Penn State Football

Penn State's social media team has revised a widely mocked graphic meant to highlight the program's NFL alumni.

On Thursday, the Nittany Lions account tweeted a graphic that stated, "A Penn Stater has appeared in every Super Bowl." However, the fine print clarified that a Penn State alum has appeared in all but five Super Bowls since 1967.

On Friday, the program gave its graphics department another chance, and it sent out a corrected image and mocked its initial phrasing.

The original graphic became a college sports meme as schools like UMBC and Ole Miss poked fun at PSU's claim.

Credit to Penn State, however: The team left up the original post, which is sure to be retweeted for years to come.

Penn State announced Mike Yurcich will become the team's new offensive coordinator and quarterback coach, according to Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic. 

He replaces Kirk Ciarrocca, who held the roles last season after being hired away from Minnesota.

Yurcich spent last season as the offensive coordinator at Texas but was seeking a new home after head coach Tom Herman was fired after four seasons at the school.

Though the Longhorns didn't live up to their own lofty expectations, the offense still thrived with an average of 42.7 points per game, eighth best in the country.

Yurcich has proved himself at other top programs in the past, including spending the 2019 season with Ohio State as the squad won the Big Ten title and reached the College Football Playoff. The Buckeyes had the third-best scoring offense in the country as Justin Fields finished third in voting for the Heisman Trophy.

This came after serving as the offensive coordinator at Oklahoma State from 2013-18, often leading some of the most explosive offenses in college football.

The consistency at different stops has made Yurcich one of the top assistants in FBS in recent years:

Penn State is hoping this can continue after a miserable 2020 campaign. The Nittany Lions finished 4-5, the first losing record for the program since 2004.

Ciarrocca was hired in December 2019 after leading Minnesota to a breakout season, taking over playcalling duties after Ricky Rahne became head coach at Old Dominion.

Just one year later, head coach James Franklin told reporters it was "best for our program to make a change."

"We are excited to have Mike join our staff," the coach said of Yurcich. “He is an impressive offensive mind and talented play caller who has set records everywhere he has been as an offensive coordinator. I look forward to seeing what he can do with all of the offensive weapons we have here at Penn State."

Two-year starter Sean Clifford is expected to return at quarterback along with top playmakers like Jahan Dotson and Keyvone Lee.

Former NFL running back Ki-Jana Carter is the subject of a lawsuit filed by Penn State Health, alleging a company owned and run by the one-time Nittany Lions star failed to fulfill the terms of a $2.4 million deal to supply surgical masks. 

According to Penn Live's Matt Miller, Carter reached out to Penn State Health on behalf of ByoGlobe LLC to line up the sale of 300,000 masks in late March amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Penn State Health alleges in the suit it didn't receive a single mask and that it's unsure what happened to the $2.4 million it spent since ByoGlobe didn't hold the payment in escrow.

Penn State Health said it reached out to Carter in mid-April when the masks didn't arrive and received a response that a shipment was "en route." Carter allegedly followed up to say the delay was due in part to a change in ByoGlobe's suppliers.

Miller provided more on Penn State Health's allegations:

"Penn State Health claims Carter and ByoGlobe never actually had the connections or expertise to make good on the mask deal. It says it demanded a refund of the full amount of the contract in May.

"Since there was no escrow or performance bond that money has come back in dribs and drabs, with the $935,000 still to be repaid, Penn State Health contends. No further refunds have been made since July, it says."

Especially in the early stages when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, some medical facilities experienced a shortage of necessary personal protective equipment such as surgical masks.

Penn State Health explained in November how it dealt with the problem. Part of the solution included the creation of an email inbox "asking people to send any leads they might have for securing more items like masks and gowns." It's unclear if that's how Carter came into contact with the organization.

Miller noted Carter's connection to Penn State made his offer stand out a bit.

The 47-year-old spent three seasons with the Nittany Lions, running for 2,829 yards and 34 touchdowns. He finished runner-up to Colorado's Rashaan Salaam in the 1994 Heisman Trophy voting. Penn State was a perfect 12-0 that year but wound up second behind 13-0 Nebraska in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.

The list of teams pulling out of bowl games continues to grow, with Penn State becoming the latest football program to announce it won't play in a postseason contest.

Per an official announcement from the school, the decision to opt out of a bowl game was made by the student-athletes with the support of athletic director Sandy Barbour and head coach James Franklin.

Franklin issued a statement included in the announcement:

"I couldn't be more proud and encouraged by how our team conducted itself during this unprecedented season. One of our four core values is a willingness to sacrifice, and our student-athletes, coaches and staff have all made incredible sacrifices both on and off the field in order for us to compete this year. This has been a challenging nine months, but we are proud of how our student-athletes have navigated these difficult times. As you know, we rely on our captains and Leadership Council to provide a voice for our team, and our student-athletes made the difficult choice not to participate in a bowl this year in order to spend time with loved ones. We are fully supportive of their decision, knowing it has been many months since our students-athletes have been able to spend time with their families and the challenges they endured, both physically and mentally. This will be an opportunity for our guys to go home, see family and recharge for the spring semester."

