h/t to The School Philly for bringing this to our attention.

Penn State can take credit for Nobel Prize winners, Senators, Congressmen, a Heisman Trophy winner, Baseball Hall of Famers, and Fulbright scholars. Soon, it might be able to add Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Rookie of the Year to its résumé.

That part will hopefully be played by Samantha Hoopes, a 23-year-old model who made her debut in Sports Illustrated’s 50th anniversary swimsuit issue, which hit newsstands yesterday.

The Doylestown native (Central Bucks East High School graduate) went to Penn State and studied kinesiology before changing her major to business.

“I wanted to be a gym teacher and coach a team on the side,” Hoopes told SI. “I’m from the East Coast so I love field hockey. I played in middle school but not in high school. Since I was modeling, they told me not to mess with field hockey because I would always get bruises.”

Hoopes is one of 12 freshman models competing for the “Rookie of the Year” distinction from Sports Illustrated. Make sure to vote for her here before March 4.

“People close to me say modeling’s not forever and I agree with them, but I also think the time is now or never so I’d rather have now to look back on rather than never have done it,” Hoopes said. “I’ve always lived in my house under my parents roof. Then when I moved to Hollywood last year, I felt so liberated and like a different person. I could wake up and choose what I wanted to do. For once in my life I’m following my heart instead of doing what people tell me to do.”

You can check out more of Samantha’s SI shoot below and on her official page.