As part of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and allies (LGBTA) lecture series, about 15 students gathered in the HUB-Robeson Center last night to hear "Out to the Team -- Athletes, Sports and Sexuality."

Dan Woog, a journalist, educator and gay activist, spoke last night about gay issues in athletics.

Woog said he has spoken all over the country at different universities and schools, but he had never spoken at a university "where the women's basketball coach had three rules: 'No alcohol, no drugs, no lesbians.' "

A former women's basketball player claimed in a lawsuit that coach Rene Portland discriminated against her on the basis of race, gender and sexual orientation. A federal lawsuit was filed in the Middle District Court of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg on Dec. 21, which names Portland, Athletic Director Tim Curley and the university as defendants. No court decision has been reached to prove these allegations true.

Woog said he is an openly gay high school soccer coach, and it took him a long time to come out because he was worried what his athletes would think. However, he said, the athletes were very supportive of him.

He came out through a column in his local newspaper, he said, and the next day in the cafeteria, nobody knew how to react.

"Finally, the soccer captain came over, stuck out his hand and said, 'Dan, congrats. It was a good column.' "

Gays are becoming more and more visible everyday, Woog said, but there is still one closet door that is locked very tightly: the door to the locker room.

"That super-straight atmosphere of male athletes is one of the reasons athletes don't come out of the closet," he said.

When he set out to write his book Jocks, Woog said, he learned that he wasn't alone.

"There are tens of thousands of gay male athletes today," he said.

He said it's important that there be openly gay coaches and gay-supportive coaches so kids don't drop out of athletics for that reason.

Christian Matheis, assistant director for LBGTA, said a lot of students come to him with motivation and hope after hearing speeches such as this one, but then that tends to fade.

"Two days to two weeks later they've been put back in their place by the status quo," he said.

Matheis said it is difficult to see the students with so much motivation at first, then to come back after they've been told "no" so many times.

He said many students at Penn State have the capacity and motivation to make a change, and they need to act on their ethics.

"They put the pieces together over time," he said. "So the overall effect is positive."

He said that at Penn State, it is clear what needs to be changed: "The curriculum -- what classes students need to take -- and image."

Woog told audience members that by being there, they were doing their job to help make Penn State an even better university than it already is.

"Someday, it might reach the women's basketball coach," he said.

Warren Chu (sophomore-supply chain and information systems) said he thought it would be interesting to see a nationally recognized figure.

"I've always known about the issues, but it was insightful to hear it from someone who is gay and has personal experience," he said.

Allison Subasic, director of LGBTA, said this speech is supportive of students.

"It's not unique to Penn State -- every university has homophobia in sports," she said.

Woog said as openly gay athletes come up through the ranks, things will change very quickly.

"That's why I'm very optimistic about the future of gays in athletics," he said.