Last season it was putting the names of the players on the back of the jerseys at Penn State for the first time, a nod to those that stuck by the program in a rough time, now this year.... Oh oh, another change in the works? 

It could well be as these are the replica jerseys on sale: 

It appears as if the former biggest change on the face of the planet of PSU football - the white collar - could be gone, replaced with a collar of the same color and the Nittany Lion logo at the apex of the collar as well. 

Should this be what the jerseys look like, well.... if you aren't a PSU fan, just sit back and enjoy the collective freak out in all its glory. There truly is never a dull moment in Happy Valley.

Penn State basketball was supposed to have a chance in 2013-14, a chance to be a challenger for an upper division finish in the Big Ten. Well, that assumption took a massive hit on Wednesday as star guard Jermaine Marshall announced he is forgoing his senior season and instead will take his talents into the professional ranks. 

It just won't be the NBA, as he missed the deadline to declare early for the NBA Draft in June.

The Nittany Lions' will lose their 2nd leading scorer from last season (13.5ppg average) from what could've been the best trio of guards in the Big Ten. Life will go on and PSU will now look to the duo of Tim Frazier (returning from injury that cost all but 4 games) and D.J. Newbill (16.3ppg) to take this program to new heights.

So, why make the decision Marshall did? According to the statement released Marshall sited making the best decision for his son and family as to why he is turning pro. 

“I would like to thank my teammates, coaches and basketball staff as well as the faculty and fans of Penn State,” Marshall said via statement. “I truly enjoyed my four years at the University and learned a great deal from all of them. This is a difficult decision, but I want to provide for my son and feel the best decision for me and my family is to graduate and enter the professional world this summer.”

Can't really fault a guy for attempting to make life better for his family, especially since Marshall will graduate in June anyway. 

Going pro and getting a degree don't often go hand in hand these days. Good luck Jermaine, Penn State will miss you dearly on the court this coming season to say the least.

It's no wonder why some people think the likes of ESPN or Sports Illustrated have an agenda when it comes to certain stories. Whether it's taking down Syracuse (ESPN) or Penn State (both) there has been a perceived bias. Well, yesterday SI hinted a blockbuster, scathing report that would break things wide open in State College, PA. 

Too bad when the actual article came out on Wednesday morning all it actually did was confirm everyone's suspicions that SI has it out for Penn State. Harsh words, we know, but it's also the honest truth. 

SI decided to run a hit piece on AD Dave Joyner and football head coach Bill O'Brien,  but did so by forgetting to do something most should be learning in Journalism 101 across America - sticking to the facts. 

Instead, the piece SI put out on the article itself decided to omit THE TRUTH from the story nearly entirely and relied on conjecture and anonymous sourcing to try and piece together some grand conspiracy that Joyner, O'Brien, and PSU are putting players safety at risk all in the name of settling some score for Joyner and cutting budget costs. 

It may feel a bit like "Penn State Day" here at The B1G Time, but that's what happens when major news breaks and in University Park, PA news is breaking fast and furious today. At least this bit of news is good news though as the NCAA announced that now redshirt senior Tim Frazier was granted his sixth year of eligibility and will be able to play this upcoming season. 

"Tim has shown tremendous will, perseverance and leadership as he continues his rehabilitation from a very tough injury," Penn State coach Patrick Chambers said in a release from the university. "He is doing very well. We are thrilled for him that he will have the opportunity to finish his career strong and again place himself among the top players in the nation."

This isn't a move that should shock any of us at all, after all he did tear his Achilles tendon just four games into this past season and all. What it does mean is that Penn State is likely to be a scoring machine this upcoming season thanks to returning the top three scorers in the Big Ten. 

There's been a lot of shocking news and controversy over the past 18 months or so surrounding the Penn State football program, but it's all been stuff off the field. Well, welcome to controversy on the field as sophomore quarterback Steven Bench will be transferring from Penn State. It's interesting because most expected Bench to be the starting QB after his performance in spring ball. 

So, why the transfer? Well, let's let the words of head coach Bill O'Brien tell us, shall we? 

"I have been meeting with all the players this week with my evaluation of where they are at related to football and academics and to discuss what they need to work on this summer," O'Brien said through a Penn State press release. "After meeting with Steven, he informed me he wants to play elsewhere. We want what is best for Steven. I want to thank him for his contributions to the program. We wish Steven the best in the future and will assist him anyway we can."

So, it appears that Bench was either unhappy or saw the writing on the wall with highly-touted freshman Christian Hackenberg coming onto campus this fall and junior college transfer Tyler Ferguson battling him to a near draw out of the spring. 

What's really interesting to us is the fact that we spoke with Kevin McGuire of The Nittany Lions Den just this morning and he made it clear that he thought Bench would start the season as the starting QB. He did also note that it would be an open battle through fall camp, but still, it is interesting that a competitor wouldn't want to continue to fight to gain the top spot and just decided to transfer out of the blue like this. 

