Blue White Illustrated

Fitzy would be Craig Fitzgerald, the Nittany Lions' new strength coach. It was easy to pick the for- mer South Carolina and Maryland assistant out from the crowd of coaches, players and support staffers on hand for the early-morn- ing workout. He was the one wear- ing shorts and a T-shirt through- out, oblivious to the weather, which started out in the mid-30s and actually seemed to get colder as dawn approached and the wind picked up. Fitzgerald's energy – he's intense but personable, too – seemed to rub off on players as they ran through their drills. "There's a lot of spirit and enthusiasm," O'Brien said. "That's what Fitz does. And at the same time, they're getting bet- ter. I wouldn't say it's 100 percent buy-in, but we're getting there. The guys have seen improvement in their own performance already, so it's good." Winter workouts inevitably entail their share of drudgery, but in past years, players weren't getting up quite so early and weren't working out in quite the same way. O'Brien said he's trying to get players accli- mated to his pace and the style of play that the Nittany Lions will be looking to adopt this fall. "We want guys who are moving. We want guys who play fast. We want guys who are in great condi- tion," he said. "We're going to try to play at a high tempo next year, and we want guys who are trying to get stronger every day. We want to move weight, and that's what's real- ly important." O'Brien also said he's looking to instill a competitive drive in his players, one that starts in practice and carries over into games. "It's important for these guys to understand that when you walk off this field, there's a winner and a loser," he said. "That's what we're doing right now. When you're out here, that's what it's all about. You either win or you lose. There's really no gray area in football. We try to make it fun, but at the same time, we make them understand who's won and who's lost." The last activity of the outdoor session was a one-on-one competi- tion using a blue disk that was a W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M little bit bigger than a garbage can lid with handles around the edge. Fitzgerald called it "the tug," and its purpose was just what the name implied. Two players – one from offense, one from defense – would grab hold and try to pull each other around the field. After a few tugs-of-war, the coach- es called an end to practice, insist- ing that players jog off the field. No walking allowed. As he met with reporters, O'Brien talked a bit about the future, alluding to the team's Junior Day, which was set to take place that weekend, with some of the best high school prospects in Pennsylvania and nearby states slated to attend. "We're building something here," he said. "We're just starting. There's no light at the end of the tunnel right now, but we've got a long way to go." – MATT HERB AWARDS WATCH named the Big Ten Coach of the Year by both the coaches and media. In addition, junior guard Alex Bentley and sophomore guard Maggie Lucas were both named to the All-Big Ten first team by the coaches and media. The Lady Lions have 26 first-team All-Big Ten selections, the most of any team in the Big Ten since joining the conference in 1992-93. All five starters claimed postseason accolades, as junior center Nikki Greene earned third-team All- Big Ten honors from the media and an honorable mention nod from the coaches. Additionally, senior guard Zhaque Gray and junior forward Mia Nickson were named hon- orable mention All-Big Ten. Bentley was also named to the Big Ten All-Defensive team. Washington joins four-time winner Rene Portland (1994, 2000, 2003, 2004) on the list of Penn State mentors to win top conference coaching honors. The Lady Lions started conference play 1-2 but rallied to win 12 of their next 13 games to claim the regular-sea- son crown. Penn State's 13 Big Ten wins are the most since the 2004-05 campaign and PSU's 10 road wins this year are the most for the Lady Lions since 1993-94. Penn State has been ranked in The Associated Press Top 25 all season and was ranked ninth heading into the Big Ten tour- nament, its highest ranking since the 2003-04 campaign. The Lady Lions have increased their Big Ten victory total in each of Washington's five seasons in Happy Valley. A fter leading the Lady Lions to their first Big Ten regu- lar-season title since 2004, Coquese Washington was COQUESE WASHINGTON FOOTBALL Longtime PSU broadcaster dies Before there was Steve Jones, even before there was Fran Fisher, there was Milton "Mickey" Bergstein. The former radio broad- caster for the Penn State football and men's basketball teams died Feb. 14 at age 89 in State College. A 1943 Penn State graduate who was wounded as a member of the United States Marine Corps in World War II, Bergstein began his broadcasting career in 1953 as an analyst on the Penn State football radio team. He became the Nittany Lions' play-by-play voice in 1956 before reprising his role as analyst for his final six years on the broad- cast team, the last five with Fisher handling the play-by-play duties. Bergstein also helped broadcast Penn State wrestling and boxing matches, and often hosted the weekly Quarterback Club luncheon. For 25 years, beginning in 1950, Bergstein was a part-time market- ing instructor at the university. After his endeavors in radio, he joined the Smeal College of Business as a full-time instructor in 1975. He retired in 2001. Bergstein was named the universi- ty's Renaissance Person of the Year in 1988, and also authored two books: "Living with Lions" and "Penn State Sports Stories and More." The latter included a fore- word by Joe Paterno. He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, who still resides in State College, sons Andrew and Michael and a grandson, Ethan. Andrew is a senior instructor in the Smeal College of Business. BWI file photo M A R C H 2 3 , 2 0 1 2 5

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