Penn State alumna and two-time All-American Katie Schumacher-Cawley (left) was introduced today as Penn State women’s volleyball’s head coach. Schumacher-Cawley discussed her new role after welcome remarks by Penn State VP for Intercollegiate Athletics, Sandy Barbour (right). Photo credit: John Patishnock
Katie Schumacher-Cawley looked happy Tuesday afternoon at Rec Hall. That made sense. She was standing in a building where she built an impressive career as a two-time All-American for Penn State, totaling 1,310 kills, 772 digs, and 299 blocks. She was speaking on behalf and for her alma mater (2002), for a program she helped lead to a national championship in 1999, a program she returned to after nearly a decade away.
Simply put, she looked like she belonged.
“Coming back here was a dream come true. Being a part of Penn State, no matter what position I was in, I was fortunate to have that,” said Schumacher-Cawley, who returned to Happy Valley four seasons ago as an assistant after serving as a head coach for the previous nine seasons at Penn and Illinois-Chicago.
“I think that this is a place that has always been home to me, and to even have the opportunity to go through the interview process was something special.”
Schumacher-Cawley returned to State College four seasons ago after serving as a head coach for the previous nine seasons at Penn and Illinois-Chicago. Photo credit: John Patishnock
Shortly after Schumacher-Cawley gave that response, we asked her what about Penn State and State College, beyond the volleyball program, transforms this place into home for her. Here’s what she said:
“We are surrounded by a community within this athletic department and neighboring people in town that want to see these women become so successful. And not just women’s volleyball, but Penn State Athletics as a whole. I’m lucky to be a part of it. I know that these players are and continue to take advantage of the opportunities that they have to help them be successful; not only on the court but also their next step in life, whether it’s professional or grad school. They’re all really intelligent and have big goals and dreams. I know everyone here can help them with that.”
You can watch Schumacher-Cawley’s entire press conference on Penn State Athletics’ Facebook page. The head coach begins her comments at the 7:45 mark. You can also learn more about Schumacher-Cawley, a Chicago native and Chicago Cubs fan, on GoPSUsports.com.
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Jalen Pickett paced Penn State on Saturday at the BJC with 21 points and 10 assists. The senior transfer guard’s play is one reason why the Nittany Lions will be a fun team to watch over the next few months. Our full photo gallery is on Facebook. Photo credit: John Patishnock
Watching the action unfold Saturday at the Bryce Jordan Center, two thoughts kept emerging over and over:
— This is a fun team to watch.
— Micah Shrewsberry is going to lead Penn State to a whole lot of victories.
There was never a point when you felt Purdue would make a run and put the game away. The vibe wasn’t that the No. 3 team in the country would eventually pull away, that the game was always on the brink of getting away from the Nittany Lions.
Penn State battled Purdue. On the glass. In transition. And everywhere else. The Nittany Lions made seven straight shots to make it a two-point Purdue lead at the under-4 media timeout (64-62), hitting a barrage of jumpers.
Alumni and fans can watch Micah Shrewsberry’s postgame press conference on GoPSUSports.com. Photo credit: John Patishnock
However, Purdue closed on a 10-2 run, bouncing back from a home defeat to Wisconsin earlier in the week. Following the game, a 74-67 win for Purdue, Penn State head coach Micah Shrewsberry said: “I hate losing, but we were a good version of ourselves. We left everything on the court. We’ll get back to work tomorrow and get ready for Rutgers.”
Penn State equaled Purdue in both rebounds (30) and assists (14) — though the Nittany Lions committed three more turnovers (11-8) — and Penn State led by as many as seven in the first half. Our full photo gallery of the game is on Facebook.
Saturday would’ve been the first home victory over a Top-3 opponent in program history, though you get the feeling this team is perhaps further ahead of schedule with its first-year head coach than some may have expected.
