Penn State has an extensive network of notable alumni. From famed athletes to celebrated television directors to successful CEOs, there’s certainly no shortage of Nittany Lions to look up to.

Josh Inglis, a Penn State alum who graduated in 1998, just earned a spot on that list of legends.

Inglis is the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of PHOOZY, a company that creates protective products for smartphones out of materials adapted from those used in spacesuits, space shuttles, and race cars.

PHOOZY was recently featured on an episode of ABC’s “Shark Tank,” a show that gives contestants the opportunity to pitch their ideas to a panel of investors.

Inglis grew up on a farm in Canton, Ohio. He felt pressure to attend Ohio State but broke ranks after his sister took him to a Penn State football game. Inglis was immediately sold. When he first arrived at Penn State as a freshman, Inglis studied computer engineering but switched to management information systems after two years.

Golfing, biking, and attending football games with friends and family are some of Inglis’ fondest memories during his time at Penn State, he said.

Following graduation, Inglis moved to California to work at Oracle as a software consultant. He later shifted to Home Depot where he eventually became a digital marketing director. While working with Home Depot, Inglis went back to school to get his MBA from Emory University.

Everyone in Inglis’ family is an entrepreneur, so he always knew it was in his blood, but the timing was never quite right. When he graduated from Emory, however, he was left with a new wave of energy. Inglis decided that he wanted to create something of his own.

“I got addicted to ‘Shark Tank’ and was watching it all the time,” Inglis said. “As a watcher, you’re always wondering how you would do if you were the one in front of the sharks.”

It wasn’t until 2016, when his longtime friend, Kevin Conway, approached him with the idea for PHOOZY, that Inglis began to seriously consider scratching his entrepreneurial itch. He was pretty apprehensive at first.

“Why would I leave Home Depot to go launch some product that people don’t even know they need?” Inglis said. “But he convinced me. He did a very good sales job.”

The PHOOZY duo first applied to appear on Shark Tank in 2018. To be considered for the show, they needed to fill out a lengthy application and send in a submission video.

“We looked at our submission video from 2018 last month,” Inglis laughed. “It’s horrible. It’s so cringe.”

The show is extremely competitive and receives more than 40,000 applicants each season. Unfortunately, PHOOZY didn’t make the cut, so it was back to work for the pair. In January 2020, though, Inglis and Conway applied again.

“Our numbers, our application, our video, everything was ten times better,” Inglis said. “We knew how to sell and explain the product now.”

The PHOOZY team’s hard work had paid off. The duo was headed to the tank to present their product to the Sharks.

“It’s one of the most exciting moments of your life, mixed with one of the scariest moments of your life,” Inglis said. “It’s an out-of-body, bizarre, awesome experience.”

Despite their nerves, the pair struck a deal with Lori Greiner and Robert Herjavec.

Once they left the tank, they couldn’t talk about the experience at all. The episode was filmed in September, but it didn’t air on television until April, so they needed to keep quiet about their offer for seven months. The whole time, the pair had no idea if their segment would actually make it on screen. For the most part, life at PHOOZY remained unchanged.

Since the episode aired in early April, however, PHOOZY’s sales have skyrocketed. The team began hearing from retailers who weren’t even answering their calls before.

“It changed the game immediately,” Inglis said. “It’s really fun to be a part of that.”

As for the future of PHOOZY, the team plans to create more protective gear for devices like AirPods and GoPros. The company also recently launched products with an anti-microbial lining that helps protect against bacteria, something that has become increasingly important during the coronavirus pandemic.

Making an appearance on Shark Tank sure sounds like a crazy dream, but Inglis encourages entrepreneurs to give it a shot.

“You never know. You might be on the next season,” Inglis said. “They’re just looking for a good, compelling story.”