Drew Balis

Christian Hackenberg does not arrive on campus for a few more weeks, but he already has his jersey number picked out. According to a report yesterday, the highly touted quarterback recruit will be wearing No. 14 at Penn State.

The 2014 Big Ten schedule was released this afternoon, and Penn State will begin conference play against a Big Ten newcomer in 2014 and conclude the season against a familiar end of the year opponent.

Bill O'Brien is usually very composed when talking to the media, but yesterday, Penn State's head coach wore his emotions on his sleeve. In a 22-minute afternoon conference call with reporters, the Nittany Lions head man blasted the Sports Illustrated story penned by David Epstein that investigated Penn State's medical care related to personnel changes that occurred a few months back.

Penn State has been in all out attack mode in a continued effort to refute the narrative spun in David Epstein's Sports Illustrated story regarding the university's medical care as it applies to football players, and one of the more intriguing tactics was a comparison of how the Nittany Lions program handles on-site physician coverage during the season compared to other schools.

Penn State continues to aggressively refute David Epstein's forthcoming Sports Illustrated story that investigates its medical practices related to athletic programs, specifically the football team. This series of statements comes on the heels of remarks last night in an effort to get ahead of the in-depth piece that hits newsstands today. Similar in nature to yesterday's remarks, these statements harshly criticize the SI article going as far as to call some of the claims inside the 23-page story "ludicrous."

In a 23-page investigative story, Sports Illustrated senior writer David Epstein examined the history and current state of medical care as it applies to the Penn State football program. Throughout the featured piece that is set to hit newsstands today and be released online tomorrow, Epstein is highly critical of Penn State athletic director David Joyner, mentioning a personal feud between Joyner and Wayne Sebastianelli, the long-time head physician for the Nittany Lions football team before being reassigned in late February. The article, titled “What Still Ails Penn State” quotes several named and unnamed sources including former football players, athletic department employees, and Board of Trustees members. A detailed summary of the piece can be found below.

Graduating weekend at Penn State is here, and student athletes will be walking across the stage and receiving diplomas in record numbers over the next few days. According to a press release, 109 student athletes from 26 different athletic programs will be taking part in this weekend's ceremonies along with seven Penn State cheerleaders and five Lionettes.

Penn State secured its seventh verbal commit for the Class of 2014 and second defensive prospect in the form of Daquan Worley, a cornerback from Coatesville, Pa. Worley committed shortly before noon today, choosing the Nittany Lions over Rutgers, Georgia Tech, Pittsburgh, and Massachusetts in news first reported by Bob Flounders of the Patriot News.

Former Penn State linebacker Michael Mauti will be NFL teammates with Gerald Hodges after being selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the 7th round of the NFL Draft with the 213th overall pick. Hodges was selected earlier this afternoon in the fourth round by the Vikings.

Gerald Hodges' journey from Paulsboro, New Jersey to the National Football League is complete as the former Penn State linebacker was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the fourth round of the NFL Draft with the 120th overall pick.

Jordan Hill is heading west. The former Penn State defensive tackle and All-Big Ten selection in 2012 was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft with the 87th pick and will join a talented roster in the NFC West.

In his senior column, Drew Balis urges fellow students to never settle for mediocrity as he prepares to graduate from Penn State. Never let someone tell you that you aren't good enough or insult what you do, but ask yourself if you are making the most of your time here.

Without doing anything directly, Christian Hackenberg just became much more important to Penn State as the Nittany Lions prepare for the 2013 season. With less quarterback depth on the roster, redshirting Hackenberg will be more difficult and less likely for Bill O'Brien.

The number of quarterbacks on Penn State's roster just decreased by one. According to a GoPSUSports release, sophomore signal-caller Steven Bench has been granted a release to transfer from the Nittany Lion program when the semester concludes on May 3rd.

As spring practice gives way to summer workouts leading up to the start of training camp, Bill O'Brien will likely reveal the first depth chart of 2013. While all eyes will be on the starting quarterback decision, there are five other intriguing position battles to keep an eye on.

Eugene Lewis' playing career at Penn State is getting a later start than expected, but the slight delay may help him in the long run. Following a surprise redshirt season, the athletic receiver is primed to be a playmaker in Penn State's offense heading into 2013.

Following Saturday's Blue-White game, John Butler said that junior Adrian Amos would head into training camp as a starting safety after playing his first two seasons at cornerback. This move creates some interesting questions for the defensive coordinator and the secondary.

Penn State received its fifth commit for 2014 today, and it may be its biggest one yet. The recruit comes in the form of DeAndre Thompkins, a 6-0 170 lb. receiver from Swansboro, North Carolina.

Heading into today's Blue-White game, the thought existed that some separation in the quarterback competition between Steven Bench and Tyler Ferguson could be created. After what transpired at Beaver Stadium, that does not appear to be the case, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. The quarterback play itself was far from bad despite the defense (blue) defeating the offense (white 67-47)

Beaver Stadium is the site of Penn State's 15th and final spring practice, affectionately known as the Blue-White, game tomorrow. It is easy and tempting to over-analyze what happens, but with that said, the game does present some interesting story lines that can provide some insight about the 2013 Nittany Lions. Below are five things to keep an eye on.

A season ago, Malcolm Willis and DaQuan Jones received a solid taste of being starters on Penn State's defense. Now, the pair of seniors has their sights set on not only more productive campaigns in 2013, but also setting an example for their younger teammates.

At 11:57 a.m. today, a CATA bus and car were involved in an accident near the intersection of Hastings Road and University Drive.

For the first time in several seasons, Penn State will enter the 2013 campaign without an established fullback on the roster. As the departed Michael Zordich sets his sights on an NFL career, Bill O'Brien must decide how to utilize the position heading into the 2013 season.

During his first season patrolling the sidelines in Happy Valley, Bill O'Brien acquired the reputation of a gambler when it came to fourth down decisions. Will this fourth down aggressiveness continue in 2013 and what factors will contribute to those play calls?

With three returning starters from last year's unit, one might assume that Penn State's secondary will look similar to the one that saw the field in 2012, but that is not necessarily the case. More depth will allow the Nittany Lions to utilize nickel and dime defensive packages when needed, something that often frustrated secondary coach John Butler last season.

Bill O'Brien has no reservations about sharing his thoughts on much of the returning experience at skill positions or making an already comprehensive playbook even thicker, but play selection and run-pass ratio is usually an off limits topic. Heading into the 2013 season, it is a rather intriguing topic based on O'Brien's history and the current offensive personnel.

Penn State officially hit the double digit mark of spring practice yesterday as the Blue-White game inches closer. An afternoon thunderstorm washed away some nice weather and forced the Nittany Lions inside Holuba Hall, a common theme over the past few weeks. Bill O'Brien spent much of the time watching quarterbacks and for the most part seemed pleased.

Allen Robinson is hands down the best player on Penn State's offense. Adrian Amos can stake his claim as the best player on the defensive side of the ball. This spring, the two members of the "Supa Six" are working to make each other better through a friendly competition.

There may not be a term that dominated the Penn State football landscape throughout the 2012 season more than "senior." The departure of this memorable group has created a void that will need to be filled, and many redshirt freshmen are ready to burst onto the scene.

A collection of players have switched positions since the Bill O'Brien era began. What type of results have these personnel moves yielded so far, and more importantly, what could it mean going forward?