What better way to celebrate the launch of SB Nation Pittsburgh than by mixing it up with our mainstream friends in the Pittsburgh media?

Last week, Ron Cook, though hardly a favorite of Penn State fans, named Joe Paterno the "Greatest Living Coach" in sports history following the death of the incomparable John Wooden.  He headlined a list of greats including Phil Jackson from the NBA, Scotty Bowman from the NHL, and Joe Torre from Major League Baseball among others.

Great coaches all.

It creates a titillating debate if I've ever seen one, and one the folks over at KDKA Pittsburgh's #1 Cochran Sports Showdown couldn't resist last night.

The show featured an all-star cast.  First we have the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Bloggin' Bob Smizik, who doesn't think Paterno is the greatest college football coach let alone coach in general.  Next, we have noted blog enthusiast and Pitt beat reporter Paul Zeise, also from the PG.  And finally, Fox Sports Radio 970's Joe Bendel, who once asked our own BSD Mike whether Daryll Clark could live up to Terrelle Pryor's accomplishments heading into the 2009 season.

The stage is set.  Let the debate begin.

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"It was a bitter thing to swallow," Pennsylvania quarterback Anthony Gonzalez said. "They are a good team. We wanted to win, but they made the plays at the end, and we fell short."

Barely.

And that was the story of the evening for your Pennsylvania high schoolers as they fell to Ohio 18-15 in a turnover marred Big 33 Football Classic last night at Hersheypark Stadium.

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The annual Big 33 Football Classic will air from Hershey tonight at 7 P.M on the NFL Network, pitting high school seniors from  Pennsylvania and Ohio against each other.  Soon-to-be Nittany Lions Alex Kenney, Shyquawn Pullium, Jon Duckett and Ryan Keiser will suit up for the Pennsylvania squad.

Links

• Penn State recruits bond early at Big 33
• PSU cornerback recruit has position locked down
• Kenney living life in the fast lane

On Saturday, my family and I took a spin up to Ann Arbor on our way to the Pirates-Tigers game that night in Detroit.  I'd never been there before, so I wanted to check out the town and the Big House while I was in the area.

When we pulled up to the gate, below the scoreboard was a tour bus of Tigers fans on their way to the game that had stopped to take pictures at the stadium, too.  Clad in our Pirate gear (nothing Penn State), my brother and I waited patiently for our turn.

The first Tiger fan to notice immediately remarked "Look, Pirates fans!  Hey, when Penn State grows up, this is what it will look like."

Raise your hand if you'd expect to hear something along those lines from a Michigan fan.  Now, ask the same question about Nebraska fans.

Call it a hunch, but I don't suspect that scene would have played much in Lincoln as Ann Arbor.  You could say that's because Michigan fans tend to be elitist, but the more likely reason is that they flat don't like Penn State.  Sure, they'll deny that the "rivalry" is anywhere close to Ohio State on the hate scale, but find a Michigan fan that doesn't return at least some of Penn State's animosity toward them and they're probably faking it.

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...Ryan Church might be worse.

His strikeout rate is higher, his walk rate is much lower, and his BABIP is higher than Aki's.  Their OBPs are almost exactly the same.

Now Church is seeing more regular time that he has all season in front of Lastings Milledge.

Look, I know everyone is very a little disappointed in Millz, but I can't find a single redeeming quality in Ryan Church's play, and I especially can't see why he, a career bench player with a track record of injury problems and absolutely no future with this team is taking at-bats away from a 24 year old who still has at least some potential to be part of the Pirates' future.

I realize how bad Lastings has looked at times, but especially on a home stand when he doesn't have to cover much ground in right at all, it is beyond me why his bat isn't in this lineup ahead of Ryan Church's.  The only guy who should be getting time ahead of him, and probably a platoon role when he gets back, is Steve Pearce.  This Church business is an absolute joke.

Anyone with me here?

A couple of days ago, the Mountain West Conference decided it wasn't expanding for the time being.  So much for that.

The Mountain West Conference announced today that Boise State University has accepted an invitation to join the MWC as its 10th member institution, effective July 1, 2011.

