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Black Shoe Diaries

https://www.blackshoediaries.com/ | 529 entries published

DOMINATE THE STATE

Latest Entries

Wrestling Media Availability with Cael Sanderson & Marcus Blaze

This afternoon, Head Coach Cael Sanderson and 133lb starter Marcus Blaze spoke to media ahead of Saturday’s Journeymen Collegiate Duals vs. North Dakota State and Stanford in Nashville, TN. Cael Sanderson – Head Coach On the Large Crowd and Support at Wyoming Dual: I was excited to get out west. I mean, growing up in […]

about 2 months ago | 2 reads

MMQB – How Long Until Penn State is Back to the Playoffs?

The 2025 regular season is in the books, and an interim coaching staff will see the Lions through their December 27th showdown with Clemson in the Pinstripe Bowl. New head coach Matt Campbell is on the scene, and is working on putting together his coaching staff, and building the Penn State roster in his vision. […]

about 2 months ago | 3 reads

Oh, Hello: 2026 Punter Lucas Tenbrock Commits To Penn State

THE SKINNY Height/Weight: 6-foot-6, 220 poundsHometown/High School: St. Charles, IL (St. Charles North H.S.)Ranking: ★★★ (0.8244 247Sports — No. 5 punter overall)Notable Offers: Iowa State HIGHLIGHTS OUTLOOK Lucas Tenbrock committed to Iowa State over the summer as a punter, and now he’ll head to Happy Valley with Matt Campbell. Tenbrock has the look of the […]

about 2 months ago | 4 reads

Oh, Hello: 2026 Texas Three-Star QB Kase Evans Commits To Penn State

THE SKINNY Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 198 poundsHometown/High School: Lexington, TX (Lexington H.S.)Ranking: ★★★ (0.8678 247Sports — No. 1154 overall)Notable Offers: Iowa State, Oklahoma State, Tulane, UTSA HIGHLIGHTS OUTLOOK Kase Evans has had some bad luck on the recruiting trail, with his two previous commitments going to Oklahoma State and Iowa State, both of which lost their […]

about 2 months ago | 2 reads

Oh, Hello: 2026 Nebraska Three-Star DB Tyrell Chatman Commits To Penn State

The Skinny Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 170 pounds Hometown/High School: Lincoln, NE (North Star HS) Ranking:  ★★★ (.8800 247Sports – No. 679 overall) Notable Offers: Iowa State, Kansas State Highlights Outlook We’ve got our second Iowa State-to-Penn State flip in the last few days, following in the footsteps of fellow Nebraskan Bryson Williams. Much like Williams, he […]

about 2 months ago | 4 reads

Wrestling Postview: No. 1 Penn State 40, No. 18 Wyoming 7

Recap The No. 1 Penn State Nittany Lions (3-0, 0-0 B1G) traveled west and up to 7,200 feet for their first-ever dual meet in Laramie before a record 4,686 fans to take on the No. 18 Wyoming Cowboys (2-2) on Saturday. The Nittany Lions largely dominated en route to their 75th consecutive dual meet win. 125 #2 […]

about 2 months ago | 2 reads

Oh, Hello: 2026 Nebraska Three-Star DB Bryson Williams Commits To Penn State

THE SKINNY Height/Weight: 6-foot-4, 175 poundsHometown/High School: Omaha, NE (Omaha Westside H.S.)Ranking: ★★★ (0.8733 247Sports — No. 905 overall)Notable Offers: Iowa State, Vanderbilt, Purdue, Washington State, San Diego State HIGHLIGHTS OUTLOOK Well, we got out first Iowa State-to-Penn State recruit. Bryson Williams committed to Iowa State back in the summer over other finalists Vanderbilt and […]

about 2 months ago | 2 reads

YAY HOOPS (?) Open Thread: Michigan State

Penn State faces Michigan State in its Big Ten home opener today looking to rebound from an embarrassing loss to Indiana on Tuesday. Tipoff is at noon on Big Ten Network. As always, open thread rules apply. No politics, religion, illegal streams, or NSFW content, and be civil.

about 2 months ago | 2 reads

Penn State vs. Michigan State Preview: It Doesn’t Get Any Easier

How To Watch Who: Michigan State SpartansRecord: 8-1 (1-0 Big Ten)When: Saturday, December 13, 12:00 p.m. ETWhere: Bryce Jordan Center, University Park, PAKenpom Ranking (PSU): 12th (110th)NET Ranking (PSU): 11th (109th)TV: B1G Network | Chris Vosters (PXP) and Steve Smith (Analyst)Radio: Penn State Sports NetworkVegas Line: Michigan State -12.5 (FanDuel)Over/Under: 144.5 (FanDuel) What To Watch For Prediction While I expect a much better effort and […]

about 2 months ago | 6 reads

Wrestling Preview: #1 Penn State vs #28 Wyoming

For the second year in a row, the Nittany Lions wrestling team will take on the Cowboys in a ranked dual meet; this year, the matchup will be a marquee one in Laramie, the first time Wyoming has hosted a #1 team in over 30 years.  While the Penn State lineup remains largely unchanged from […]

about 2 months ago | 1 read

Wrestling Postview: #1 Penn State 36, #13 Lehigh 6 & Early Mat Returns

The Lehigh wrestlers came into Rec Hall for the 113th Dual Meet with the host Nittany Lions and left beaten and battered to the tune of 36-6 team score with the good guys winning 8 of the 10 matches. PSU now leads the all-time series 76 wins, 34 losses, and 3 ties. That’s 15 straight […]

about 2 months ago | 3 reads

Report: Trio of Coaches Joining Matt Campbell from Iowa State

Three Iowa State coaches will be joining Matt Campbell at Penn State: Taylor Mouser will come on board as Penn State’s new offensive coordinator. Ryan Clanton is the new offensive line coach, and Deon Broomfield is listed as a secondary defensive coordinator. This seems like it would be the end of the Andy Kotelnicki era […]

