Joe Battista
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March Madness Indeed
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There is big news in Happy Valley sports these days and, no, I’m not talking about the new Beaver Stadium field naming rights. I’ll save that for another day. I’m also not just talking about the continued dominance of the No. 1 ranked Penn State wrestling program under head coach Cael Sanderson and his staff.…
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Coach Paterno Changed My Life
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“What is a coach? We are teachers. Educators. We have the same obligations as all teachers, except we probably have more influence than anybody but their families. And, in a lot of cases, more than their families.” – Coach Joe Paterno For those of you that know me, or have occasionally read one of my…
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The Ties that Bind Us
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“The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.” — Eleanor Roosevelt Relationships matter. What we do with and for others is the stuff of life. It is often the difference between those just living, and those who…
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It’s a Winter Wonderland in SC — Both of Them
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Hey, State College, we’re back! Well, sort of. We recently made the trek north from the other SC (Sun City, South Carolina) up to Penn State, primarily for the annual Hockey Alumni Weekend at Pegula Ice Arena. I’d love to tell you we were escaping the record cold and snowfall that hit South Carolina –…
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Now What Do I Do?
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It’s been a tough few days in my sports world, folks. Last Thursday, with our Penn State flag proudly flying outside our home, our Nittany Lions lost a heartbreaker against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the semifinals of the College Football Playoff (CFP) at the Orange Bowl in Miami. On Saturday, with our Pittsburgh…
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Just One Thing…
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Happy New Year, y’all! This year I’m going to…Thrive in ’25! Survive in ‘25. Stay alive in ’25! Prioritize in ‘25. Be wise in ’25. Strive in ‘25. Be surprised in ’25! Yup, it’s that time of the year. Tradition and conventional wisdom tell us to make our New Year’s resolution list by Dec. 31. But…
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Finding the Joy
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How often do you hear people’s well-meaning advice to “just do what makes you happy”? Or do they say, “Do what makes you joyful”? Perhaps we need to be sure we are aiming at the same goal. I decided to research “What’s the difference between happiness and joy?” After reviewing several sources on podcasts, websites…
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The Gutsy Calls That Could Change Everything
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Could Penn State football’s future under coach James Franklin be forever changed after one of the riskiest fake punts in program history in the 26-25 nail-biter victory at Minnesota on Nov. 23? I believe that gutsy call at that critical moment (3:38 remaining) and then passing on a fourth and 1 with just :27 left,…
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In Support of the ‘Good Doers’
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I thought it would be worth stirring the pot a little by giving a shoutout to a very special group of people who I will simply call “The Doers.” You know, people who just plain get things done. They may not be the most popular all the time, and in fact, they may be outright…
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Praying for Our Nation(s)
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“…that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” – Abraham Lincoln, November 19, 1863, Gettysburg Well, Nittany Nation, I hope the hangover from the latest gridiron disappointment against Ohio State has started…