"We are pleased and excited to welcome Boise State University to the Mountain West Conference," said Commissioner Craig Thompson. "Since our inception just 11 short years ago, the Mountain West has experienced tremendous success, and the addition of Boise State will further enhance that strength. The MWC continues to strategize regarding potential membership scenarios and bringing Boise State into the Conference is an important part of that evolution."

Hard to believe the Mountain West would stay in a holding pattern for only a few days only to reverse course so quickly without knowing something definitive about the future of the Big XII.  Whether that means the Big XII is about to try to stay together, or is only hours from implosion is another matter entirely.

I think it's safe to say the Mountain West knows something we don't, though.

Today things get real.

After announcing it yesterday via press release, Colorado officials will stand behind the mics today and tell the world they're taking the plunge into the Pacific Ten conference, casting the first stone in conference realignment.

Simultaneously, the Nebraska Board of Regents will hold a meeting, with conference realignment on the agenda.  While most people have it pegged as a formality on Nebraska's way to joining the Big Ten, some still aren't so sure.  Either way, we should know Nebraska's fate by the time the sun goes down.

Beyond that, it's anyone's guess.  If Nebraska bolts, will the Big XII make it through the day?  If not, will the Texas Block/Big XII South move together to the Pac-10 or scatter to the Big Ten and SEC?  What the hell is TMZ doing reporting on Oklahoma State athletics?

No doubt, today could be the day college sports fans from across the country collectively remember as the beginning of a new era.

Of course there's also chance, and a good one, that nothing happens today, too.  As things like this typically do, the seemingly frantic pace could be exposed as nothing more than a media creation to sell premium content subscriptions.

Either way, we'll keep you posted.  Try not to waste too much time today.

So let me get this straight.

First, the Big Ten tells the world it wants to expand to increase the reach of it's lucrative television network.  It says it will take 12-18 months to consider its options.

Now it's adding Nebraska, a good fit academically, athletically, and location-wise but certainly a smaller television market than most other potential candidates less than halfway to the shortest benchmark in that process. 

Something doesn't smell right.

No, Nebraska just isn't a big enough chip on its own to throw your time table and goal of expanding the reach of the network out the window.  It's only a big chip when you consider the potential consequences of its departure from the Big XII.

So it begs the question, is Jim Delany making this move because adding Nebraska is the best thing for the Big Ten, or because adding Nebraska creates chaos for everyone else?

Something to ponder I guess.

I don't mean to diminish Nebraska at all, I just don't understand the rush to get it ahead of schools like Rutgers, Syracuse, Missouri, Maryland, Notre Dame or others who could open up much larger TV markets unless you're TRYING to push this doomsday scenario along.

Now you could say, "Well, the deadline to swear allegiance to the Big XII is coming," but it's coming for Missouri, too, and no one seems to care about the Tigers right now.  That's because their departure from the Big XII likely wouldn't be the death blow necessary to knock the conference out.

I don't think Delany and Co. could have fathomed torpedoing the entire Big XII and setting up the possible logistical mess of a Pac-16 simply by adding one school not named Texas when it started this expansion business.   Now that the scenario has become a reality, however, I'm starting to wonder if the Big Ten is still way ahead of everyone in this expansion business, and taking advantage of an opportunity to force the hands of two rival leagues while still leaving nearly all of its own options open.

Loads of conference expansion news this morning, but first, some stuff a little closer to home.

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Penn State catcher Ben Heath homers against the hated Pitt Panthers at Trees Field.

As a team, it certainly wasn't a banner year for your Penn State baseball team.

The Nitts finished the season last in the Big Ten, and were one of only two teams in the conference, the other being Northwestern who tied for third in league play, to finish with a losing record overall.

There were certainly bright spots, though, so things aren't all bad.  On April 13, Penn State rallied late for a come-from-behind victory over then No. 24 Pittsburgh.  The Lions also managed to take two of three from Ohio State before sweeping Michigan State at home April 30-May 2, arguably slamming the door on both teams' post season hopes.  In the Michigan State series,  Penn State pounded Sparty 49-13 in the three game set.

