Blue White Illustrated

help bridge the gap between the older let- termen of the Joe Paterno era and new breed of Franklinites. Franklin had Caldwell and the former players speak to the team when he sur- prised the squad at the start of a 7:30 a.m. meeting with his decision about the jerseys. It was an emotional setting. "There were a couple of heartfelt speeches," Caldwell said, "and they had an effect on the team." Some of the most moving words came from Todd Kulka, a four-year walk-on linebacker who is now in charge of the team's academic center. "The current players see Todd as a tough disciplinarian, sort of like the principal," Caldwell said. "When they saw Todd almost break down talking about his dad [John] and uncle [George] playing here [in the late 1960s] and what the no-names tradition had meant to him and his family, the players seemed to realize this was a much bigger deal than they had thought." The current players also knew Terry Smith, who is the only assistant coach on Franklin's staff with a Penn State back- ground. Learning from Smith about his experience as a star wide receiver from 1988-91, and the similar experience of his stepson, defensive back Justin King (2005-08) was another personal touch. Ham, a familiar face to the 2015 team because of his 16 years with Steve Jones broadcasting Penn State games on the radio network, also had a more personal impact on the squad. Ham drove nearly three hours through the early-morning darkness from his home in suburban Pitts- burgh after getting a phone call from Franklin simply asking him to meet with the coach in his office at 7 a.m. "I didn't know what the meeting was all about but I said I would be there," Ham said. At 7 a.m., he and the other lettermen were surprised by what Franklin told them and eagerly agreed to talk at the ensuing team meeting. "To a man, we [lettermen] were all excited and we explained to the players what this meant to all of us and to Penn State. This is one tradition we had to restore." Caldwell said the way Franklin handled the decision with the team was perfect. "The current players like to see their names on the jerseys," Caldwell said. "If he had just announced it to the players that morn- ing, I don't think they would have been too pleased. They have a player panel that meets regularly with Coach Franklin, and I think they would have tried to talk him into changing his mind." Richardson agreed. "It was a good move on Coach Franklin's part," he said. "Some of the younger guys might not necessarily understand the significance of not having the names on the jerseys. But having been in their shoes at different times and coming from guys who had played and donned that uniform themselves, being able to share with them our thoughts had a more profound effect than somebody on the street telling them those names need to come off the jerseys." Franklin had kept his decision secret from all but a few members of his staff. None of the lettermen who met with the coach prior to the team assembly had been told in advance about it. "I had no idea the names were coming off until Coach Franklin met with me and the other lettermen right before he was telling the team," Richardson said. How- ever, Richardson admits that he, Caldwell and another former player, Bob White, a starting defensive end on the 1986 national championship team who is now in charge of the suites and Mount Nittany Club at Beaver Stadium, had been tipped off a couple of weeks earlier. "But my wheels weren't turning and I wasn't thinking this was going to happen," Richardson said. Caldwell, now an assistant to White, described what occurred. Assistant video coordinator Blake Newsock called Cald- well, Richardson and White and said Franklin wanted them to be part of a re- cruiting video talking about Penn State's football traditions, history and what it means to be part of the family. When they arrived at the team locker room for the video, Newsock told them a different story. "Blake said, 'We're trying to keep it low- key, but the coach is thinking of taking the names off the jerseys,' " Caldwell re- membered. " 'He really wants to know what you think about it and what it will mean to you to do that.' We said it was great and we did the video, and didn't think much more about it. "Three days before the Thursday an- nouncement, Coach Franklin called and asked me to meet with him at 7 o'clock that morning. He didn't say what it was about, but I said, 'Sure, Coach.' When I got there, I saw Jack Ham, Kenny Jackson and Bobby and Wally and the other guys. He had called them, too, and asked them to meet with him without telling any of us why. We all thought we were having a pri- vate meeting with him. He said, 'Guys, we're going to take the names off the jerseys, and I wanted to tell you guys first, and ask a favor and present this to the team. I think hearing from you would be more heartfelt and more meaningful coming from you guys in your words.' We were all positive and thought it was a great move." Caldwell believes the names would have been removed last year if there had not been a change in head coaches. "When Coach Franklin came in the spring of 2014, I mentioned to him that Coach [Bill] O'Brien was thinking of taking the names off for the 2014 season," Caldwell said. "Coach Franklin said he was just starting and didn't want to make drastic changes or be disruptive and wanted to get a feel for things. "As I said to the lettermen at the 7 a.m. meeting, Coach O'Brien's concept of this was to honor the players who stayed despite all the problems we were having because of the Sandusky thing. If we just continue to keep the names forever, it has no mean- ing, no special significance. When you watch ESPN Classic 10 to 20 years from now, those guys on the 2012 team are going to stick out. We'll remember those guys and what they did to save the program." Nobody on that team did more to save the program than Michael Mauti and Michael Zordich. When the draconian NCAA sanctions struck like a lightning bolt in July 2012, the two Michaels in- stinctively stepped to the front and led their teammates through the chaos and, ultimately, the entire season, turning what looked like a disastrous year into an un- expected success. It was in their bloodlines 2 0 1 5 P E N N S T A T E F O O T B A L L

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