Penn State’s McGloin rewarded

SPRINGDALE — Matt McGloin admitted he never considered transferring from Penn State following the child sexual abuse scandal that put the future of one of college football’s most storied programs in jeopardy.

Only a few years earlier, McGloin was given the opportunity by the late Joe Paterno to walk on at Penn State and start at quarterback. The idea of leaving the Nittany Lions and transferring to another school before the start of his senior season didn’t feel right, even if he had a free pass to go.

“Everything that happened, you wanted to stick. You wanted to fight it out,” McGloin said. “When the sanctions came out, it’s about [whether] you were able to dig deep and find what kind of person you are, what kind of character you have.”

McGloin was rewarded Monday for his decision to stay at Penn State. He beat out Michigan safety Jordan Kovacs and San Jose State offensive tackle David Quessenberry to win the Burlsworth Trophy during a ceremony at the Northwest Arkansas Convention Center.

The award is given annually to the nation’s most outstanding college football player who began his career as a walk-on. The trophy is named after former Arkansas offensive lineman Brandon Burlsworth, who walked onto the Razorbacks in 1994 and died in a car accident 11 days after being selected in the 1999 NFL Draft.

“I’ve always felt I had the ability to play at a Division I [FBS] level, so Penn State gave me the opportunity to be a preferred walk-on,” Mc-Gloin said. “I took it, and I ran with it.”

Meanwhile, former Tulane safety Devon Walker received the Burlsworth Courage Award after the former walk-on suffered a severe spine injury in a game at Tulsa on Sept. 8. He was unable to attend Monday’s trophy ceremony.

McGloin helped lead the Nittany Lions to a surprising 8-4 finish after opening this season with two losses to Ohio and Virginia. He led the Big Ten Conference in passing with 3,271 yards and 24 touchdowns, and he’ll leave Penn State as the school’s all-time leader in passing touchdowns with 46.

More importantly, McGloin served as a vocal senior leader who helped the Nittany Lions remain unified following Paterno’s death and the Jerry Sandusky child abuse scandal that rocked the school.

“He’s a competitor. Every day he’s striving to be the best he can be - the best quarterback, best teammate, best player,” said Penn State graduate assistant Bartley Webb, who was a highly recruited offensive lineman on Springdale High’s 2005 state championship team. “I don’t want to say he demanded respect, but he earned respect.

“And in return, he gained respect from the coaching staff, from his teammates and opponents even.”

Kovacs joked that Monday wasn’t the first time he met McGloin. The Michigan safety said he faced the Penn State quarterback in one of his first games as a starter in 2010, but it wasn’t a memorable experience as the Wolverines lost 41-31.

“We’re all thinking on the defense, ‘Ah, some walk-ons playing quarterback for Penn State. OK, whatever,” Kovacs said, laughing. “He torched us. He threw for a few hundred yards, and he got the best of us.”

McGloin said he didn’t receive a single scholarship offer from a big-time college despite throwing for 5,485 yards and 58 touchdowns during his career at West Scranton (Penn.) High. The only coaches who expressed interest in signing him were from smaller Football Championship Subdivision and NCAA Division II schools.

But McGloin’s decision to walk on at Penn State paid off.

“To be considered one of the top quarterbacks in Penn State history, in the record books, it’s something I’m proud of and it’s a true honor,” McGloin said. “I’m very blessed.”