But perhaps the best news for Penn State baseball came yesterday, when catcher Ben Heath was selected in the fifth round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Houston Astros with the 153rd overall pick.  Heath is Penn State's highest pick among position players since Greg Vogel in 1976.

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It was a crisp Saturday this past fall when I, your humble blogger, awakened to the sunlight peaking through the shades of my suburban Pittsburgh home.  I rolled over, grabbed my Y2K style flip phone, and immediately sent out my customary "Happy Gameday" text to the customary people, receiving the customary, mildly annoyed "Thanks" in return.

Only for me, this game day was different from the type I was used to.

I spent my childhood shipping up Route 22 most Saturdays in the fall to a place called Happy Valley.  Though neither of my parents attended Penn State, I got into Nittany Lion football the way most do as kids, through family and friends. So taken was I by the atmosphere of the place from the time I was a little boy that by my teenage years, it was pretty much a given that I'd attend Penn State for college.

And yet, rather than waking up in my messy dorm room in East Halls on the morning of October 10, 2009 to enjoy Penn State's beat down of Eastern Illinois at Beaver Stadium, I was at home, getting ready to head into Oakland, then eventually Pittsburgh's North Side Shore to watch the Pitt Panthers play Connecticut at Heinz Field.

You won't find a lot of people that would make that trade, but anyone familiar with my stance on games against I-AA opponents can probably understand the move.  Regardless though, it wasn't the "traditional"  kind of thing you'd expect a Penn State student to do, given my school's history with Pitt.

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In the third installment of our Nittany Lion Basketball player profile series, things take a decidedly more negative tone.  We profiled Tim Frazier here, and David Jackson here, both of whom showed improvement through the season in 2009-2010 and met or exceeded expectations.  Not so with Mr. Andrew Jones...

Ahh the curious case of Andrew Jones.  He's teased Penn State fans with flashes of brilliance in all three of his years at Penn State.  His biggest problem?  Say it with me now:

Consistency.

Jones dazzled fans during Penn State's 2009 NIT Championship run, averaging 10 points and 8.2 rebounds on the way to Penn State's first national tournament title, setting the expectations for 2010 fairly high for the junior center.  Many thought he could become Penn State's elusive "big man" or at least a protege of Jamelle Cornley. 

Unfortunately for Penn State, that never materialized in 2010.  Not only did Jones not improve on his 2009 production, he regressed statistically in almost every major category.

While it's never fair to hang a team's struggles on one player, there's no question that had Andrew Jones played even as his 2009 self in 2010, the Nittany Lions might well have won a few of the close games that seemed to elude them so often in 2010.

What went wrong for Jones in 2010, and what can we expect from him in his senior season of 2010?  Well the short answer is, no one has any idea.

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Right off the top, a reminder that pre-registration for student season football tickets is under way.  If you're a student, you better get moving on it.  Here are your instructions.

All returning full-time Penn State students who wish to purchase a 2010 season football ticket are required to pre-register for the sale. Pre-registration begins at 8:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, May 27 and will end on at 5:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, June 2.

Pre-registration is mandatory for all returning undergraduate and graduate students, as well as first-year graduate and first-year law students. Pre-registration also is mandatory for all Penn State Commonwealth Campus students transferring to University Park for the 2010 summer or fall semesters.

All incoming freshmen or first-time transfer students from another university will not be required to pre-register in order to participate in the season ticket sale.

For more information on important dates and the purchasing process, please visit: Penn State Student Central. Students should note all deadlines and procedures that need to be followed.

OK, now that we have that out of the way, some news...

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Go ahead roll your eyes.

Big Ten expansion.

But honestly, isn't it better than this?

SEC Speed-The reason that SEC teams pwned Ohio State in both the 2007 and 2008 National Championship games, and were 7-2 in bowl games in 2007-08. Also the primary reason that pansy Big 10 and Pac 10 schools refuse to agree to a playoff system.

That's what I thought.

Be happy Big Ten fans, the curse is broken.  Even guys like ESPN's Pat Forde are  teaming with excitement to be talking about something different over the summer.

Who's that behind the microphone, getting all that face time this week in Chicago? Why, it's none other than Jim Delany.