Brandon Marcello of 247Sports noted a total of 17 teams across the country have opted out of playing in a bowl game.

Expectations were high for the Nittany Lions coming into 2020. They were ranked seventh in the Associated Press Top 25 preseason poll, but had a dramatic fall from grace with five straight losses to open the regular season.

After a 41-21 loss to Iowa on Nov. 21, ESPN's Field Yates noted Penn State became the first team ranked in the top 10 of the AP preseason poll to start 0-5.

Franklin was able to get his team turned around with four consecutive wins, including a 56-21 victory over Illinois in the season finale Saturday.

It's unclear if a 4-5 Penn State team would have received an invite to a bowl game anyway, but it would certainly have seemed possible given the number of programs that have decided against playing in them thus far.

By finishing their season now, the Nittany Lions have ensured their first losing record since a 4-7 mark in 2004.

Penn State entered the 2020 college football season as the No. 8 team in the Associated Press poll, but the Nittany Lions have now registered the first 0-5 start in program history after falling at home to the Iowa Hawkeyes, 41-21 on Saturday. 

Per Brett McMurphy of Stadium, PSU is also guaranteed its first losing season since 2004, when the team went 4-7. The Nittany Lions' best possible result this year is 3-5 with three regular-season games remaining. 

Penn State's 15-season streak of winning records was the fourth-longest current run in Division I FBS, per McMurphy.

Penn State's football history dates back to 1887. The Nittany Lions have only had 18 losing seasons, including 2020.

PSU entered this season with high hopes despite some significant departures, including defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos (NFL draft) and linebacker Micah Parsons (opt out).

However, the season has snowballed into disaster following a stunning 36-35 overtime loss at Indiana that ended with Hoosiers quarterback Michael Penix Jr. scoring a two-point conversion on a play so close that officials could have called it either way.

PSU put up a respectable showing against No. 3 Ohio State the following week, losing 38-25. Wideout Jahan Dotson broke out with three touchdowns.

However, PSU followed that game with a 35-19 home loss to Maryland and a 30-23 road defeat to Nebraska.

The latter game saw Will Levis take over for a benched Sean Clifford at quarterback. PSU also notably trailed 27-6 at halftime.

On Saturday, the Nittany Lions led 7-3 but allowed 21 second-quarter points to trail 24-7 into the half. Dotson excelled again with eight catches for 139 yards and a touchdown, but PSU had no answer for the Iowa rushing attack, which accounted for 175 yards and four scores.

PSU will close it season with games against Michigan, Rutgers and Michigan State.

Former Penn State defensive back Isaiah Humphries told university investigators that Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin advised him not to contact police following a fight with teammate Micah Parsons.

ESPN's John Barr obtained a draft of the investigation's findings, which stated Humphries and Parsons were involved in an altercation in March 2018 that included Humphries pulling out a knife when Parsons would not stop choking him. The defensive back, who has since transferred to Cal and is suing Penn State, said he met with Franklin after the fight.

"Mr. Humphries added that Coach Franklin came and said, 'Don't talk to the police because Micah is his start [sic] player and makes money, so if he gets in trouble, he's gone,' meaning Mr. Humphries would be gone," report read.

A Penn State spokesperson told Barr, "Franklin has made it clear that he did not instruct Mr. Humphries to avoid contacting authorities."

Humphries' suit alleges Parsons, defensive tackle Damion Barber and defensive lineman Yetur Gross-Matos sexually harassed him during their time as teammates. Barber allegedly said he was going to "Sandusky" Humphries, referencing former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, who is in prison after being convicted on 45 counts of sexual assault and rape of young boys.

Two players interviewed for the report said Barber would simulate sex acts while naked in front of other players and sometimes inappropriately touch them. Some allegations were disputed, including one player saying Humphries "lies for no reason."

Barber, Gross-Matos and Parsons did not respond to requests to comment from ESPN. Gross-Matos and Parsons are not alleged to have made inappropriate contact with teammates.

Penn State and Franklin filed paperwork seeking to have Humphries' lawsuit dismissed.

A miserable season for Penn State continued Saturday with a 30-23 loss to Nebraska, and head coach James Franklin didn't hold back in his assessment of the team.

"All of us in every single area can be better," the coach told reporters after the game.

The latest loss dropped the team to 0-4 on the season after entering the year with high expectations.

The Nittany Lions went 11-2 last season and entered Week 1 of 2020 ranked No. 7 in the Associated Press poll.