Perhaps he has some other reasons to make the transfer, but it was perhaps a shrewed move on his part if he was truly uncomfortable as players have until the end of this summer to transfer without penalty of losing a season thanks to the sanctions on the Nittany Lions. So, perhaps he is thinking ahead and outsmarting the system a bit? 

We continue our look into what took place at all 12 spring football camps across the Big Ten landscape and up next are the Nittany Lions of Penn State. 

No doubt this is a team that will be rebuilding after going 8-4 in their first year of their well-documented probation and postseason ban. Lots of questions existed at positions like quarterback, running back, and linebacker - only positions that PSU has historically been known for and all.

So, what happened in Bill O'Brien's second spring in Happy Valley?

To find out we spoke with Kevin McGuire of The Nittany Lions Den. He was in attendance this past weekend at their spring game and was hooked into the program all spring long. Here is what he had to say following the close of spring ball and the beginning of a new era under Bill O'Brien. 

Penn State in 2012-13 could easily be the poster child for how individual talent can take you only so far in the game of basketball and in the world of Big Ten basketball as they placed two scorers in the top 6 of the Big Ten scoring rankings, but managed to win only two games in Big Ten play. 

The Big Ten season was interesting as they lost 14 straight games to open conference play, yet were not nearly as bad as that record indicated. PSU lost a lot of close games and were also blown out in a lot as well, but as the season grinded on you got the feeling it was only a matter of time before they broke through. 

Well, a big time breakthrough came in the late games against Michigan as they nearly won in Ann Arbor and took out the Top 5 ranked Wolverines at home - as the Bryce Jordan Center is quickly becoming a place a lot of the Big Ten hates to play. If it weren't for a buzzer beater by Traevon Jackson the Nittany Lions would've held two wins over top half programs. 

Either way things are amazingly looking up moving forward, but 2012-13 is riddled with "what might've been" moments.

We all know that Penn State can't play in a postseason game until after the 2016 season, unless by some miracle Mark Emmert and the NCAA reduce their sanctions, of course. However, apparently that isn't stopping them from looking into making a game special for the players and fans of the Nittany Lions. 

According to Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.com, Penn State is seriously looking into playing a game in Ireland. Yes, you are seeing that correctly, the Nittany Lions are looking seriously at trying to find a game to play on the Emerald Isle. 

If they can find an opponent and get it set up for either 2014 or 2015 then this could be an ingenious way to help market the program further and reward those players who are on the team, knowing they most likely won't play in a bowl game for the majority of their careers at PSU. 

The strong interest was confirmed by O'Brien following a Maxwell Club function, where he said they were being "aggressive" about approaching a game in Ireland. 

Protecting your family, believing they can do no wrong - we all get it, it's part of being a good family member.... a good son, daughter, father, or mother. We don't want to believe the bad things people may say or see our family members doing. That's a natural reaction, but there's that and then there's what Jay Paterno tweeted out (and quickly deleted) earlier today.

(h/t to our friends at Awful Announcing for saving this one)

Wow. RT @jaypaterno: Now that Pope Benedict is free the NCAA could use an infallible leader...oh that's right they have one already.

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 28, 2013

Thankfully the power of the interwebs was able to get that tweet up to be held in perpetuity.

But, seriously dude, what the hell is wrong with you? Leave a sleeping dog lie already. 

Every time this guy opens his mouth something ridiculously stupid comes out of it and now apparently every time this guy moves his fingers something completely asinine comes of it too. 

On Sunday the family of Joe Paterno released the findings of an investigation into the investigation that led to the Freeh Report. In the least shocking set of events ever Team Paterno questions everything from start to finish in the Freeh Report including it's conclusions, methodology, investigative abilities, and the Pièce de résistance - the independence of the Freeh Report. 

Regardless of your feelings on the Freeh Report's conclusions, surely you can't argue with it's independence? Seriously, the Paterno family report has the audacity to call an investigation commissioned by a board of trustee's that was less than, oh I don't know, all on board with everything in this process "less than independent." But that's just the tip of the iceberg in the insulting nature of this report.

Instead we are told by the Paterno report that it's the true independent report. 

Do you really expect us to believe on it's face that a report who's sole goal is to clear the name of Joe Paterno as "independent?"

Yes, I'm aware that the attorney's were allegedly given this directive: "The Paternos gave us a direct mandate to set the record straight and find the truth as to Joe Paterno's conduct, whether positive or negative," Sollers (a Paterno family attorney) said.

I'm sorry, call me crazy but the mound of evidence of the actions of the Paterno family since all of this began tell me their motives aren't the truth - they are about clearing the name of Joe Paterno at any cost and that is all.