You're enjoying yourself this spring, Jim. I can see that. And understand it, too.

 

It's like old times. Your Big Ten Conference is in the spotlight, the subject of relentless conversation and speculation as you circumspectly explore expansion. The entire nation is watching, waiting, wondering what the Big Ten will do, and wondering what the ripple effect will be.

Yeah!  Fist pump!  Seize the day Big Ten fans.

It's been awhile since you commanded this much attention and flexed this much muscle. Your league hasn't won a football national championship since 2002, a men's basketball national championship since 2000. Women's hoops? Last title was in 1999. We won't even talk about baseball. (OK, we will: Minnesota, 1964.)

Dynasties in volleyball, fencing and women's lacrosse don't exactly galvanize your large and loyal fan base. You've spent so much time staring up at the Southeastern Conference that your neck hurts -- and your pride, too. So this opportunity to remake the college sports map -- and to make the SEC and every other league react to what the Big Ten is doing -- has got to feel good.

...oh, crap...

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Hey all, FTG here from Black Shoe Diaries, also known as fugimaster24.  You can call me fooge.

Anyway, just wanted to let you guys know that we've finally taken the plunge into this social media craze, and since we know we've got some semi-regular readers over here, we just wanted to tell you we have a Facebook page now to go with our older Tweedle-Dee.

If you're so inclined, add the Facebook page here, and Twitter here and save yourself a click.

Thanks.

See you in October.

P.S. Hope you like the profile picture.

So we started off our player profile series with Tim Frazier in the middle of March.  Then all hell broke loose with all the roster moves, and we decided to put the series on hiatus until the chaos was over.  Well, with Talor Battle now coming back, and Ed DeChellis pulling in some late-signing recruits, we think it's safe to start talking basketballers again.  Today, David Jackson...

At the beginning of the 2009-2010, most Penn State fans expected Andrew Jones and Jeff Brooks to be Penn State's impact players in the front court.  David Jackson, the fourth, and often perceived as least talented of the junior class that includes Brooks, Jones, and Battle looked like he'd even be pushed for playing time by young guys Bill Edwards and Chris Babb.

Instead, Jackson emerged as one of the few good stories for the Nittany Lions this winter.  He obliterated his career highs in points per game, rebounds, assists, shooting percentage, three-point percentage, and three-pointers made.  On an offense that was often stagnated and broken, Jackson fired on all cylinders most of the season, and especially in Big Ten play.

After Talor Battle, it wouldn't be hard to argue that Jackson has firmly established himself as the team's best all-around player.  He can rebound, he can score, and perhaps most importantly moving forward, he can shoot the deep ball. 

With Chris Babb moving on to Iowa State, Jackson's range will be critical to the 2010-2011 team.  At the same time, the Nittany Lions are going to need his solid interior play to continue growing, as there is no sure thing anywhere else in the front court.

On a team loaded with guards, Jackson, not Battle, might be the most important player for Penn State this season.

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In the months since the Big Ten announced it had intentions to expand, we've had a lot of rumors thrown at us.  The mother of all of them, of course, was this Bleacher Report post in February suggesting that Pitt was about to join the Big Ten.  It was naturally met with much skepticism, especially here at BSD, where we've never had a whole lot of use for the Bleacher Report.

It also touched a nerve with KDKA Pittsburgh's Bob Pompeani, who tweeted in the hours after the report came out

the irresponsiblity of internet blogging is out of control nothing will happen until the next 90 days.lets put an end to the rumors 4 now

Mondesi's House was none too pleased with the tweet and the perceived cheap shot at bloggers for starting the whole Pitt-to-the-Big Ten-thing and posted as such. 

Well, Bob turned out to be right about the Pitt rumors, and so did we.  But you wouldn't be able to tell that from an interview Pompeani did with Mondesi's House yesterday...

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In late March, right as many schools were enjoying the thrills of the NCAA Tournament, our own Nittany Lion basketballers appeared to be right on the edge of mediocrity and oblivion with the departures of Chris Babb and Bill Edwards via transfer and Andrew Ott and Adam Highberger's early graduations.

