Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/78639
NEWS & NOTES WAKE-UP CALL O'Brien speaks to the media after Penn State's workout Feb. 17. The Nittany Lions' conditioning drills have been beginning as early as 5:15 a.m. O'Brien hails winter workout regimen Coaching staff looks to hone Nittany Lions' competitive instincts FOOTBALL Bill O'Brien wrapped up another winter workout session and headed toward a scrum of reporters stand- ing outside the Lasch Building. Predawn media availabilities aren't the norm at Penn State, or any- where else in all likelihood. But the T 4 M A R C H 2 3 , 2 0 1 2 he first rays of daylight were beaming down on Penn State's outdoor practice field Feb. 17 as Nittany Lions' new head coach had his reasons. "We wanted to give you guys a chance to see how hard these guys are working," he said. Mission accomplished. The Lions began working out at 5:15 a.m., running sprints, doing leg lifts and deep knee bends, diving onto mats, navigating cones and even, at one point, wrestling each other mano-a-mano in a corner of the practice field as teammates crowded around the ring and cheered them on. To keep everyone pumped up, the coaches stationed a pair of loud- speakers on the far side of the prac- tice field and blared Metallica, AC/DC, Ozzy Osbourne and some of the lesser lights of the nu-metal movement. "I kind of like the misery you put me through," growled the lead singer of a band called Disturbed. The lyric seemed apro- pos, even though the mix didn't come from O'Brien's iPod. "I love music," he said, "but not that music. Fitzy and I are going to get together on the music choices." W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Tim Owen