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Two Penn State wrestlers qualify for Olympic Trials; Theo Johnson accepts Senior Bowl invite: Newsstand

Greg Pickelby:Greg Pickel•12/18/23•

GregPickel

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Penn State wrestler Beau Bartlett. (Photo by Shane Bevel/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

Penn State news and notes for Dec. 18 include a wrestling update plus a nugget on Lions tight end Theo Johnson and more.

It’s time to dive into Monday’s top tweets and headlines about the Nittany Lions and college athletics.

Penn State tweets of the day

We start with wrestling. Two more Penn State wrestlers have qualified for next year’s US Olympic Team Trials. They did so by finishing inside the top five of their respective weight classes as Senior Nationals this past weekend in Texas. Nittany Lions Beau Bartlett was second at 65 kilograms. Alex Facundo was third at 74 kilograms. Alums Mark Hall, Nico Megaludis, and Max Dean also qualified.

“Twelve current or former Nittany Lion wrestlers or members of the Penn State Regional Olympic Training Center/NLWC took part in the event,” a Penn State news release says. “Wrestlers were looking to qualify for the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials, hosted by Penn State in the Bryce Jordan Center on April 19-20.”

In other news, Lions tight end Theo Johnson is headed to the Senior Bowl. That news came out over the weekend. The Penn State standout has already declared for the 2024 NFL Draft. But, he is playing in the Peach Bowl.

“I think that’s just kind of the culture that we’ve built here at Penn State,” Johnson said. “You finish the season. That’s kind of just something we’ve done, something we do. Obviously, other guys make different decisions and personal decisions, and that’s OK. But I think, the majority stake, that’s kind of our culture we do, and that’s something I told Coach Franklin I was going to do before the season even started [regardless of his NFL Draft decision.”

Headlines of the day

PSU QB Drew Allar ‘excited’ to play under new offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki: McGonigal, PennLive

PSU adds former Tulsa kicker Chase Meyer via transfer portal: Snyder, BWI

Did Penn State Land Another Defensive CEO in Tom Allen?: Wogenrich, SI

Transfer kicker Chase Meyer finds the right fit at Penn State: Fitz, BWI

Quote of the day

“I’m looking to come in and compete right away. They have two guys on their roster right now but I’m looking to come in and win the job right away. I think this is going to be big for me. This is going to be my first full offseason. So adding the muscle, adding the speed, adding the power. I’ve already talked about it with the Penn State strength staff, that’s something that I really want to focus on to bring my game to the next level.”

—Former Tulsa kicker and new PSU commit Chase Meyer.

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