Babb's departure meant replacing Penn State's best pure perimeter shooter.  The loss of Edwards and Ott represented a depletion of any depth Penn State had previously accrued in the front court.

Ed Dechellis was going to have to replace all of these players in the late signing period, with many of the best players in the country already signed and committed to schools for 2010-2011.  So far, he's filled two of the three scholarships available with 6'2" shooting guard Tre Bowman out of York and 6'8" power forward/tweener type Jonathan Graham from the Baltimore area.

At the risk of being labeled "OMG APOLOGIST!" I must say I'm pretty optimistic about the talent ED has added in the last couple of months.  So let's get to it.

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In the last few weeks we've been trying to get more tech savvy here at BSD.  First it was podcasts, and now, we're taking the plunge into the realm of social media.

We've had a twitter feed for a while now, and today, we're proud to announce the new BSD Facebook Fan Page.

If you're not into all this new fangled internets, well this probably won't excite you too much, but if you're like either Facebook or Twitter (or both) you're strongly encouraged to add these pages to your profiles on both mediums.  Both are equipped with feeds that will update you on every front page story as well as fan posts and fan shots, and both afford you the opportunity to correspond with fellow BSDers on a little more personal level.

The goal here is to make BSD as accessible as possible to you, the readers, and we think this is a good step forward in that regard. 

We're also, as always, looking to build the BSD community even further than we have, and Facebook and Twitter are great tools for that as well.  If you're a fanshotter/fanposter, even just occasionally, this is an opportunity to have your work reach your friends and family.  And even if you're just a reader and commenter, this is a good way to share a site we hope you enjoy with fellow Penn Staters everywhere.

So, what are you waiting for?  Head on over and add us and send those suggestions!

Thanks.

Preview and schedule after the jump.

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In some of the darkest days of our republic, when the Articles of Confederation had failed as America's first constitution and the Founding Fathers were trying to figure out how to keep the country together, future president George Washington sat in the chair you see below while presiding over the Constitutional Convention.

After months of hardship, the new Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787.  On that day, James Madison tells us that Ben Franklin said of the chair, "I have often looked at that picture behind the president without being able to tell whether it was a rising or setting sun. Now at length I have the happiness to know that it is indeed a rising, not a setting sun."

http://www.ushistory.org/more/images/rising-sun-chair.jpg

Today, Penn State basketball fans are Ben Franklin, trying to figure out whether the departures of Chris Babb, Bill Edwards, Adam Highberger, and Andrew Ott are part of the problem with the Penn State basketball program, or part of the solution.

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Round one is in the books.  The Big Ten finished 4-1, losing only 11-seed Minnesota to Xavier on Friday. The second round starts today when St. Mary's takes on Villanova at 1:05 p.m.  Top seeds Kansas and Kentucky will be in action, as will Cinderellas Murray State, Old Dominion, and Ohio.

Keep tabs on all the action with the CBS March Madness On Demand video player, and enjoy a spring Saturday of college basketball.  This is your open thread.

[Update: David Jones from the Harrisburg Patriot-News is now reporting that freshman wing man Bill Edwards is also leaving the Penn State men's basketball program.  Good times!]

As if a last place finish in the Big Ten and an 11-20 record in 2010 didn't plant a seed of doubt in the minds of those hopeful Penn State can reach the NCAA tournament in 2011, um, this probably will.

Chris Babb, starting shooting guard and one of the few bright spots for Penn State's beleaguered men's basketball team this season, has decided to transfer from PSU, his father Mike Babb confirmed a few moments ago by phone from the family's home in Arlington, Texas.

The sophomore's departure is a crushing blow to an already reeling program. Babb was not just a cornerstone for the team's future plans, he was one of the two most effective players on this year's squad. His scoring average (9.3) and minutes played (29.7) each ranked third on the team.

Babb isn't talking about reasons for the transfer, nor has he outlined any potential landing spots, so rather than speculate, let's focus on some facts and where this puts Penn State in 2010-2011.

Obviously, Babb's transfer leaves a hole at the starting two spot.  Finding a replacement within the current locker room is of paramount importance if Penn State is going to improve in 2011, however, that might not be as burdensome a task as you might expect at first...

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