Penn State Survives The First Storm Surge

Penn State University was rocked by the Jerry Sandusky sex scandal followed by the strict sanctions against their football program.  As you probably know three of the biggest penalties brought against the Nittany Lions were a 4 year bowl ban, 20% scholarship reduction, and current players on the roster can transfer anywhere and can play immediately for another school.

Ten players opted to leave prior to the 2012 season.  Three of Penn State's biggest impact players, Silas Redd, Justin Brown, and Anthony Fera were among those leaving the program.  Can you blame them? Winning and success did not seem like very likely for the next few years for the men dressed in blue and white. 

Knowing the pride of Penn State it was not surprising to see the other players who stayed band together and fight like they have never fought before.  Two players who lead this band of brothers were Michael Mauti and Michael Zordich. Though the 2012 team was tight-knit and playing with a chip on it's shoulder they were still not expected to compete well in the Big Ten Conference.

The season began and it seemed the doubters were going to be right.  Penn State stated with a disappointing loss to Ohio University at home in Beaver Stadium.  They followed up the opening loss with another frustrating loss to the University of Virginia.

After just 2 games the Lions already sat at 0-2 and it seemed like it was going to be a long bumpy road for Penn State in the 2012 campaign.  Against Ohio University the lack of Silas Redd was evident as the Lions only rushed for a total of 92 yards.  The rushing attack didn't get much better against Virginia when they tallied 121 yards on the ground.  The absence of Anthony Fera was evident in the game against Virginia when Sam Ficken missed 4 field goals and the Lions only lost by 1 point.

After such a dismal start nobody would have predicted Penn State would win 8 out of their remaining 10 games to finish at 8-4 on the season.  That type of result makes you wonder how good this team might have been if Redd, Brown, and Fera had stayed.

Now that the regular season is over it makes you wonder how those 3 impact players feel about their choice to transfer.

Silas Redd (Running Back) transferred to USC and many thought USC could be a BCS Championship contender in 2012 with his addition.  Some may have thought his chances to be a Heisman Trophy candidate were in the near future.   Now that the regular season is over most people would be surprised to learn that Penn State finished with a better record than the Trojans as USC finished 7-5.  Another surprise is Zach Zwinak ran for 1000 yards and had 177 yards receiving for the Nittany Lions.  Why are those stats surprising?   First off Zwinak didn't really play in the first 3 games of the season.  The other reason it is surprising that Zach had success in 2012 is he had a total of 7 yards rushing in 2011 and he was on nobody's radar for the 2012 season.  Silas Redd in contrast rushed for 817 yards and had 99 yards receiving.  Silas went from Penn State's star and probably their best player to USC's most productive running back but was definitely not thought of as their best player.  817 rushing yards was down from over 1200 yards he rushed for in 2011 for the Nittany Lions. 

Anthony Fera (Kicker) transferred to play for the Texas Longhorrns.  Fera had a less productive year for Texas because of an injury.  His replacement at Penn State was Sam Ficken.  Sam was a disappointment early in the season, but started to gain confidence and accuracy as the season wore on.  Fera can be happy that his Texas Longhorns went 8-3 with only Kansas State left to play and then most likely on to a very good bowl game to finish the 2012 season.

Justin Brown (Wide Receiver) transferred to play for the Oklahoma Sooners.  The Sooners are 9-2 with only TCU left on their schedule then most likely off to a very good bowl game.  Justin ranked 2nd among Sooner receivers in 2012 with 795 yards and 4 Touchdowns with 1 game remaining on the schedule.   His replacement was a big surprise at Penn State.  Allen Robinson only had 29 yards receiving in 2011.  2012 Robinson took the Big Ten by storm racking up 1018 yards receiving and 11 Touchdowns.  Brown has done well for the Sooners but it makes you wonder how well he might have done in Penn State's new offensive scheme directed and designed by Bill O'Brien (PSU's new head coach).  Robinson was not the only player to benefit from the new offensive attack.  Quarterback Matthew McGloin threw for over 3200 yards and 24 touchdowns on the season.  Imagine how dangerous the Lions could have been with Brown on one side of the formation with Robinson on the other wing.

Some may say these three transfers made the right decision for their futures in the NFL, but with the stats above you have to wonder if that is really the case.  There are still a handful of Nittany Lion players who are going to have no problems getting to play at the next level such as:  Jordan Hill, Gerald Hodges, Michael Mauti, Michael Zordich, Kyle Carter, and Allen Robinson.

Needless to say Penn State will continue to be competitive even in the next few years while they are under sanctions.  It will be most interesting to see how successful they will be once the sanctions are over.  Penn State should be congratulated on a fantastic 2012 campaign especially after losing these 3 impact players. 

