By Jack Hirsh | Centre County Report
College basketball has its stars, and then it has the guys that keep their teams together.
‘Every team needs a glue guy,’ said Penn State guard Stephen Beattie. ‘That’s what you need. That’s kind of what I pride myself on.’
Beattie is a senior but this season will be his first and only on Penn State’s roster. He spent three years as a practice squad player before being added to the Division I roster this past October.
Beattie now plays his games at the Bryce Jordan Center, but things really got started for him just down the road at Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy in Boalsburg.
A more easygoing Beattie was the Wolves’ star, becoming Saint Joseph’s first 1,000-point scorer.
Rich Ciambotti, Beattie’s coach from seventh grade through high school, has seen a change in him.
‘He must have flipped a switch somewhere in the last couple years because he’s definitely got that serious tone about him now,’ Ciambotti said.
He still has fun on the court but he’s also now more focused on being a team player.
‘In my high school days, the plays were drawn up for me,’ Beattie said.
‘I watch him on the bench now for Penn State and he’s just going crazy every time one of those guys makes a great play,’ Ciambotti said. ‘So I see it as more of like he’s interested in seeing his teammates succeed, and that’s a big deal.’
When Beattie finally got a tryout for a roster spot, he knew he didn’t have to be a star player. His modesty was rewarded.
‘Coach [Patrick] Chambers told everyone in the circle, ‘For this year we’re going to bring in Stephen Beattie. He’s going to be a walk-on,” Beattie said. ‘Everyone went crazy.’
‘They mauled him; they tackled him. They put him on their shoulders. They were throwing him up and down,’ Chambers said. ‘You never saw a bigger smile on a kid to kind of realize his dream.’
But because of when he was awarded that spot, you won’t see him in pregame introductions. It doesn’t seem to bother Beattie.
‘Not so much, no,’ he said. ‘I know my role and everything. I have no problem with that. I know I was late.’
He may have been a late addition, but now he’s gotten the chance to take the court in front of his hometown fans.
This video is produced by and for Centre County Report and is shared through a partnership with StateCollege.com
