Former Penn State players celebrate team's return to prominence

LOS ANGELES - As Michael Mauti looked out on thousands of Penn State fans packed into a courtyard outside the Staples Center, he couldn't help but think back to his senior year.

The New Orleans Saints linebacker and former Nittany Lions All-American served as the final special guest at the university's Sunday afternoon pep rally at L.A. Live. Penn State is set to take on Southern Cal. in the Rose Bowl on Monday.

"It is amazing to see how far this whole Penn State nation has come in the past four years," Mauti said. "It is hard to believe that four years ago we stood outside the Lasch Building . . ."

Mauti referenced the first public comment by Penn State players in July 2012, after the the NCAA handed Penn State harsh sanctions for the Jerry Sandusky child sex-abuse scandal, sanctions some speculated would irreparably damage the program.

"This program was not built by one man and this program sure as hell isn't going to get torn down by one man," Mauti said back in 2012. "This program was built on every alumni, every player who came before us. This was built on their backs."

In Los Angeles on Saturday, Mauti paid it forward, thanking the current senior class for sticking with the program after many in his 2012 class did the same.

Former Penn State All-American running back Ki-Jana Carter, who had a game-opening 83-yard touchdown in the 1995 Rose Bowl, also praised the team's upperclassmen.

"Those seniors, they stuck with our program, they sacrificed plenty for the benefit of our program," Carter said. "I am in debt to them."

Carter also lauded Big Ten coach of the year James Franklin, who led the Lions to a 10-2 regular season after going 7-5 in that same span last year.

Franklin, who also made a brief appearance, was in awe of the fan support he has seen this week in southern California, with Sunday's pep rally being no exception. Surrounded by several players, the third-year coach was light-hearted, even cracking jokes about the team's tendency to get down in the first half.

"I got a secret for you, the game plan that we've been working on - this needs to just stay between us," Franklin said. "We're going to use the second-half gameplan in the first half."

Amid the jokes and the blue-and-white fanfare, the singing of "Sweet Caroline" and the many "We Are," it was clear that former and current players and staff feel this game has a greater significance after not only this season's early challenges but also the struggles of past seasons.

A few years ago, "people were trying to tear this program down and people were trying to tell us what we stood for," Mauti said. "We've said 'Enough is enough.' "