PSU Nittany Lions

NittanyNation takes a look at this week’s Penn State football news and what you might have missed:

• DE Jordan Kerner is trying not to look back after suffering a career-ending injury.

• Adam Breneman's high school coach talked about just what makes the tight end special and what PSU fans can look forward to from him.

• A look back at the top PSU sleepers since 2006. And the biggest misses since 2006.

• Video: The top recruits in the nation -- including Christian Hackenberg -- talked about some of their craziest recruiting pitches.

• In our bi-weekly chat, we talked about Penn State football and recruiting for more than an hour. We also talked Penn State recruiting on the Big Ten podcast.

• Rashaun Smith may just be a high school freshman, but he already has quite a few scholarship offers -- including one from Penn State. He was the subject for this week's "5 Questions."

• As part of an ongoing series, we took a closer look at five Penn State commitments this week -- including Richy Anderson, Curtis Cothran, DaeSean Hamilton, Parker Cothren and Brendan Mahon.

• Adam Rittenberg wrote that the Big Ten's bowl lineup will change next year and could have a dramatically different look.

• Jack Seymour had scholarship offers from Ball State and Western Michigan, but turned those down to become a preferred walk-on at Penn State.

• We took a look back at the Class of 2009 to see just how good it really was. Overall, it fell short of expectations -- but it still wasn't a bust.

• Bill O'Brien was in Beaver County earlier this week and spoke with four juniors in Aliquippa (Pa.). 2014 RB Shai McKenzie, also from western Pennsylvania, received an offer from Penn State.

• We took a look at team needs, key commits and key targets as part of a signing day primer.

• Preferred walk-on Von Walker spoke about his goals and commitment to PSU at length in a Q&A.

Jordan Kerner still remembers that chilly Wednesday afternoon last month when he was asked to stop by the training room.

He passed bare trees and other students on his short walk to the Lasch Football Building, a stroll free of introspection and concern. The rising redshirt sophomore assumed he'd simply receive an update about the bulging disc in his back. Maybe his condition improved; maybe he'd be able to play soon enough. He was feeling better.

The defensive end never imagined he was minutes away from hearing those four words every athlete dreads: Your career is over.

On this early December day, he simply stepped inside the building and headed to the agreed-upon meeting place. The tan-bricked football headquarters was empty, save for a few coaches and staff, but Kerner didn't feel nervous.

Upon arriving, a staff member motioned for him to take a seat. Bill O'Brien and team doctor Wayne Sebastianelli sat aside of him. Much of the medical staff was there. Athletic trainer Tim Bream was the first to speak.

He explained, softly and slowly, that this bulging disc -- a "pop" Kerner felt while rehabbing his torn ACL last year -- was on the verge of rupturing. If he played football, anytime and anywhere, he would almost certainly be putting his future at risk. He would require surgery; future health complications would inevitably result.

"It definitely came out of the blue. To find out you're never going to be able to play again," said Kerner, pausing slightly, "It's a crazy thought."

Kerner was in shock. He came in as a high-level three-star recruit in 2011, and he thought he could have a future on the gridiron. It couldn't end now. Not like this.

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