There was a time when boxing was the No. 1 varsity sport at Penn State. According to the Penn State boxing Web site, the team reigned supreme at Penn State from 1923 to 1954. And while new coach Ben Davis knows boxing will not surpass the more noted sports these days, he will try his best to return the team to some level of prominence.

A Philadelphia native and a Pennsylvania State Trooper by trade, Davis is entering his first year as a head boxing coach. He served as an assistant to last year's coach, William Bolar, who is a personal friend of Davis. He has also done work as a personal boxing instructor before and has taught mixed martial arts.

Despite a fighting background, Davis wants to keep the violence in the ring. He insists that his boxers give up fighting anywhere other than that spectrum.

"That includes frats and on the streets ... anywhere. Even if it means that they have to lose a little bit of their 'manhood,' they have to walk away," Davis said. "I will not help anyone destroy themselves."

But when they are between the ropes, Davis expects the Penn State fighters to pour it on.

"If you fight us, you will remember getting hit by a lot of punches. You might not remember getting hit very hard, but you will remember getting hit -- a lot. Punches in bunches," he said.

Davis has been impressed thus far with the make up of his squad.

"We have a clean cut group of guys. It takes a special kind of person to be a boxer," he said. "It's about wanting it, it's more than just the guys who are fighting. It's about the fighter wanting it more. It's about him getting up every morning and thinking about the guy he is going to fight for months in advance."

While Davis has seen this in many of his fighters, he promises to instill even more willpower in his pupils.

"You know the phrase 'It's not the size of dog in the fight, it's the size of fight in the dog'? Well I am going to put more fight in the dog," Davis said.

This year's team has a relatively even mix of upperclassmen leadership and young ambition.

"We are a resurgent program, because a couple of years ago, the team was basically defunct," senior captain Jerry Freas, a heavyweight, said. "There are a lot of sophomores and juniors on the team, and a lot of sophomores and freshmen are trying out. So, we have a lot of time to develop as a program."

Davis was quick to sing the praises of some of his older boxers. The coach called senior Ben Grove his "heavy hitter." Grove will fight at 147 or 155 pounds. Mannaa Mannaa, another senior has also caught Davis' eye. 'Mannaa Mannaa the Phenomenon' (as Grove knows him) is a native of Egypt who will most likely fight at 139 pounds.

"Technique is not Manna's strong point. He is still working on that," Davis said. "Viciousness, however, is his strength."

Mannaa was one of three fighters who qualified last year for Nationals, but none of the three could go due to a semantic error. Mory Diane also qualified for the tournament, and will be back this year to fight at 175 pounds.

Davis still acknowledges that he cannot fully assess whom the best players on the team are, but he is sure that the cream will rise to the top as practices go on. He can only hope to advance his knowledge of his fighters through constant contact.

"Boxers are a different breed of athlete," Davis said. "In other sports, the coaches have a relationship with the entire team. In boxing there is a relationship with each fighter."

The team is gaining solidarity through fighting and practicing together in the Intramural Building and the White Building. The team wants to make a name for itself.

"Not all Lions live at Beaver Stadium. Some Lions live in Room 51 in the White Building," Davis said.