Sean Labar
Joined: Jul 24, 2023
Sports, particularly football, has been my biggest passion for as long as I can remember. While I only played during middle school (I'm 6-foot-6 but have always been on the skinnier side) so I thrived playing lacrosse and basketball. I grew up just outside of Washington DC and my grandpa Wally told me stories about the Redskins' glory days. The Hogs, Riggins and all of the success under Joe Gibbs in the 80's and 90's. Since age 8, I've never missed a single snap of a Washington football game. While I follow the Nationals, Capitals and Wizards -- my love for the Redskins/Commanders trumps them all. Unfortunately, I'm 35 and have witnessed more than two decades of mediocrity, dysfunction, constant drama and just four playoff appearances during the entire time Dan Snyder owned the team. Finally, the day many fans believed was impossible has come true -- and there's a palpable energy around this team's future under the new ownership group -- I've never experienced. I've known I wanted to work in sports media since my freshman year of high school -- and after graduating with a journalism degree from Towson -- I chased that dream and haven't looked back. I landed a season-long internship with the Washington Nationals publications department as my first gig out of college where I wrote and edited blogs/features for the team's blog and gameday magazine. From there, I landed my first full-time job covering Virginia Tech football for the biggest newspaper in the state. I never grew up with a favorite college football team -- but that job made me fall in love with the unique traditions, pageantry and for the first time, I began to spend my Saturdays watching every game possible. I eventually landed a job with Sports Illustrated covering the ACC as a whole (with an emphasis on the Hokies) and after a few years there, I accepted a national college writing position with ON3.I was tasked with writing 8-10 pieces per day about the biggest brands in college football, and began to follow Penn State particularly close. I loved James Franklin's authenticity and coaching style -- and the atmosphere inside of Beaver Stadium seemed absolutely electric. Lavar Arrington was one of my favorite players as a kid and as time went on, I realized I planned my weekends around Penn State football. From the dominance of Micah Parsons to watching Joey Porter Jr. emerge as one of the top defensive backs in the game, I was hooked. I developed a natural hate for Ohio State, and as Michigan began to rise, I noticed Franklin was building something special and was on the cusp of greatness. Heading into 2023, I believe this is the most talented roster Franklin has had since taking the job in State College. While I'll always follow the Commanders and remain a contributor for their fansided site Riggos Rag, now felt like the perfect time to take over as the site expert/editor for Victory Bell Rings. I'm thrilled to make the site a hub for Penn State die--hard fans with a mix of creative outside-the-box content, analysis, recruiting coverage, predictions, player features and content you won't find at any other Penn State site on the internet. I'm fired up and hold myself to a high standard. It's an exciting year for Penn State and I'm thrilled to cover this team in a unique way that engages fans on a daily basis.
