Saturday, May 14, 2005
Nittany Lion Overcomes a Life-Altering Injury - New York Times:
"STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - When Adam Taliaferro walks across a stage to receive his undergraduate degree from Penn State on May 14, his slight limp should hardly be noticeable under his navy-blue graduation gown.
"The limp is one of the few visible signs remaining from a catastrophic injury that left Taliaferro temporarily paralyzed from the neck down. The crown of Taliaferro's helmet collided with an Ohio State running back's knee in the waning seconds of a Buckeyes rout in Columbus in September 2000. The blow shattered the fifth cervical vertebra in Taliaferro's neck 'like a walnut inside a nutcracker,' a doctor said later.
"Doctors gave Taliaferro, a freshman cornerback at the time, a 3 percent chance of walking again. But four and a half years later, Taliaferro has returned to a mostly normal life, his remarkable recovery a testament to his will, his family's strength and the support of Coach Joe Paterno and a Penn State community that embraced the Taliaferros in the immediate aftermath of the injury and in the following years.
"'Sometimes I feel selfish, because all the credit for my recovery comes to me,' Taliaferro said. 'But it was more than that that got me through this. I had a tremendous amount of support from a lot of people.' ..."
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Sunday, May 08, 2005
Bucknell to visit Duke next January:
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TRANSFER GUARD EYES PSU:
"According to Ohio recruitnik Chris Johnson, Penn State has a shot at yet another guard, this one a very talented transfer.
"Drew Lavender, a waterbug point man from Columbus who just completed his sophomore season at Oklahoma, wants out of OU. He is listing PSU, Seton Hall, Tennessee and Southern Cal among his possible landing spots.
"The 5-7 Lavender averaged 9.7 ppg as a sophomore in 2004-05. He has started 59 of his 63 games at OU and led the Sooners in assists, steals, 3-pointers and minutes his freshman year.
"Lavender was a teammate of PSU recruit Jamelle Cornley at Brookhaven High in Columbus.
"The Nittany Lions already have six guards but may yet lose sophomore Ben Luber to transfer or soph Marlon Smith to a medical malady. Luber has been quietly assessing his options while Smith's status is still up in the air after a December blood clot in a brain artery.
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PSU'S PROGRESS:
"As of now, DeChellis has one grant remaining. He would have liked to recruit a big with his final available scholarship but ultimately felt what was accessible to him in the spring period simply wasn't good enough. That included his third trip to Europe with lead assistant Kurt Kanaskie completed last weekend.
"Penn State has cultivated several current juniors for two years now and is facing a pivotal signing period next autumn. If DeChellis and staff are going to get their program turned around, they know they must deliver one big man of a Booth, Stephens or Cline-Heard caliber next school year, preferably in the early window before the pickings get slim.
"From all indications, the 6-10 European signees -- Finnish forward Joonas Suotamo and Serb forward Milos Bogetic -- are not true post players and not expected to enforce inside in the Big Ten. They are finesse types dependent more on skills than intimidating athletic gifts.
"The revelation of the five-man class looks like Cornley, a 6-41/2, 235-pound beast from Columbus.
"I am getting glowing reports on this kid in every facet -- of his relentless style, his energy and attitude. Most believe he can compete inside in a major conference even at his height.
"A dominant high school post player, Cornley didn't get to play on the wing last season as he had hoped because Brookhaven's would-be 6-6 power player had academic trouble."
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Thursday, May 05, 2005
Centre Daily Times | 05/05/2005 | Recruits add depth for Penn State:
"Help is on the way.
"Again.
"After two seasons of watching predominately freshman guards struggle through Big Ten play, Penn State men's basketball coach Ed DeChellis and his staff shored up their backcourt once more during the spring recruiting period.
"David Jackson, a versatile 6-foot-3 combo guard from Gulf Coast Community College in Panama City, Fla., and Maxwell Dubois, a rangy 6-3 wing from Dillard High School in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., join European post players Joonas Suotamo and Milos Bogetic and Columbus, Ohio, forward Jamelle Cornley in what Penn State believes is one of the most athletic classes it has assembled.
" 'We've got a very good blend now of skill players and some athleticism,' DeChellis said. 'Which gives us variety, which is important to our development.'
"If nothing else -- and DeChellis has learned the hard way during his first two seasons at Penn State that there are no guarantees -- the Nittany Lions will have more depth in the coming season, particularly in the backcourt. ..."
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