web1_vb_practice3_faa.jpg

Coughlins volleyball team reaping benefits of hard work

H.S. Golf: WVC Team Playoffs are tough to call

<p>Mike Gesicki made the catch at the sideline. There was no one between him and the end zone.</p><p>Then, as the Penn State tight end was about to cross the goal line for his first career touchdown, well, he doesn&#8217;t remember exactly what happened.</p><p>&#8220;To be completely honest, I kind of like blacked out running into the end zone,&#8221; Gesicki said with a grin as he recalled the decisive score in the Nittany Lions&#8217; 20-14 win over Army on Saturday. &#8220;I just remember looking up and thanking God for that opportunity.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s definitely been a long road. Ups and downs. Just happy to get that win.&#8221;</p><p>And, sure, happy to get that first collegiate touchdown. On his 20th birthday, no less.</p><p>&#8220;Couldn&#8217;t have asked for a better gift,&#8221; Gesicki said. &#8220;It was pretty surreal.&#8221;</p><p>Though the talented sophomore had carved out a starting role at tight end for himself in training camp, he didn&#8217;t have much to show for it through the first four weeks of the season.</p><p>It was one thing for his numbers to be modest &#8212; six catches for just 31 yards in September. After all, Penn State had been relying on the run game and Gesicki was focused primarily on improving his blocking, something he was rarely asked to do in high school or as a freshman for the Lions.</p><p>But for the first time in a life filled with impressive athletic accomplishments across several sports, Gesicki had to overcome some self-doubt. Especially after the home opener last month.</p><p>Gesicki missed two potential touchdowns against Buffalo. One pass clanged off of his hands at the sideline. Another initially looked to be on the money on third down near the goal line, but Gesicki didn&#8217;t have it fully secured as he turned to drive for the score. It went down as another drop.</p><p>Upset with himself as he went back to the sideline, he was late to get back out on the field for the ensuing field goal try on fourth down.</p><p>&#8220;I saw him right after the game,&#8221; Lions coach James Franklin said. &#8220;And the first thing he says to me is, &#8216;I&#8217;ll bounce back.&#8217; I told him to enjoy the win and I know you&#8217;re going to bounce back.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I definitely never experienced anything like that,&#8221; said Gesicki, who starred in football, basketball and volleyball at Manahawkin High School in New Jersey. &#8220;I think I had to have some downs like that, just to have a situation that I had to bounce back from.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;ve never really struggled like that before. So to experience that, I think was kind of a wake-up call for myself. And it was something I was using as a positive and to try to get better.&#8221;</p><p>On Saturday against Army, the 6-foot-6 Gesicki looked a lot like former teammate Jesse James, hanging around the line of scrimmage after the snap like a blocker before turning on the jets and bursting wide open down the left sideline.</p><p>Hauling it in at the Army 13, he beat a defensive back to the corner of the end zone. He looked to the sky and raised both arms as his wait ended, getting that first score in his 17th career game.</p><p>It went for 33 yards, more than doubling his yardage total from the first month of the season.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m not going to be satisfied with this just because I finally got in the end zone,&#8221; Gesicki said. &#8220;That&#8217;s not going to change my mentality or how I&#8217;m going to handle things from here.&#8221;</p><p><strong>Up next</strong></p><p>The Lions resume Big Ten play Saturday against the team that nearly shocked the nation this weekend.</p><p>Indiana drove to the 9-yard line in the final seconds before falling just short of dethroning college football king Ohio State, losing 34-27 in Bloomington.</p><p>It was the first loss of the season for the Hoosiers, who had been off to their first 4-0 start in 25 years.</p><p>Indiana actually led the defending national champs 10-6 at halftime. And despite a second-half explosion by Ohio State tailback Ezekiel Elliott, the Hoosiers nearly caught the No. 1 Buckeyes at the end.</p><p>They did it down the stretch without starting quarterback Nate Sudfeld and starting running back Jordan Howard. Both are dealing with ankle injuries and missed most of the second half.</p><p>&#8220;They both tried to go,&#8221; Indiana coach Kevin Wilson said after the game when asked if they would be ready to face Penn State. &#8220;They&#8217;re good enough that they don&#8217;t have to practice. We&#8217;ll see.&#8221;</p><p>Kickoff for the Lions and Hoosiers will be noon at Beaver Stadium on Homecoming weekend with Penn State opening as an eight-point favorite. ESPN2 will carry the broadcast.</p><style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_gesicki-whew.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">After waiting 17 games to reach the end zone, Penn State tight end Mike Gesicki found some relief when he got there on Saturday against Army. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_gesicki-whew.jpg</photo0><caption0>After waiting 17 games to reach the end zone, Penn State tight end Mike Gesicki found some relief when he got there on Saturday against Army. </caption0><photoCredit0>Gene J. Puskar | AP photo </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_gesicki-TD.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Penn State tight end Mike Gesicki (88) beats Army defensive back Xavier Moss (9) to the end zone for what proved to be the game-winning touchdown on Saturday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_gesicki-TD.jpg</photo1><caption1>Penn State tight end Mike Gesicki (88) beats Army defensive back Xavier Moss (9) to the end zone for what proved to be the game-winning touchdown on Saturday. </caption1><photoCredit1>Gene J. Puskar | AP photo </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Penn State&#8217;s Gesicki celebrates with first TD</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Derek Levarse</p><p>dlevarse@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>VIDEO</strong></p><p>To see video of Mike Gesicki talk about his first career touchdown, visit the online version of this story at timesleader.com.</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Derek Levarse at 570-991-6396 or on Twitter @TLdlevarse</p></shirttailMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><videoMeta><p><table style="border:none;width:98%;" class="mceItemTable"><tbody><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoID:</td><td id="videoid" style="width:50em;font-size:90%;"> HppFuZQuhyQ</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoType:</td><td id="videotype" style="font-size:90%;"> YOUTUBE</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">URL:</td><td id="url" style="font-size:90%;"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HppFuZQuhyQ</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Embed String:</td><td id="videoembedstring" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Caption:</td><td id="videocaption" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Credit:</td><td id="videocredit" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Position:</td><td id="videoposition" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr></tbody></table></p><p style="margin-top:10px;font-size:70%;color:#555;">(use the &#8220;for files&#8230;&#8221; link above to associate attached files with this source)</p></videoMeta></div>

A birthday to remember for Penn State’s Mike Gesicki