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man of the Year and Pinstripe Bowl MVP honors. Hackenberg also was a two-time team captain, becoming the second- youngest captain in the program's histo- ry as a sophomore in 2014. His career at Penn State was not with- out plenty of 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-pounder con- tinued to play and was remarkably durable throughout his career, missing only a handful of plays due to injury un- til 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 sur- vived, and thrived the way we did," Hack- enberg 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 commu- nity 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 special guys." AUSTIN JOHNSON Moments after Hackenberg announced that he would be passing up his final season of collegiate eligibility, Johnson followed suit. A redshirt junior defensive tackle from Galloway, N.J., Johnson finished his final college season with 15 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. He also ranked No.3 on the team with 78 tackles, broke up two passes and forced a fumble. The high- light of his season might have been a 71- yard scoop-and-score against San Diego State on Sept. 26. While Johnson wasn't able to help lead Penn State past Georgia in the TaxSlayer Bowl, he expressed his pride in playing with his teammates over the course of the past few seasons. "I'm just happy to be playing with my brothers and just happy to give it my all today," he said following the Lions' 24- 17 loss to the Bulldogs. "We didn't come out on top, but it is what it was. We gave it a good, hard fight." Johnson finished his Penn State career with 154 tackles, 8.5 sacks and 24 tackles for loss and also had four fumble recov- eries and five pass breakups. He has started every game for the Nittany Lions the past two seasons. GENO LEWIS A redshirt junior wide receiver, Lewis isn't headed to the NFL just yet, but on Jan. 11, he made a move aimed at helping him get there, an- nouncing via Twitter that he would use the NCAA's one-time graduate-transfer rule to complete his final season of eligi- bility at Oklahoma. "After a long discussion with my fami- ly and coaches, I have decided that it would be in my best interest to transfer from Penn State University to pursue my graduate studies and play football with my last year of eligibility," Lewis wrote. "This was not an easy decision but I feel like it is time to move on to the next chapter in my life." Lewis had been the Lions' second- leading receiver as a redshirt sophomore in 2014, starting 11 of 13 games and to- taling 55 catches for 751 yards and two scores. But his impact dwindled during the 2015 season. The Wilkes-Barre, Pa., resident made only three starts and caught 17 passes for 196 yards and three touchdowns, finishing fourth on the team in receptions behind Chris God- win, DaeSean Hamilton and running back Saquon Barkley. It was a drop-off even from his redshirt freshman season, in which he finished with 18 receptions for 234 yards and three scores. Although Lewis's receiving numbers fell dramatically, his penchant for mak- ing big plays did not seem to wane. He hauled in a 27-yard touchdown catch to help the Lions top Maryland in October, and he added a remarkable 32-yard touchdown pass to Hamilton in the third quarter of PSU's loss at Northwestern. Then in the fourth quarter of the Tax- Slayer Bowl, he had a 17-yard score, keep- ing his right foot in bounds to help Penn State rally in the fourth quarter after spotting Georgia a three-touchdown lead. Lewis finished his career at Penn State with 90 receptions for 1,181 yards and eight touchdowns. The 89th of those catches was his touchdown reception against Georgia, and it won him an ad- mirer: Andrea McSorley, mother of quarterback Trace McSorley. "Will always remember that you caught Trace's first TD pass in college," she tweeted following the news of his transfer. "Wishing you every happiness. God bless you." AKEEL LYNCH Set to receive his Penn State degree this spring, the backup running back will join Lewis in using the graduate-transfer rule to play his final season elsewhere. But while Lewis al- ready knows his destination, Lynch had not announced as of mid-January where he was headed. A three-star prospect in the Class of 2012, Lynch was considered the No. 3 overall prospect in New York coming out of St. Francis High in Athol Springs. After redshirting as a true freshman, he ran for 358 yards on 60 attempts in 2013, seeing action as the third running back in the of- fensive rotation. He was a third-teamer again in 2014 but he led the Lions in rush- ing with 678 yards and four touchdowns on 147 carries. This past season, Lynch opened as the starter but saw his role diminish as Saquon Barkley emerged as the Lions' go- to running back. He finished with a ca- reer-low 282 yards. For his PSU career, he ran for 1,318 yards on 262 carries and sev- en TDs. In a farewell tweet, Lynch thanked coaches Joe Paterno, Bill O'Brien and James Franklin. He also thanked John Cappelletti, who allowed him to contin- ue wearing No. 22 even after the Heis- man Trophy winner's number was re- tired in 2013. "Regardless of everything," Lynch wrote, "Penn State will always be considered home." –NATE BAUER, TIM OWEN ADDITIONAL TRANSFERS A trio of defensive players left PSU in mid-January. For details on the departures, see Page 38.

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