Junior forwardSeth Lundy was one of four Nittany Lions to score in double figures (10). Photo credit: John Patishnock
Shrewsberry didn’t appear for his postgame media availability right away. He understandably took some time to catch up with Purdue head coach Matt Painter, who hired Shrewsberry onto his coaching staff at Purdue twice. Painter is perhaps Shrewsberry’s biggest mentor, and Penn State’s head coach acknowledged again Saturday that Painter has helped him throughout his career.
Painter shared some stories from practice. Beyond that, Shrewsberry didn’t share much of what the two discussed. Part of me wanted to ask the details of their conversation, though Shrewsberry going against his former team wasn’t the headline from Saturday.
Shrewsberry’s current team receives top billing.
Strange as this sounds, Saturday was the first hoops game I’ve seen in person this season (a four-hour layover in Dulles on Sunday precluded attending that day’s game against Indiana). Attendance at the BJC surpassed 10,000, and hopefully many people shared my thought leaving the arena:
I need to come back, and soon.
That next opportunity arrives Tuesday, when Penn State hosts Rutgers with a 6:30 p.m. tipoff at the BJC.
Team leader and fan favorite John Harrar (senior forward) finished with 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Photo credit: John Patishnock
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Raymond James Stadium served as a beautiful scene for Penn State’s final game of the 2021 season. The Nittany Lions dropped a 24-10 setback to the Arkansas Razorbacks to finish the season 7-6. Photo credit: John Patishnock
Warm weather, the beach, and Penn State football. Bringing in the New Year in Florida at the Outback Bowl wasn’t a bad way to kick off January. That pesky final score was really the only downer from the trip.
Still, the popular bowl in the Sunshine State provided an opportunity for this year’s team to spend one more week together and for Penn State alumni and fans to unite in Florida, where Penn State finished their season 7-6 after a 24-10 setback to Arkansas.
The season’s final Roaring 20 showcases how the season ended, for Nittany Lions both on and off the field.
1. Essentially right after player interviews ended, Jesse Luketa announced that he’s declaring for the NFL Draft. Good for him, and congratulations. There’s been a lot of talk about opt outs, and what people consider to be right and wrong. My thoughts, which I’ve shared already: Any players who’s worked and put himself in the position to chase his dream of playing in the NFL should go for it. If that means forgoing the bowl game, so be it. To borrow a phrase from Luketa: Simple.
Humblest beginnings, to achieving what they told me was too far unattainable.. Be Uncommon! pic.twitter.com/kK1GHfcPcN
Now then, turning to the days leading up to the game:
2. Sometimes your backup plan is what should’ve been the No. 1 plan all along. We ran into some problems connecting onsite for our episode of Football Letter Live from the bowl tour welcome event, so instead, we recorded everything and posted it later that evening. In the end, it all worked out.
3. We chatted with former Penn State GA Matt Fleischacker, who’s a fast-rising college coach who’s currently the defensive coordinator at Hobart College in Geneva, New York; and with Alumni Association Vice President Kelley Lynch. We also threw in some season highlights, and you can watch the episode on our Facebook page. Additionally, here’s our 2021 playlist featuring all of this season’s episodes.
4. Our annual bowl service project remains one of our favorite times of the year, and more than 100 volunteers united at Gandy Beach on Dec. 31 to help clean up the area. Here’s a video of the day, and photographer Steve Manuel captured this group photo. Thanks to the Arkansas Alumni Association for partnering with us, and a special shoutout to the University’s cheer and band that kicked off the morning.
Many thanks to all the volunteers from both @penn_state and @UArkansas who helped this morning to clean up Gandy Beach 🙌🙏🏖️
5. The Blue Band, Penn State Cheerleaders, Lionettes, and Nittany Lion transformed Tampa into a welcoming city for Penn Staters, performing at multiple events throughout the week. We live streamed their performances at the pep rally and the bowl tour’s pregame event, at Ybor City and George M. Steinbrenner Field, respectively.
6. Steinbrenner Field’s located diagonally across the street from Raymond James Stadium, offering a gorgeous backdrop. The 31-acre facility, named after the team’s former volatile owner, was built in 1996. In addition to serving as the Yankees’ spring training headquarters, it’s also home to the Yankees’ Class-A Advanced affiliate, Tampa Tarpons.
