The names are Penn State — and college football — royalty. From Jack Ham to Dennis Onkotz, from Shane Conlan to LaVar Arrington, each has starred in the blue and white, fueling the legacy of Linebacker U. en route to the College Football Hall of Fame. Now the Nittany Lions can add one more linebacking legend to the list: Paul Posluszny.
"I don't deserve to be in that group," Posluszny said. "When you're young, there are certain guys that are immortal. Jack Ham is immortal — not only for Penn State, but when you grow up in Western PA, you have to cheer for the Steelers. You know about Jack Ham. He's immortal. Shane Conlan was immortal. I still go on YouTube every now and then to watch the LaVar Leap, just because you say, Wow. Stuff like that doesn't get old.
"It's very humbling, because I look at those guys and say, OK, that was a different level. And I will always just be like a pure fan of them. And when you were at school and you knew the history of what they did, the types of players they were, you're trying to live up to that. So, I feel like we owe a lot to them."
Posluszny is being humble. He becomes the 20th Penn State player to make the Hall. And despite being a native of the Keystone State — like so many of his fellow Penn State inductees — his story is among the most unique.
The Hopewell High graduate committed to Happy Valley amid the so-called "dark ages," a stretch of four losing seasons in five years. Penn State went 3-9 during Posluszny's freshman year and fared only moderately better the following season, going 4-8.
Few could have projected the breakthrough season that awaited Nittany Nation in 2005. But behind a top-10 scoring defense powered by a Butkus Award-winning campaign from Posluszny, Penn State went 11-1, won the Big Ten and won the Orange Bowl.
The Nittany Lions won nine or more games in five straight seasons from 2005-09, with that '05 campaign serving as the catalyst to turn the program around.
"I still remember looking at the roster with my dad, seeing there's these big-name guys playing linebacker, (thinking) hopefully I can maybe get on the field on special teams when I'm a sophomore, maybe start to play a little bit when I'm a junior," Posluszny said. "And things, let's just say, didn't work out as planned. In 2003, we had the worst year record-wise in Penn State history. So, you're a part of that.
"And then thank God we had leaders like Michael Robinson, Alan Zemaitis, Andrew Guman, guys that helped turn that thing around, and in 2005 we have this storybook year where you come back, win the Big Ten, win the Orange Bowl, Joe Paterno is back on the national stage. Two years before, the president of the university asked him to step down.
"Don't get me wrong, timing was everything. I truly believe if I'm not a part of that, like if you could take what I was able to do on the field and put it in a different era, I don't go in the Hall of Fame, if that makes sense. I feel like because of the story that we had, the people that we had, it was perfect timing. Penn State's going through something challenging, great group of guys, led by Michael Robinson, changed things, turned things around, and all of a sudden, we're back in a good spot."
Posluszny became Penn State's first two-time captain in nearly 40 years (1968-69), as he led the squad in 2005 and '06. He became the first player in school history to lead the team in tackles in three straight seasons, and he exited State College as the program's all-time leader in tackles (372).
He became the second two-time winner of the Bednarik Award, and just the second Penn State player ever to earn First Team All-America honors and First Team Academic All-America honors twice. His 3.56 GPA also earned him an NFF National Scholar-Athlete Award in 2006.
Buffalo drafted him in the second round in 2007, and after an 11-year NFL career with the Bills and Jaguars — a stint that featured a Pro Bowl appearance in 2013 — he retired in 2017.
Posluszny lives in Jacksonville with his wife and three kids, and to say he has remained busy in his post-playing career would be an understatement. He earned an MBA at Carnegie Mellon and now works for RTX on the strategy and development team for the aerospace and defense company.
"Awesome, awesome people to be around," Posluszny said. "Awesome mission that we're a part of, especially now with everything going on from a geopolitical landscape. Great people, and what the company is dedicated to is what drew me to them."
PAUL POSLUSZNY: UP CLOSE
- Twice named a two-time First All-American (consensus in 2005) while becoming one of only two two-time winners of the Bednarik Award as the best defender in the nation (2005, 06).
- Won the Butkus Award in 2005 as the best linebacker in the nation and finished his career with 372 tackles, 35 tackles for loss, nine sacks, two interceptions and three forced fumbles.
- Named a 2006 NFF National Scholar-Athlete and the only defensive player to ever win National Defensive Player of the Year and CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year honors in the same season.
- Played for College Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Paterno.
- Becomes the 20th Nittany Lion player to enter the College Football Hall of Fame.
