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Black Shoe Diaries

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This Week in Happy Valley: Hockey Back on Track

Penn State hockey’s defense turned in a solid effort against Minnesota. Braedon Ford suffered a long-term injury after an ugly collision at the boards in Saturday’s win over Minnesota. Charlie Cerrato, Shea Van Olm, and Casey Aman are all day-to-day, per Guy Gadowsky. Gavin McKenna has the most points among NCAA draft-eligible players as we […]

Blessed & Honored: Penn State Offers Four-Star VA Linebacker

Penn State Visits Samson Gash Penn State did an in-home visit for 2026 wide receiver Samson Gash over the weekend: Gash committed to Michigan State over the summer, but he did not sign with the Spartans during the early signing window. The Nittany Lions are trying to add the potential legacy recruit to their 2026 […]

Nittany Lions in the NFL 2025: Wildcard Weekend

Here’s a list of the current Nittany Lions in the NFL listed by 53-man roster: *Just a reminder that again this season, I will not include players like Juwan Johnson and KeAndre Lambert-Smith that did not finish their college career at Penn State* Arizona Cardinals: Blake Gillikin, PJ Mustipher Atlanta Falcons: Arnold Ebiketie Baltimore Ravens: […]

Penn State Adds Former DII Tiffin OL Tyshon Huff

The Nittany Lions are continue to build out their offensive line depth via the transfer portal with the latest addition of former Tiffin University (DII) offensive lineman Tyshon Huff. Huff is a 6-foot-4, 300-pound offensive lineman that played both guard and tackle at Tiffin University, which is located in Ohio. He was a 2023 high […]

Penn State Adds Former Grambling State Wide Receiver Keith Jones Jr.

The wide receiver room is perhaps the most significant portion of Penn State’s roster where Matt Campbell and his staff have been doing a total overhaul, as Grambling State wideout Keith Jones. Jr. marks the latest addition to the Nittany Lions’ wideout corps. As a true freshman this past year, Jones caught 32 passes for […]

Penn State Lands Former Mississippi State Punter Nathan Tiyce

Penn State has landed a specialist in its latest addition from the transfer portal. Former Mississippi State punter Nathan Tiyce will be joining the Nittany Lions for its first season under new head coach Matt Campbell. Tiyce is coming off his freshman season with the Bulldogs, and will have three years of eligibility remaining. The […]

MMQB – A Game of Inches

Football can be an unpredictable sport – that’s why they have the phrase “any given Sunday Saturday.” In any given weekend, for any given game, it’s possible that an upset will happen. Look at Penn State, who – after losing to Oregon – suffered two of the most unexpected upsets in college football history this […]

Penn State Lands Former Iowa State DB Jeremiah Cooper

Matt Campbell and the Nittany Lions have landed another former Cyclone to make the move to Happy Valley as former Iowa State defensive back Jeremiah Cooper announced his commitment to Penn State on Sunday. A 6-foot-0, 195-pound defensive back, Cooper has played a lot of football for the Cyclones the last four seasons, starting 36 […]

Wrestling Postview: No. 1 Penn State 46, No. 19 Rutgers 0

Recap Penn State dismantled Rutgers Scarlet Knights 46-0 in Rec Hall to open the Big Ten season, extending their historic dual winning streak to a record-breaking 78 matches and shutting out a team for the 4th time in the relatively young season (and the 3rd straight). The Nittany Lions showcased a lethal combination of freshman […]

Penn State 5, Minnesota 2: Fink Reaches 100

Aiden Fink became the ninth player in program history to reach the 100-point milestone with three assists in Saturday night’s 5-2 win over Minnesota. Penn State swept Minnesota in regulation for the first time since 2019. The Nittany Lions secured a huge six points in the Big Ten standings this weekend and moved into third […]

Penn State 85, No. 5 Purdue 93: Lions Come Short Again

There are two ways the Nittany Lions could have responded to nearly beating No. 2 Michigan on Tuesday. Penn State could have let the loss deflate them and come out flat against Purdue, or they could have used it as fuel to boost their confidence, knowing they can play with the best of the Big […]

Penn State Adds Former West Virginia Safety Chris Fileppo

We have our second portal addition for the day, as former West Virginia safety Chris Fileppo will be coming to Penn State after playing his freshman year with the Mountaineers. The 6-foot-4, 208-pound Fileppo saw action in all 12 of West Virginia’s games this past season, racking up 12 tackles and one tackle for a […]