Beautiful setting for the Official Bowl Tour’s pregame event. Appreciate Penn Staters traveling with us to cheer on the Nittany Lions. #WeArepic.twitter.com/EzPEB8TUZy
7. While we were in town, we caught up with Penn State grad Jill Beckman. She’s the social media coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and their Twitter account boasts a million followers. Our Q&A with her is well worth reading, as Beckman provided thoughtful responses. She has a lot of maturity and perspective for someone who’s been out of college for less than five years.
9. The pregame flyover was especially impressive. We chatted briefly with one of the pilots on the field, telling him simply, “That was awesome.” That prompted a big smile. Deservedly, all the pilots were recognized on the field. You can see the flyover and the recognition on our Twitter page.
Much respect to the pilots who oversaw yesterday's pregame flyover. They received a well-deserved recognition on the field, and we chatted briefly with one of the pilots.
10. Blue Band drum major Ryan First nailed both pregame flips — what else would you expect? We had a great vantage position, right next to one of the goal posts. You can see the video here.
You just knew @PSUBlueBand drum major Ryan Frist would nail both pregame flips. Here's the on-field look with the band performing and the @NittanyLion cheering them on.
11. We happened to pass Sean Clifford as the quarterback walked off the field and into the locker room. James Franklin said it was a medial decision by the team’s trainers to pull Clifford out of the game. Franklin’s always said every spot is an open competition and that starting spots aren’t guaranteed. The next nine months are a critical time for this program, especially at quarterback. Does Clifford start next year? How close is the gap between him and Christian Veilleux? How soon can 5-star recruit and incoming freshman Drew Allar push for the starting job? One of Franklin’s biggest tests now that his contract extension is in place is to figure out who will lead the offense moving forward.
12. Parker Washington is ridiculous. In a very good way. We tracked his one-handed catch, though from looking through our viewfinder, I figured the ball was overthrown. Then I see Washington stand up with the ball. Absolutely incredible catch radius. That’s a created next-generation stat. Essentially, if you throw the ball near Washington, chances are he’ll catch it.
13. KeAndre Lambert-Smith will pair nicely with Washington next year to create a formidable receiving duo. Lambert-Smith pulled in a 42-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter to tie the game at 7. He finished with three catches for 74 yards, both second-best to Washington (seven catches for 98 yards).
14. Ji’Ayir Brown collected two more interceptions Saturday, including one in the end zone to thwart an Arkansas drive in the first quarter. He finished with a team-high six interceptions and also tallied 73 tackles, good for third on the Nittany Lion defense this season. It’s entirely possible Brown is the best returning safety in the nation.
15. You can see additional sights from the game, including James Franklin’s pregame lap and the alma mater. During his lap, Franklin told the band standing nearby that they’re the best band in the land and photobombed a band member posing for a photo. Good stuff.
Nittany Lions finish the season 7-6 with a 24-10 setback in the Outback Bowl.
16. Brent Pry is a hell of a coach. As much credit as he got, I’m still not sure it’s enough. For most of the season, the defense played at a level that was good enough to compete for a Big Ten title. And for large portions Saturday, even with missing nearly half their starters, the Nittany Lions continued to come up with big plays.
17. Happy 40th birthday to Adam Taliaferro. As we said, Adam’s one of the best and most inspiring Penn Staters we know. Wishing him and his family a wonderful 2022.
18. All-American linebacker Brandon Short was in Tampa for the game, and he stopped by our welcome event Thursday evening. Everyone was happy to see him and wished him well. Good to see Brandon with his Penn State family.
19. Last month, John Black shared this will be his final season covering the team for The Football Letter, and Alumni Association members will his final column Wednesday, when we send the member benefit email.
Lifelong Penn State ambassador John Black will author his final edition of The Football Letter, with @PennStateAlums members receiving the member benefit email Wednesday, Jan. 5.
Incredibly grateful for John's service and his irreplaceable wisdom, insight, and humor. pic.twitter.com/fs0f2Wns8s
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