Icer fans jumped out of their seats and hung over the glass at the ice pavilion last Friday.

They waited for the Zamboni driver to pass within their reach so they could slap his hand or rub his head for luck.

That is the typical scene as the ice is resurfaced between periods at Penn State ice hockey games. While the teams retire to the locker room and some fans head toward the refreshment stand, Brian Hassinger circles the ice on the Zamboni.

But last weekend, Hassinger's outfit was not so typical.

Before Friday's game against Rhode Island, Hassinger received a gift from Icer Coach Joe Battista -- a jersey with "ZAM-MAN" printed on the back.

Hassinger, who's license plate reads "ZAM MAN," said he will wear the jersey at all games from now on. In the past, he wore a tuxedo as he washed the ice. But Hassinger said it was attracting too much attention, so Battista came up with the jersey idea.

"Brian's become a cult figure here," Battista said.

Hassinger, a State College native, said his hardworking fellow employees deserve some of the attention that revolves around him. But he does not mind most of the hype.

"It's great," he said. "School's tough. Life's tough. It's great when fans can come in here and leave all that behind and have a good time."

Hassinger added he is a great fan of the American Collegiate Hockey Association's No. 1 Icers.

"To be serious, they could have no ranking at all and they'd still be No. 1 in my heart," he said.

The Icers' ranking has recently brought in large crowds to the ice pavilion. Between periods, fans share some of their enthusiasm with the "Zam-man."

Laura Swimelar (junior-nutrition), an Icer fan and former pavilion employee, said slapping Hassinger's hand is a tradition.

"He loves doing it," she said. "He's a lot of fun to be around."

Hassinger, 39, has been driving the zamboni and overseeing ice maintenance and machinery at the pavilion for 15 years.

"It's a very highly skilled trade," he said.

When Hassinger cannot drive the machine, Marc Longenecker (senior-landscape contracting) takes over. Longenecker said Hassinger really cares about what he is doing.

"He took the time to explain everything to me about driving the machine," Longenecker said.

When Hassinger is not on the ice, he spends some of his time with the local chapter of the Christian Motorcycle Association. He is planning a trip for "Bike Week" in Daytona, Fla., in February. But with other spare time, Hassinger just goes with the flow.

"Whatever the Lord has me to do, that's what I'll do," he said. "It's just that simple."