Penn State Lands Former Texas State Center Brock Riker

Very early this morning, the Nittany Lions picked up one of the most coveted offensive lineman in the transfer portal, landing a commitment from former Texas State center Brock Riker. Brock Riker (6-foot-4, 290 pounds) comes from — oddly enough — Brock, Texas. He was a three-star recruit in the 2024 class, and spent the […]

Penn State Hires Christian Smith As Edge Rushers Coach

Penn State has handed the keys to the edge rusher kingdom to Northwestern defensive line coach Christian Smith: Penn State has been consistently one of the best programs in the country at producing NFL talent at edge rusher, particularly in the last decade. Micah Parsons, Dani Dennis-Sutton, Chop Robinson, and Abdul Carter headline the position […]

Penn State 3, Minnesota 0: Switch Flipped

No. 9 Penn State turned in a dominant 60-minute effort on Friday night in a 3-0 win over Minnesota. The Nittany Lions were all over the Gophers at both ends of the ice in their best performance of the season to date. Luke Misa had a goal and an assist in what could be a […]

Penn State Adds Former Iowa State Tight End Cooper Alexander

If you thought the Iowa State pipeline was close, you were mistaken. The Nittany Lions added another former Cyclone earlier this evening, landing a commitment from rising redshirt sophomore Cooper Alexander. The 6-foot-4, 245-pound Alexander is from Oklahoma, meaning he has to be the first Penn State Nittany Lion from Oklahoma, right? Definitely the first […]

Former Syracuse DB Ibn McDaniels Commits To Penn State

Penn State added an intriguing secondary piece on Friday when former Syracuse defensive back Ibn McDaniels made the call for the Nittany Lions. McDaniels was a three-star prospect from New Jersey in the 2024 recruiting class that camped at Penn State a few times, but never received an official offer. Instead, he went to Syracuse […]

CFP Semifinal #2 Open Thread

#5 Oregon takes on #1 Indiana in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl this evening at 7:30 PM ET on ESPN. Come hang out with us while we watch!

Penn State Hockey Series Preview: Minnesota

After splitting with RIT to start the back half of the regular season, Penn State continues its five-game homestand with a key series against Minnesota. The two teams split the first leg of the regular season series in Minneapolis on November 21 and 22, with each team winning by one goal. Gavin McKenna returns to […]

Wrestling Preview: #1 Penn State vs #14 Rutgers

The Big Ten season is upon us! The Nittany Lions start off their conference schedule at home in a rare Saturday dual, taking on the ranked Scarlet Knights. Rutgers has a veteran team of all ranked wrestlers – if all starters wrestle (their best wrestler, returning NCAA qualifier Joey Olivieri, has been out recently). RU […]

Former Boston College Safety Omarion Davis Signs With Penn State

We’re still a week away from the transfer portal closing, and Penn State remains full throttle ahead. The latest addition comes from former Nittany Lion coach Bill O’Brien’s Boston College squad in Omarion Davis. The South Carolina native will have three years of eligbility remaining, as he just finished his freshman season, where he saw […]

Former UCLA DT Siale Taupaki Signs With Penn State

Matt Campbell and his staff are not done adding defensive tackles, yet. Coming on the heels of Dallas Vakalahi’s signing earlier today, the Nittany Lions have also added veteran UCLA player Siale Taupaki. The 6-foot-4, 335-pound Taupaki recently completed his seventh season of college football with the Bruins and will be playing his eighth and […]

Oh, Hello: 3-Star PA RB D’Antae Sheffey Commits to Penn State

The Skinny Height/Weight: Hometown/High School: State College, PA (State College Area HS) Ranking: ★★★ (.8667 – 247 Sports, No. 1,228 overall) Notable Offers: Syracuse (decommitted), Cincinnati, Missouri, Wisconsin Highlights Outlook Despite growing up in State College and dreaming of donning a Penn State uniform, Sheffey did not receive an offer from PSU, given that their […]

CFP Semifinal #1 Open Thread

#10 Miami takes on #6 Ole Miss in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl this evening at 7:30 PM ET on ESPN. Come hang out with us while we watch!