NFL

about 2 months ago | 3 reads

(Early) NCAA Hockey Bracketology: December 11

With the halfway point of the college hockey regular season nearly here, the NPI saw some movement from last weekend’s results. Penn State is idle until January 3, but the rest of the games being played around the country are still of interest to the Nittany Lions. As of this morning, the following teams would […]

NHL

about 2 months ago | 0 reads

Fall/Winter Sports Update: Volleyball Falls in NCAA Tournament

Women’s Volleyball (19-13) The women’s volleyball team defeated South Florida 3-1 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before being swept by top-seeded Texas in the second round. Penn State hit just .197 against South Florida, but Kennedy Martin’s 22 kills and five blocks were enough to push the Nittany Lions past the Bulls […]

about 2 months ago | 2 reads

South Carolina Reportedly Targeting Stan Drayton

The dominoes continue to fall. As the staff takes place, a third coach is now reportedly leaving for another opportunity. Ty Howle is leaving for Virginia Tech, Jim Knowles is not being retained, and, Stan Drayton is reportedly headed to South Carolina. Drayton is a highly respected running backs coach, he has an expansive resume […]

about 2 months ago | 3 reads

Jim Knowles Will Not Join Matt Campbell’s Staff

It’s official. As part of new Penn State head coach Matt Campbell’s staff moves, another piece of the puzzle has been set. Earlier reports suggested Iowa State defensive coordinator Jon Heacock would follow Campbell to Penn State, leaving the question of whether it would be as an analyst or a coordinator. It appears we have […]

about 2 months ago | 3 reads

Midweek Musings – New Offense?

Penn State head coach Matt Campbell was officially announced this past week, and the new regime takeover has begun. Penn State still has a bowl game to play, but we’re already starting to see staffing changes happen. First, Ty Howle has left Penn State to join James Franklin at Virginia Tech as his offensive coordinator. […]

about 2 months ago | 2 reads

Report: QB Coach Danny O’Brien Leaving For Virginia Tech

Earlier Tuesday, it was reported that Ty Howle is following James Franklin to Blacksburg to become the Hokies new offensive coordinator. Well, you can add another Nittany Lions assistant making the move to Virginia Tech as quarterbacks coach Danny O’Brien is reportedly joining the Hokies as well. A former quarterback for James Franklin at Maryland, […]

about 2 months ago | 1 read

Penn State 72, Indiana 113: Flush It

Penn State played one of those “burn the tape” types of games, where everything went right for the other team, and everything that could have possibly gone wrong for the Lions did. It all started when Indiana made its first five threes of the night, which also happened to be their first five shots of […]

about 2 months ago | 3 reads

Penn State vs. Indiana Preview: Big Ten Action is Back

What to Watch For Prediction This feels like the perfect get-right game for a slightly reeling Hoosiers team, and the 15-point spread feels just about accurate. Still, I’m interested to see how some of Penn State’s younger and less experienced players perform in a true hostile environment. But I’m expecting Mike Rhoades’ squad to get […]

about 2 months ago | 1 read

Report: Ty Howle Hired as Offensive Coordinator at Virginia Tech

Penn State football’s Ty Howle is reportedly following James Franklin to Virginia Tech and receiving a big promotion in return. Howle, who has served as the Nittany Lions’ tight ends coach since 2021 and co-offensive coordinator since 2023, will now be the Hokies’ offensive coordinator, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel. He is also expected to […]

about 2 months ago | 1 read

This Week In Happy Valley: A New Era Begins

The Campbell family gets their first look at Beaver Stadium. Matt Campbell cites Cael Sanderson as he made the tough decision to leave Iowa State for Penn State. Zane Durant has opted out of the Pinstripe Bowl. Penn State hockey prepares for tough second half during long break. Gavin McKenna and Jackson Smith were named […]

NFL

about 2 months ago | 2 reads

Blessed & Honored: Bouncing Back

Penn State In the Mix for Elite QB 2027 four-star quarterback Israel Abrams is now on Penn State’s radar following Matt Campbell’s hiring: Abrams is the No. 3 quarterback in the 2027 class as of today. The most recent projections had Abrams heading to Iowa State, but with Matt Campbell now at Penn State, the […]

about 2 months ago | 1 read

Nittany Lions in the NFL 2025: Week 14

Here’s a list of the current Nittany Lions in the NFL listed by 53-man roster: *Just a reminder that again this season, I will not include players like Juwan Johnson and KeAndre Lambert-Smith that did not finish their college career at Penn State* Arizona Cardinals: Blake Gillikin, PJ Mustipher Atlanta Falcons: Arnold Ebiketie Baltimore Ravens: […]

about 2 months ago | 1 read

BSD YouTube Show: Recapping Matt Campbell’s Press Conference

The Matt Campbell era is upon us in Happy Valley! We discuss Campbell’s opening presser on Monday afternoon, and look ahead to what comes next the following days and weeks. We’ll be live at 7 p.m. EST. We’ll get the audio from the show onto Apple and Spotify as well for tomorrow.

about 2 months ago | 2 reads