Turkey Day Sale At donnydixonsattic.com

I don't know about you, but Thanksgiving is a relaxing holiday and I am not one to go line up all night for a Black Friday Bonanza. 


That's why starting tomorrow 11/23/2011 we will be offering an additional 11% off of our already bargain prices on our entire stock of items (excluding already discounted clearance items) at www.donnydixonsattic.com . 

The sale will continue through the end of the day on Cyber Monday 11/28/2011.  Don't miss out on these great deals! 

Save on Mens, Womens, Juniors, Plus sizes, Maternity clothing sizes as well as accessories!

Sad, Torn, Angry, Conflicted, Shocked, over the firing of a Legend

I should be sleeping right now, but instead I have a flood of emotions that keep circling in my head.  I watched the press conference over an hour ago to see that Joe Paterno was fired by Penn State.  Wow, what can I say...... I knew Joe would eventually be done coaching the Nittany Lions, but I always thought he would leave under his own terms or that he would coach until he died.  Here's just a little of what I'm feeling right now:

• I feel sad for Joe Paterno because at this point it doesn't matter that he spent 60 years doing the right things for Penn State University, all that matters is the poor decision he made or didn't make in 2002.  
• I think about what Penn State Football will look like from here forward and I get angry at myself.  I'm angry with myself because I stop and think about the kids who were victims of sexual abuse and I can't believe that I have the nerve to think about football at a time like this.  I have kids of my own and I can't imagine how much hurt this monster of a man (Jerry Sandusky) has caused to those kids and their families. My thoughts and prayers are with them.
• I understand that he has not stood trial yet, but I am so angry at Jerry Sandusky for the horrible crimes that he is being accused of.  I'm angry that the sins of one man can hurt so many people from those young boys who are now young men, to their families, and now to cause people to loose their jobs like Joe Paterno and many more. 
• I feel torn because I realize why people thought that he should be fired immediately for not going to the police about alleged sexual abuse, but I also know that Jesus was the only person to walk this earth without sin.  Joe is certainly not perfect, but I have heard nothing but good things about him for all of the years that I've been alive.  I've heard about all of the educational activities that Joe and his wife Sue have spearheaded at Penn State.  I've always seen the clean-cut image that he expects from his players and coaches.  So, I'm torn because Jerry Sandusky's alleged crimes are horrible without a doubt, but I have a hard time condemning Joe Paterno's 60 years of dedicated service over one instance of poor judgement. 

I'm not saying that I've never wished that Joe would just hang it up and let the next generation of Penn State Football begin, but I certainly didn't picture his departure to look like this.  I'm sure Joe feels hurt that he was fired, but to make matters worse that they fired him over the phone.  I feel badly that he'll not be able to coach his last home game this Saturday and be carried off of the field one last time and the fans could not show their appreciation for the 60 years of great football entertainment and dedicated service to Penn State University.  

Wordless Wednesday: The Not So Itsy Bitsy Spider

I found this not-so-itsy-bitsy spider outside my front doorway this morning.  Do you know what kind of spider this is?  If anyone can tell me, I'm definitely interested in finding out.


Link up with other Wordless Wednesday posts at Five Minutes for Mom.

Christmas in July Sale! Save 15% and FREE shipping on Select Items

Come check out the great deals at our Christmas in July Sale at Donny Dixon's Attic!  Save 15% off selected new and preowned clothing with FREE shipping.  Here are just a few of the items we have in our sale:


NEW Liz Claiborne Khaki Shorts Size 6 Retail $40 only $15.29



NEW Southpole Polo Shirt Mens Size XL Retail $26 only $13.17

NEW Inkslingers Raw Black Jeans Mens Size 40 Retail $180 only $28.04

NEW Andrew & Co Romper Size L Retail $44 only $16.14

NEW Petite Sophisticate Bermuda Shorts Size 2P Retail $29.50 only $12.74

Don't miss out on these great deals!  

Nothing more precious

Now that I've been a father for the last 6 months I've had many special moments with our baby.  I think one of my favorite moments was while I was getting ready to change a diaper.  I was gathering my supplies and our little princess was laying on the changing table.  When I looked over at her she was staring at me with the biggest smile on her face.  I think what was so special was that I didn't ask her to smile or show her my smile.  She was just staring at her Daddy and she found her special way to say "I love you Daddy" without saying a single word.  What a precious moment with my little girl!

Monster Jam Rocked Baltimore!

Monster Jam came to M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore last night and my stepson and I had a blast!  This picture above shows a perfect way to end the evening with Dennis Anderson flying high in the Grave Digger monster truck.  The tickets were well worth the money as they crushed, jumped, and raced for 3 full hours!  If you go you'll probably need earplugs as each truck is extremely loud with 1500-2000 horsepower under the hood. If you are looking for a good father/son activity that you'll both love, I suggest going to a Monster Jam event.