Blue White Illustrated

N A T E   B A U E R | N B A U E R @ B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . c O M JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The decision has been made. Penn State junior quarterback Chris- tian Hackenberg has announced his in- tention to forgo his final season of eligibility at Penn State so he can pur- sue a career in the National Football League. "Right now I am going to declare for the draB," Hackenberg said to a scrum of re- porters aBer the bowl game against Georgia. "I want to thank Coach [Bill] O'Brien for bringing me here and his staff. There are a lot of really good people on that staff. Tough to say, but I think without him, I wouldn't have been here. He's what this place is all about. I want to thank the fans for always being there, challenging me at times, making me get better. I think the fans and the alumni and the lettermen mean so much to this place. It's a really special place. It's tough at times, but they bleed blue and white, and so do we. "I want to thank Coach [Ricky] Rahne and Coach [John] Donovan. Both of those guys stuck by me the entire way, fought for me, had my back. The strength staff [including Dwight Galt Sr. and Dwight Galt Jr.] – all those guys. They were awe- some to work with, fun to be around. And then lastly, Tim Bream, Jevin Stone – two guys I've spent a lot of time with in my years here. They both are really special to me, and then Tony Mancuso [of PSU's Sports Information staff] is another guy I've spent a lot of time with, who's meant a lot to me. It's been an awesome ride, and tough the way it ended. But I bleed blue and white, and this place means the world to me." Hackenberg said he and his family had already decided upon his future before the TaxSlayer Bowl, a game in which he was forced out due to injury in the sec- ond quarter. In his final game at Penn State, he completed 8 of 14 passes for 139 yards and an interception. In the second quarter, during a 5-yard scramble, Hackenberg was tackled to the ground, landing on his right shoulder. Rising slowly, he favored the shoulder until exiting a few plays later. Head coach James Franklin said Hackenberg "fell on it funny" and likely suffered a sprained shoulder joint. "I knew it wasn't a career-ender or anything like that," he said. "I was just more frustrated that I couldn't go out there and finish the game. It's the irony behind it. Now, finally, I wasn't able to finish." Even aBer forgoing his final season, Hackenberg's place in Penn State history is prominent both on and off the field. Choosing to enroll at Penn State during the program's most tumultuous period, Hackenberg went on to become the all- time leader in passing yardage (8,457), attempts (1,235), completions (693) and touchdown passes (48) among other records. He started each of the 38 career games in which he played as a Nittany Lion, and won Big Ten Freshman of the Year and Pinstripe Bowl MVP honors. Hackenberg also was a two-time team captain, the second-youngest captain in the pro- gram's history. His career at Penn State was not with- out plenty of adversity and challenges, however. Struggling to find any level of comfort behind an outmatched offensive line, Hackenberg was sacked 83 times during the 2014 and '15 seasons. Still, the 6-foot-4, 228-pound Hack- enberg continued to play and was re- markably durable throughout his career, missing only a handful of plays due to in- jury until the TaxSlayer Bowl. "I don't know if you can count on one hand how many other programs would have been able to survive what we've survived across the country, and thrived the way we did," Hackenberg said. "Just to be a part of that is really humbling. From my freshman year when I made the decision until now, I wouldn't have realized how impactful it would be within the Penn State com- munity and the lettermen and the alumni. It's pretty cool, and I've still only had a little taste of it. I don't even really realize it. I'm proud to be a part of that group of guys, because they're spe- cial guys." J A N U A R Y 3 , 2 0 1 6 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . c O M 5 THE NEXT LEVEL An all-too-brief appearance vs. Georgia marks the end of Hackenberg's PSU career END GAME Hackenberg announced after the TaxSlayer Bowl that he will enter the 2016 NFL Draft, forsaking his final season of eligibility. Photo by Steve Manuel

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