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wrist that resembled an oven mitt, he made 13 tackles against Ohio State, in- cluding two tackles for loss, as the Lions held the Buckeyes four touchdowns below their scoring average in a 24-21 victory on Oct. 22. After the win, Cabinda was feeling the physical effects of a hard-fought game, but the pain was mingled with an exhil- arating sense of accomplishment. "I can't remember being this sore after a game in a long time," he said, "and I'm really, really happy." Another previously in- jured linebacker, Brandon Bell, was in equally fine form in his return. Rejoin- ing the starting lineup after missing four full games with an apparent leg injury, the senior finished with 18 tackles, a sack and a pass break-up from his Sam outside line- backer spot, winning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors for his per- formance against the Buckeyes. Bell had been hurt in the Nittany Lions' loss to Pitt in week two. He tried to keep playing, believing that the injury wasn't serious, but that turned out to be wishful thinking. "I didn't really know exactly what it was. It was something different," he said. "And you know, obviously, the doctors and trainers did the tests and everything, and I was like, 'All right, I can still play, it's not that bad.' It might not have been a good idea, though. But at the time, I'm just thinking, 'Try to finish the game and try to win.' That's the only thing you're worried about at the time. After that, I realized it was kind of bad." It was indeed. Bell showed up for the Temple game on crutches, missing the game against the Owls, as well as subse- quent games against Michigan, Min- nesota and Maryland. Like his teammate Cabinda, Bell was left with plenty of time for introspection, and his take- aways pertained not just to football but to his personal relationships. "I realized that nothing really affects me the way football does," he said. "Nothing makes me more sad. Nothing makes me more happy. Even with the ladies and things like that, you know, it kind of gets me in trouble when you don't have the same emotions toward everything else that I do [toward] foot- ball. I definitely realized that." The return of Cabinda and Bell boosted Penn State's defensive man- power at just the right time. While it was beneficial to have their veteran perspec- tive at practice and on the sideline, it was even better to have it on the field – so much so that coach James Franklin had difficulty quantifying the impact they've made since returning to action. "I don't know if you can put a number on it or a percentage on it or even kind of explain," he said. "Their leadership at practice, their energy, the way they call the defense, the way they make adjust- ments. "I think it helps Manny. I think it helps all the other players, Koa [Farmer] and the other guys, as well. It helps the de- fensive line. There's a lot of confidence with those guys on the field because we're able to lean on their experience." The original plan had been for Cabinda and Bell to play 25 to 30 plays against Ohio State. The coaches were confident that Cabinda could handle that workload but were less certain about Bell. Then the game began, and Bell "got hot," Franklin said. So with both players feeling good and the de- fense playing well, the plan changed. Cabinda and Bell both ended up playing most of the game, in part because they were more adept than the younger line- backers at making changes at the line of scrimmage to counteract Ohio State's check-with-me plays. The Lions had not had that capability against Min- nesota and Maryland. In those games, they mostly stuck with the original de- fense even when they knew the Gophers and Terrapins had checked into the WRAPPED UP Bell makes one of his career- high 18 tackles vs. Ohio State. Photo by Steve Manuel

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