Black Shoe Diaries
DOMINATE THE STATE
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Lion Tales: Season Openers
Welcome back to Lion Tales, a weekly historical look at Penn State football. Marshall and Penn State have played twice – with the Lions holding a 2-0 edge in the series with both games being played in 1929 and 1930 respectively. So, we’ll skip any recap of just how those games went, though that 1930 […]
Bowl Projections 2026: Preseason
Welcome back to our weekly series tracking some of the bowl/CFP picks for Penn State football following each game, This season, we will follow ESPN, Yahoo, and CBS Sports, with occasional bonus picks from other publications. Yahoo Sports: Bowl: Citrus Location: Orlando, FL Date: January 2nd, 2027 Opponent: LSU Tigers CBS Sports: Bowl: Citrus Location: […]
Under New Management: Matt Campbell’s Marshall Press Conference
Well well well, if it isn’t me, once again*, serving you fresh takes from our head coach heading into a football game. With new management come new cadences, new things to learn, and hopefully, by season’s end, new ticks** for us to poke fun at. Here’s Matt Campbell’s first in-season press conference as the Penn […]
Only Rocco Becht Until Penn State Football
As we enter the final three days of our countdown to kickoff of the Matt Campbell, we honor the focal point of his offense at Iowa State, the engine that made the team run. Bringing in a transfer portal quarterback is always a double-edged sword, but based on what we have read all offseason long, […]
What We Learned About College Football in Week 0
North Carolina is better – but probably not very good Hats off to Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels for topping TCU 15-10 in week 0, after being completely dismantled by the Horned Frogs to kick off the 2025 season. The defense has shown signs of improvement, especially along the defensive line. However, TCU’s offense […]
Only Brett Eskildsen Until Penn State Football
Brett Eskildsen is a junior wide receiver from Frisco, Texas, where he played high school football at Centennial. He stands 6-foot-1 and weighs around 190-198 pounds. He began his college career at Iowa State, playing in all 13 games in 2024 with one start, recording two catches for 17 yards. In 2025, Eskildsen broke out […]
Get the best of Black Shoe Diaries on the new SB Nation app
It’s a big day for Black Shoe Diaries. Today, the SB Nation app is live, and it’s the best way to follow the Nittany Lions. You can download it by searching SB Nation for iOS or Android. A year ago we made some big changes to our community, including offering fewer ads and the addition […]
Big Ten Power Rankings – Preseason
Hello there and welcome to the Big Ten Power Rankings! Each week we’ll rank how the teams across the conference are playing, in the hopes of seeing just who is a contender, and who is a pretender over the course of the season. The rules are few, but resolute: Teams are ranked by how they’re […]
Big Ten Superlatives: Preseason Edition
Happy first game week and welcome back to Big Ten Superlatives. This is a reminder that this is your weekly look around the conference’s best, worst, and most Big Ten West of things. Let’s look at some of the biggest storylines heading into the season, while also making a few predictions. Biggest Win of the […]
Only Daryus Dixson Until Penn State Football
Do you feel that extra bit of electricity in the air? That’s the feeling of a game week for Penn State Football – and the very first one of the Matt Campbell era. Daryus Dixson is set to play a major role for the defense in 2026. He played in every game as a highly-coveted […]
MMQB: Season Record Predictions
At long last, it’s game week! Kicking off the final week of off-season content, the BSD Masthead gave their thoughts on how they see the Lions’ first season under Matt Campbell shaking out. Let’s see what they have to say! Chris: 8-4 The Lions start out 3-0 in the non-conference, breaking in the new players […]
Penn State a Large Favorite Over Marshall in Season Opener
Welcome to game week! Week 0 is in the books. It was a big day for former Penn State quarterback Beau Pribula, who helped lead Virginia to a 34-8 thumping over conference foe NC State. Charles Huff, part of James Franklin’s initial staff as running backs and special teams coach, also had a hot start […]
Only Koby Howard Days Until Penn State Football
