECORD 9-3 Penn State will still have issues shut- ting down the UCF passing game, but the offense should be able to keep pace in this one. It'll be close, but I think Franklin and his staff will pull this one out in the end. PENN STATE 28, UCF 24 A U G U S T 2 8 , 2 0 1 3 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 2 BWI'S FORECAST

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