When you close your eyes and think about Penn State football, one position comes to mind above all else. These are the players who set the standard for what it means to play linebacker in Happy Valley.
Penn State is LBU and it’s pretty much an undisputed title. The Nittany Lions have always had some much talent in the middle of the defense that two of the best NFL linebackers to ever come out of the program didn’t even play the position in college.
Matt Millen and Dave Robinson both played defensive line at Penn State before transitioning to linebacker in the NFL. Millen won four Super Bowls in the between the Raiders, 49ers, and Washington Football Team, and Robinson made the NFL Hall of Fame.
Both of those players add to the legend and legacy of LBU but didn’t make the list. Instead, we’ll start with a player whose own story started in State College, PA.
Penn State: 2006-09
NFL: 2010-13
Josh Hull was never named an All-American and was only a seventh-round NFL draft pick, but he absolutely defined LBU, as well as almost any other player in Penn State history. Hull grew up in State College Pennsylvania and played his high school football at Penns Valley High School.
He walked on to the Penn State football team and first got a chance to play in 2008 when starting outside linebacker Sean Lee tore his ACL. Hull stepped in and recorded 75 total tackles while playing alongside NaVorro Bowman.
He had a career-high nine tackles in the 2009 Rose Bowl, and in his final collegiate season recorded 116 tackles and 8.5 tackles for loss. Hull could have played elsewhere, but was determined to play for his hometown Nittany Lions. That dedication deserves mention on this list.
Penn State: 2006-09
NFL: 2010-17
When Bowman first arrived at Penn State in 2006, he got to learn from a few LBU greats Paul Posluszny, Dan Connor, and Sean Lee. That also meant he redshirted as a freshman and barely saw the field in Year 2.
By Year 3 in Happy Valley, Posluszny, Connor, and Lee were all in the NFL and Bowman was ready for a bigger role. He immediately picked up right where they left off, recording 106 total tackles with four sacks, two forced fumbles, and an interception in 2008.
In 2009, as a junior, Bowman switched to No. 11 to join St1x C1ty, the lineage of great Penn State linebackers to don that jersey number.
Penn State: 2005-09
NFL: 2010-20
There were plenty of incredible linebackers at Penn State in the early 2000s, so even a player as great as Sean Lee gets lost in the shuffle. Still, Lee had an incredible career in Happy Valley. He never once led the team in tackles despite registering 89 in 2006, 138 in 2007, and 86 in 2009.
Like many of Penn State’s great linebackers, Lee was a product of western Pennsylvania, playing his high school football at Upper St. Clair in the south hills of Pittsburgh. Local ties are another defining factor of LBU.
Lee missed the 2008 season because of a torn ACL, and injuries would be the story of his career in the NFL. Yet, when he was healthy and on the field, there may not have been a linebacker better.
Penn State: 2004-07
NFL: 2008-13
Though Connor may not have been oozing athletic talent like many of his great teammates at the linebacker position, he was Mr. Consistent in the middle of the Penn State defense and an excellent player in his own right. In 2006 Connor and teammate Paul Posluszny both recorded over 100 tackles from the linebacker position, the first Penn State duo to ever accomplish that feat in the same season, and were both named first-team All-Americans.
The next year with Posluszny off to the NFL, Connor amassed a staggering 145 tackles and won the Chuck Bednarik Award as the nation’s best defensive player, continuing a three-year streak of Nittany Lions claiming that hardware.
Penn State: 2004-06
NFL: 2007-17
During the end of Joe Paterno’s run at Penn State, he rarely missed on a linebacker, but Posluszny was the best of this era. At his peak in 2005-06, he was the back-to-back Chuck Bednarik Award winner as the best defensive player in the country and was a two-time consensus All-American.
He put together consecutive seasons with 116 total tackles for the Nittany Lions and in 2005, the Nittany Lions went 11-1 with an Orange Bowl win. Not a member of St1x C1ty, Posluszny wore No. 31 as an homage to Shane Conlan and Andre Collins.
Penn State: 2018-19
NFL: 2021-current
Micah Parsons only played two seasons at Penn State but racked up a staggering 191 total tackles with six forced fumbles and 6.5 sacks. Parsons played primarily inside linebacker, but in the NFL transitioned to edge rusher for the Dallas Cowboys and was named Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Parsons was a part of two great teams in 2018 and 2019 but opted out of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season to prepare for the NFL. Though his career was relatively brief and didn’t garner the accolades or championships that other members of LBU have, you could easily argue that the Nittany Lions have never had a more talented player at the linebacker position.
Penn State: 1983-86
NFL: 1987-95
Conlan may not have been the best linebacker in Penn State history, but he is close, especially in the biggest moments. Conlan was an excellent player with 274 career tackles and in 1986 he was a first-team All-American. However, that’s not why he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014, the 1987 Fiesta Bowl is.
Penn State faced Miami in the Fiesta Bowl with the national championship on the line. Conlan made eight tackles and had two interceptions to lead his team to the win. The Nittany Lions were down 10-7 in the fourth when Conlan made his second interception and returned it 38 yards to the Miami five-yard line. D.J. Dozier closed out the game with a touchdown run and Conlan was immortalized as a Penn State legend.
Conlan was selected No. 8 overall in the 1987 NFL Draft and won the Defensive Rookie of the Year award for the Buffalo Bills.
Penn State: 1967-69
NFL: 1970
You could argue that Onkotz was the first founder of Linebacker U. He was a two-time All-American in 1968 and 1969 on back-to-back 11-0 teams that won the Orange Bowl and finished second in the country. He led the team in tackles in each of those seasons and had 11 interceptions in his career.
Onkotz is also a part of a long line of unconventional and multi-talented linebackers. He was not just the heart of Penn State’s defense, but was also the team’s punt returner. On 47 career punt returns he averaged 13.2 yards.
Penn State: 1968-70
NFL: 1971-82
Jack Ham is better known for his contributions to the Steel Curtain in Pittsburgh during his NFL career, but Ham was an excellent college football player as well. Ham was the last player chosen for a scholarship in 1967 and by 1970 was a consensus All-American.
Ham was inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame in 1990 for his contributions to some legendary Penn State teams. The Nittany Lions went 11-0, 11-0, and 7-3 in Ham’s three seasons. He never won a national championship, but went on to win four Super Bowls and is the only player in Penn State history to be inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Penn State: 1998-99
NFL: 2000-06
There is no player that comes to mind quicker when you think about Penn State football or Penn State linebackers than LaVar Arrington. He may not have started LBU, but he began St1x C1ty, and is the reason that NaVorro Bowman, Brandon Bell, Micah Parsons, and Abdul Carter have worn No. 11 for the Nittany Lions.
"You don't just get this number just because- you have to be a player." 😤
— Big Noon Kickoff (@BNKonFOX) October 21, 2023
No. 11 legends break down what it means to wear this historic number for @PennStateFball ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/3G7yv6dZxm
Arrington won the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year award as a sophomore in 1998 and was even better in 1999, winning the Bednarik Award as the best defensive player in the country. He was a two-time First-Team All-American and a College Football Hall of Fame inductee.