Since arriving at Penn State in January, former Wyoming Area star Dominic DeLuca has switched positions to linebacker and switched numbers to 34 before making his collegiate debut on Saturday against Ball State.
Penn State Athletics file photo
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STATE COLLEGE — Dominic DeLuca was one of the last players to leave the field. Saturday was a long time coming.
After 20 months of waiting, the former Wyoming Area star made sure to mark the occasion by heading to the stands for some hugs and photos with family.
For the first time since leading the Warriors to a PIAA championship on Dec. 7, 2019, DeLuca was back playing football.
The former state MVP for the Warriors appeared on special teams for Penn State beginning in the second quarter on Saturday as a member of the punt return team against Ball State.
DeLuca also made a cameo on the kickoff unit later in the game — though Jordan Stout put every kickoff on the day through the end zone for a touchback.
It’s been a journey for DeLuca ever since that most memorable afternoon in Hershey. DeLuca tore his ACL during the game — an 80% tear, he said later — but finished out the game to rally his team to a 21-14 win over Central Valley.
He chose to accept a walk-on offer from Penn State, announcing his decision in March 2020 and continued his rehab during the pandemic before enrolling this past January.
Originally working with the safeties during the offseason, DeLuca was moved to linebacker shortly after arriving to help with depth at the position.
“This was an opportunity for Dom, a guy that we’re excited about,” coach James Franklin said in the spring about DeLuca’s move. “He was Mr. PA in the state last year, but an opportunity for him to get more reps in practice as well.”
A quarterback and safety at Wyoming Area, DeLuca checks in on Penn State’s roster at 6-foot-1, 212 pounds. Per NCAA rules, he can appear in four games without using a year of eligibility.
Back in the top 10
It hasn’t taken long for the Nittany Lions to put 2020 behind them.
A year after an 0-5 start that was the worst in program history, Penn State is right back in the top 10 where the Lions finished in 2019.
Penn State moved up one spot to No. 10 in the latest AP poll released Sunday. The new poll, though, shows how daunting it will be to hold onto that ranking.
Up first is a primetime showdown with No. 22 Auburn on Saturday. But the Lions also have road games down the line at No. 5 Iowa and at No. 9 Ohio State while hosting No. 25 Michigan.
Penn State also moved up one spot to No. 12 in the latest coaches poll.
Keeping fresh
For the second straight week, Jaquan Brisker spent chunks of the game on the sideline.
This time, it was by design.
The star safety, who was shaken up three times before making his goal line interception against Wisconsin, was given a lighter workload against Ball State.
And it wasn’t just Brisker, as the Lions were particularly mindful of using more faces on defense after the unit was stuck on the field for an exhausting 95 snaps vs. the Badgers.
“Our rep count was way too high last week at Wisconsin,” Franklin said. “So to be able to play well today, getting some of those guys off the field and out of the game early so that we can be as fresh as possible come Sunday and practice well. But that wasn’t going to come at the expense of winning today and playing well today.
“But yeah, if I had to say before the game that it would play out that way, I would have been happy with the way it played out.”
One of the players who got increased playing time was safety Tyler Rudolph. But he won’t be available for the first half of the Auburn game after being ejected by a fourth-quarter replay review for targeting.
‘GameDay’ returns
ESPN can’t seem to resist coming to town for the White Out.
The network announced Saturday night that it will be bringing its famous traveling “College GameDay” preview show to Penn State next weekend for the nationally ranked showdown between the Lions and Auburn.
Both teams are 2-0 heading into the their first ever regular season meeting. The Lions and Tigers have split a pair of bowl game showdowns.
This will mark the fifth straight year ESPN will bring ‘GameDay’ to Happy Valley, the only school to host the show every year since 2017.
‘GameDay’ starts at 9 a.m. and runs until noon. Recent visits have seen the show set up its stage on the lawn at Old Main.
Kickoff for Penn State and Auburn is set for 7:30 p.m. on ABC.
The Tigers are off to an impressive start under new head coach Bryan Harsin, hammering a pair of overmatched opponents — Akron and FCS Alabama State — by a combined score of 122-10.