Penn State is less than a week away as the Lions will be at home in six days to take on Marshall. Wide receiver Koby Howard will be wearing No. 6 for Penn State this season. A year ago, Howard was getting buzz in camp about his play, but he didn’t really start seeing the […]
Week 0 Open Thread
College football is back, let’s gooooooooooooo! Penn State doesn’t play until next week, but you better believe I’ll be glued to the TV for the first college football since January! On the docket today, we have: There are a few other games, but unfortunately they’re on rather niche channels, so I won’t bother with those. […]
Only Zion Tracy Days Until Penn State Football
Penn State opens play in seven days – and right now there are three players wearing No. 7 listed on the roster. The most prominent is senior defensive back Zion Tracy. He’s been a regular in Penn State’s secondary for the past two seasons, starting more than 25 games for the Nittany Lions. His most […]
Fall Sports Update: Erica Dambach Wins 300th Game
Women’s Soccer (1-1-1) After dropping a 2-1 heartbreaker to West Virginia last weekend, the women’s soccer team regrouped with a 5-0 win over Bucknell in last night’s home opener. Paige Pasinski, Lilly Burger, Hannah Jordan, Aubrey Kulpa, and Kaelyn Wolfe each scored one goal for Penn State. Mackenzie Gress made three saves to keep the […]
Only Kooper Ebel Days Until Penn State Football
Penn State football is a little more than a week away. In eight days, the Lions kick off at home against Marshall to begin the Matt Campbell era. At the current time, there are two players listed as wearing No. 8 for the Lions, both transfers from Iowa State. Senior linebacker Kooper Ebel has been […]
Game-by-Game Predictions for Penn State in 2026
The start of the college football season is right around the corner! As we patiently await, let’s do the best thing we can to pass the time – by predicting each game for Penn State’s 2026 season with the abundance of optimism that can only come this late in the summer, when everyone is still […]
Summer Summary: August 27th
ICYMI, this year’s game themes have been fully announced, along with the kickoff time for the Whiteout. A profile of the team’s new starting center. Who has the toughest schedule in the conference? (Hint: It’s not Penn State.) What does the defense look like? How is training camp going? Wrestling heads-here’s a projection of the […]
Only Cael Brezina Until Penn State Football
If I had a nickel for every Cael Penn State took from Iowa State, I would only have two nickels. That’s not a lot, but it’s funny that it happened twice… Cael Brezina was a three-star recruit and the No. 107 linebacker in the 2026 class when he committed to Iowa State’s 2024 class. His […]
BSD YouTube Show: Breaking Down Our Top 10 Penn State Players for 2026
Happy Hump Day, Everyone! We brain-farted and forgot to create this post on BSD as we were doing this show live on YouTube on Monday night, but better late than never… In our latest show, Jared and Tim went more in-depth on BSD’s Top 10 players for the upcoming season and whether we agree with […]
Oh, Hello: Mason Courville Commits to Penn State Hockey
Penn State hockey has found its goalie of the future with a commitment from Mason Courville: Currently at 16, Courville will be eligible to play at Penn State starting in the 2028-29 season. After an outstanding run with the WB/Scranton Knights Junior team, he joined the Flint Firebirds of the OHL in 2025-26. He posted […]
Only Caleb Bacon Until Penn State Football
Caleb Bacon did not receive any scholarship offers during his high school recruitment and opted to join Iowa State as a walk-on during the 2021 season. His breakout season did not come until 2023, where he made 60 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and three sacks. In 2024, he suffered a left leg injury during […]
Penn State-USC White Out Clash Set For Primetime on NBC
With the start of the college football season just four days away, more announcements on kickoff times are starting to pop up. For Penn State fans, one of the most anticipated kickoff times is now official, as Daniel Gallen over at Lions 247 reported that the Nittany Lions and Trojans are set to face each […]
Only Lavar Arrington II Until Penn State Football
Lavar Arrington II committed to Penn State in July 2024 as a four-star recruit and one of the top linebacker prospects in the 2025 class. He had several power conference offers but ultimately decided to follow his dad’s footsteps and join the Nittany Lions. In his first season, he only appeared in seven games, with […]
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