Hens spring into scrimmage

Kevin Tresolini | The News Journal

Delaware and Penn State have been the northeast’s premier football programs at their separate levels going back to the mid-20th century.

Operating as they do on different strata – designated now as the NCAA Division I football Bowl (Penn State) and Championship (Delaware) subdivisions – the two have never collided on a football field.

That appears likely to change, which, though some may disagree, is a very, very good thing for the Blue Hens.

William Bretzger, The News Journal

Officials from the schools are discussing playing a pair of games, naturally at Penn State’s Beaver Stadium. They’re still a long way off – likely in 2023 and 2027. Look for an announcement this summer.

For FCS programs such as Delaware, games against FBS teams serve several purposes.

Players love the challenge of mixing it up against a big-time foe in front of a large crowd in a huge stadium. School officials relish the payday, as such trips typically net about $500,000 for the visitor’s bank account, which comes in quite handy.

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Coaches just want to get out of the games healthy, so they have all their players for the games that really count.

Delaware is presently in a run of playing six games in seven years against ACC schools. They were scheduled by former athletic director Eric Ziady.

Last year, Delaware journeyed to then-18th-ranked Virginia Tech and got quite a bit out of its 27-0 loss, namely tremendous faith in its defense. And playing in front of the 62,526 who inhabited raucous Lane Stadium, truly one of college football’s most energetic venues, was something the Blue Hens will always treasure.

William Bretzger, The News Journal

Delaware doesn’t have an FBS foe this season, when a trip to frequent FCS national champ North Dakota State highlights the docket. But Delaware is back at Pitt in 2019 and at North Carolina State in 2020.

Last fall, Delaware coach Danny Rocco, in his first season at the helm, said there was great “value” in match-ups against FBS opponents, both for the school and the players, who “look forward to playing in these games.” He did also state a preference for perhaps playing FBS foes from non-Power Five leagues.

Rocco also suggested the value of regional connections in seeking FBS adversaries, and that’s where Penn State is the perfect big-time game for Delaware, even if the Hens will be heavy underdogs.

Just about every kid from Pennsylvania wants to be good enough to play for Penn State. Many of those who aren’t quite good enough to be a Nittany Lion come to Delaware, which has often fancied itself as a mini-Penn State in terms of football.

Right now, there are 29 Pennsylvanians on the UD roster, but that number is about to explode. Nine of the 14 recruits in Rocco’s December, 2017, recruiting class were from Pennsylvania. So were two of the three high school seniors who signed in February.

Plunk Penn State on that UD schedule and watch Rocco, who happens to be a Keystone State native and former Penn State player himself, make that number rise.

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“Penn State doesn’t want you? Play for Delaware and go show them what they missed,” sounds like a convincing recruiting pitch.

Since I tweeted the possibility of this two weeks ago, a healthy debate has raged on the Gohens.net message board about whether or not it’s good for Delaware.

Some have justifiably mentioned the stain left by former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky’s child molestation episodes and coach Joe Paterno and other school leaders’ utter failure to recognize his deviance and stop it.

That is shame Penn State must live with forever.

But the Nittany Lions still play football – quite well of late, in fact -- and the Blue Hens lining up against them will be a sight to behold.