Column: Standing Still Not the Choice for Nittany Lions' Suspended Spring

Two weeks ago, the question was a prudent one.

Meeting with strength and conditioning coordinator Dwight Galt at the conclusion of Penn State’s winter workouts, days away from spring break and nearing the start of spring practices, a reporter asked about the progress of the Nittany Lions’ 11 midsemester enrollees.

The likes of Cole Brevard, Nick Dawkins, Jaden Dottin, Caziah Holmes, Tyler Elsdon, Enzo Jennings, Joseph Johnson, Theo Johnson, KeAndre Lambert-Smith, Bryce Mostella, and Fatorma Mulbah represented a significant portion of a 27-member Class of 2020. Having started their careers early, given the opportunity to get a taste of college-level academic course loads and the rigors of athletic training leading into their first real practice sessions as Nittany Lions, Galt said they were off to a good start.

“So far, they've been great,” Galt said. “They're locked in. They're young. They're raw in some ways, mostly in physical movement more than the strength and the weight training. But (we're) really impressed.”

Galt’s assessment, while undoubtedly accurate and optimistic, is no longer particularly relevant at the moment.

The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically impacted the normalcy of life as we know it, meaning Penn State football, its players, and especially its Class of 2020, are all in the same boat with us. At the top of Penn State’s Athletics homepage, a red banner provided a March 16 update that “winter and spring sports seasons canceled” and the university’s “golf courses closed.” Formal spring practice, workouts, and football meetings are all on hold indefinitely.

All Penn State students were told not to return from spring break until at least April 3, leaving instruction to be conducted remotely effective Monday. So for at least one midsemester enrollee, this was the classroom view and “new normal” for the coming weeks and maybe even months.

However uncertain the immediate future might be, Penn State football provided a gentle reminder Monday night to itself and anyone else following along via social media worth thinking about in the longterm:

Football will return eventually.

And, maybe more important, the objectives that players and coaches have worked diligently to achieve to this point won’t go idle while this thing plays itself out.

Will Fries, already selected as an example by Galt for his outstanding work ethic and improvements made in the weight room this winter - "He's in his fifth year and has just done a tremendous job building his body up and getting himself in position to be an elite player" was a predictable example of life's continuation.

Penn State true freshman running back Caziah Holmes also got in on the act.

Having spent the most recent eight weeks grinding through winter workouts - the minimum for early enrollees but just a fragment of the much-larger puzzle for second-, third-, and fourth-year players - the coming days, weeks, and months will not represent a vacation. A roadblock and undeniable challenge to everyone’s “normal” day-to-day life, to fail to adjust while continuing to pursue goals is a recipe for a physical, mental, and emotional letdown.

An overlooked element of discussions about athletes, too often dismissed via stereotype as entitled or lazy, the reality at this level and above is that no one reaches this echelon on sheer talent alone. Motivated and backed by true work ethic, the aspirations for Saturdays in September, October, and November will continue to be built on the backbone of work that’s done now and in the days ahead, in whatever form that needs to take.

Whether through at-home workouts set up by Galt and his staff, done with any methods and means available, given the closures of most gyms, or individual training regimens created by Penn State’s assistants, a common refrain is likely to quickly emerge for the Nittany Lions and beyond in the college and professional sports landscape.

While actual competition has been stopped dead in its tracks for the remainder of the spring sports seasons at seemingly every level, the will to compete very much remains. The opponent is only ourselves and our willingness to push through the present challenges with an eye toward a future that, sooner or later, will eventually arrive.

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