After an overtime loss to Indiana, Penn State suffered losses to Ohio State and Maryland before another close loss to Nebraska on Saturday. Down seven in the fourth quarter, the team got into the red zone twice but failed to score the potential game-tying touchdown.

It's led to a historically bad start for the squad:

The defense has been a problem while allowing at least 30 points in every game, while quarterback Sean Clifford has struggled with turnovers throughout the year. The play-calling has also come under fire based on the offense's inability to finish off drives.

It's clear there is a lot of room for improvement if the team wants to earn its first win of the season next week against Iowa, a team that is coming off back-to-back blowout wins over Michigan State and Minnesota.

With the Penn State Nittany Lions trailing the Nebraska Cornhuskers 24-3 in the second quarter of a battle between winless teams Saturday, Penn State head coach James Franklin benched junior quarterback Sean Clifford in favor of sophomore Will Levis.

Franklin made the move after Clifford fumbled while getting sacked by Deontai Williams, who recovered the ball and returned it 26 yards for a touchdown.

Penn State began the season ranked No. 8 in the country, but it is off to a hugely disappointing 0-3 start after losses to Indiana, Ohio State and Maryland.

Prior to getting pulled Saturday, Clifford was just 5-of-8 passing for 37 yards with no touchdowns and one interception against a Huskers team that entered the game 0-2 after losses to Ohio State and Northwestern.

Clifford was PSU's starter last season when it went 11-2 and won the Cotton Bowl. He largely played well, completing 59.2 percent of his passes for 2,654 yards, 23 touchdowns and seven interceptions and rushing for 402 yards and five scores.

Expectations were high for Clifford and the Nittany Lions entering 2020, but they clearly have not lived up to their billing.

In three games before getting removed Saturday, Clifford was completing 56.6 percent of his attempts for 859 yards, nine touchdowns and five interceptions, as well as 150 yards rushing and one touchdown on the ground.

While the counting stats weren't bad at all for Clifford, he made far too many mistakes with five picks in three games and carried that over to Saturday's clash with Nebraska, as he threw an interception and lost a fumble.

Levis saw some action last season, going 28-of-47 for 223 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also showcased his athleticism with 213 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns.

Switching from Clifford to Levis did seem to pay immediate dividends for the Nittany Lions, as Levis' first drive lasted 13 plays, spanned 52 yards and ended with a field goal.

Penn State running back Journey Brown is retiring from football after being diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the heart muscle becomes abnormally thick.

Brown announced the news in a statement on Twitter Wednesday:

Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin told reporters the condition was discovered during COVID-19 testing but is not related to the virus.  

"Although it is not COVID-related we learned about this in early September. ... The entire organization has rallied behind Journey and his family," Franklin said.

Brown has not played during the 2020 season, but no clues were given on his status, aside from it being illness-related. The junior was coming off a strong 2019 campaign, rushing for 890 yards and 12 touchdowns, and he was expected to start at running back for the Nittany Lions. The final game of his career was a 202-yard, two-touchdown breakout performance against Memphis in the Cotton Bowl.

Devyn Ford has started at running back for a disappointing Penn State team, which enters the weekend 0-3 on the season.

One of the best players in the entire Big Ten may miss the upcoming 2020 football season because of a medical condition.

"Journey Brown is being treated for a medical condition discovered during the offseason and will potentially miss the 2020 football season," Penn State said in a statement, per Mark Brennan of 247Sports.

Brown is the star running back for the Nittany Lions and was largely expected to carry on the proud tradition of the position for the program that recently produced Saquon Barkley and Miles Sanders.

Brown was a nonfactor in 2018 but tallied 1,024 yards from scrimmage and 13 touchdowns during the 2019 campaign.

He was especially impressive down the stretch when he established himself as the clear-cut top option out of the backfield:

• Nov. 9 at Minnesota: 14 carries for 124 yards and two touchdowns
• Nov. 16 vs. Indiana: 21 carries for 100 yards and one touchdown
• Nov. 23 at Ohio State: 11 carries for 64 yards and one touchdown
• Nov. 30 vs. Rutgers: 16 carries for 103 yards and three touchdowns
• Dec. 28 vs. Memphis: 16 carries for 202 yards and two touchdowns

His performance in the Cotton Bowl victory over Memphis seemingly set him up to pick up right where he left off as a primary option during the 2020 campaign. Instead, the Nittany Lions may be forced to compete with the likes of Ohio State, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and others for a Big Ten Championship without their star running back.

Penn State does have other options in the backfield with Noah Cain, Devyn Ford, Caziah Holmes and Keyvone Lee, but Brown adds an explosive element to the offense that can take the pressure off quarterback Sean Clifford.

The Nittany Lions face Indiana in Saturday's season opener.