Linebacker Connor earns second honor
Penn State linebacker Dan Connor has earned his second Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honor of the season after playing an instrumental role in the Nittany Lions' 12-0 win at Purdue.
Connor recorded a game-high 12 tackles (10 solo) and grabbed his second interception of the season, at the PSU 17-yard-line. The junior from Wallingford, Pa. earned his fourth double figure tackle game of the season and the 10th of his career.
The Nittany Lions earned their first shut out on Saturday since a 49-0 win over Northwestern in 2002, a span of 49 games. Purdue was held scoreless for the first time since a 35-0 loss to Notre Dame in 1996, a year before Joe Tiller became head coach. Penn State forced three turnovers and recorded three sacks against the Boilermakers.
The Penn State defense ran its streak of not allowing a touchdown to nine quarters. Purdue came into the game averaging 29.4 points per game and was No. 4 in the nation in passing offense at 309.6 ypg, but was limited to 184 yards with two interceptions by the Lions. The Boilers were No. 8 nationally in total offense at 448.5 ypg, but were held to 246 yards, more than 200 below their average, by the tenacious PSU defense. Purdue's 246 yards of offense was its seventh-lowest total under Joe Tiller.
Penn State, Temple kickoff set for 3:30
ESPN Regional will televise the Penn State-Temple football game on Saturday, November 11 at 3:30 p.m. ET from Beaver Stadium.
The contest will be televised to a regionally syndicated audience. FSN Pittsburgh, WPVI-TV (Philadelphia), YES (New York) and MASN (Baltimore) are among the outlets that will carry the contest, with the entire list of outlets to be announced.
The contest also may be available on the ESPN GamePlan package.
With the Penn State-Temple game starting at 3:30 p.m., the start time for the Nov. 11 Penn State-Iowa women's volleyball match in Rec Hall has been moved to 8:00 p.m. The clash with Temple is Penn State's 11th announced TV appearance of the season. This Saturday's game at No. 17 Wisconsin will be an ABC split national telecast at 12:00 p.m. ET.
The Nittany Lions have made four appearances on ABC (Ohio State, Northwestern, Michigan and Purdue), two on ESPN2 (Akron and Illinois), one on NBC (Notre Dame), one on ESPNU (Youngstown State) and one on ESPN Regional (Minnesota) so far this season.
Penn State and Temple will be meeting for the first time since 2003, a 23-10 Penn State win in the season opener.
No. 1 ranked Davis to compete in NWCAs
Penn State Nittany Lion wrestler Phil Davis, the No. 1 ranked 197-pounder in the nation, has finalized his spot in the prestigious National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic. The event will take place in the Dallas Convention Center Arena on Monday, Nov. 20.
Davis, a junior and a 2006 national runner-up, will face Cornell's Jerry Rinaldi in one of the event's marquee match-ups. While Davis is ranked No. 1 in every major pre-season poll, Rinaldi enters the exhibition bout ranked No. 2 by the NWCA.
The duo knows each other very well as Davis downed Rinaldi 7-4 in the national semifinals last season. Davis also nipped Rinaldi 3-0 in a regular season dual in Rec Hall. Two years ago, Davis beat Rinaldi 8-5 during his freshman campaign in a dual at Cornell during the regular season. The duo then faced off in the first round of the 2005 NCAA Championships with Davis posting an impressive 7-1 win over Rinaldi on his way to earning seventh place and his first of two All-America medals.
The potential full field features 20 of the country's best grapplers. At 118, Oklahoma's Sam Hazewinkle will face Cornell's Troy Nickerson.
