The Darcey name is no stranger to Penn State men’s lacrosse. At the end of last season, the men’s lacrosse family and Penn State community suffered a tragic loss with the passing of starting goalie Connor Darcey. Connor’s younger brother Teddy announced today he will follow in his brother’s footsteps and play goalie for the Nittany Lions in 2020, following a post-graduate year.

Following the funeral service last June, the Wellesley lacrosse community organized a memorial pick-up game in honor of Connor, in which Teddy suited up between the pipes.

He knows his brother’s legacy and notorious converse high tops are big shoes to fill. Last February, Connor Darcey was honored as the first Defensive Player of the Week in Big Ten lacrosse history. One of his best performances featured 17 saves in the Big Ten Semifinal game against Johns Hopkins. He was a redshirt sophomore with a .533 save percentage and tallied 146 saves in 12 games.

After his accident, the Penn State program discussed how to pay tribute to Connor moving forward. Head Coach Jeff Tambroni said he wanted to “carry his legacy on for a lifetime,” and Teddy’s commitment is a four-year guarantee of that.

Men’s lacrosse was voted No. 4 in the 2016 preseason Big Ten Coaches poll. Its season kicks off against No. 1 Robert Morris on February 1 at home.