Penn State has compiled a 40-11 record and a 3-1 bowl mark the past four seasons en route to capturing two Big Ten Conference championships. Coach Joe Paterno, 82, is entering his 44th season as the coach and his 60th season on the staff. He had hip replacement surgery in the offseason and received a three-year contract extension. Ten starters return from last year's 11-2 team that was embarrassed by Southern California in the Rose Bowl, along with nine other players who have made starts during their careers. In addition to Paterno, there will be plenty of story lines to follow when preseason practice opens tomorrow.

Lydell Sargeant, Tony Davis, Mark Rubin and Anthony Scirrotto had a combined 117 career starts. They surrendered only six touchdown passes all season until getting torched for four in the Rose Bowl by Southern California. All four are gone now, leaving this area as Penn State's biggest weak spot. Senior cornerback A.J. Wallace, who has made six career starts, is the top returnee, but he must straighten out his academic problems. Redshirt sophomore safety Drew Astorino started three games a year ago and fifth-year senior cornerback Knowledge Timmons is challenging for a starting job. Darrell Givens, a 2009 recruit who was rated the country's sixth-best cornerback, was denied admission to the school and released from his letter of intent.

Coach: Joe Paterno (383-127-3 career)
2008 Record: 11-2
Season opener: Sept. 5, vs. Akron.

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Three of the most productive receivers in school history are gone from an offense that averaged 448.9 yards and 38.9 points last season. Vying to replace wideouts Deon Butler, Derrick Williams and Jordan Norwood are four players who caught just 29 passes between them in 2008. Redshirt junior Brett Brackett, a former quarterback, is a big target at 6-foot-6. He had 13 catches and one touchdown a year ago. Redshirt junior Graham Zug, a former walk-on, had 11 catches and two scores in 2008. Redshirt sophomore speedster Chaz Powell is expected to fill Williams' role as a Slash-type player. Derek Moye, a 6-5 redshirt sophomore from Rochester High School, also is expected to see playing time in the new receiver rotation.

With A.Q. Shipley, Rich Ohrnberger and Gerald Cagodan gone, the Lions must replace three All-Big Ten first-team starters up front. Junior Stefen Wisniewski from Central Catholic has moved from guard to center to replace Shipley, a Steelers' draft pick who won the Rimington Trophy last year as the nation's top player at the position. Fifth-year senior right tackle Dennis Landolt is the only other experienced returnee. Landolt is a two-year starter and Wisniewski made 12 starts last season. Wisniewski, whose father, Leo, and uncle, Steve, both played for Paterno, was named a second-team preseason All-American by The Sporting News. New starters figure to include redshirt junior guard Lou Eliades, redshirt sophomore guard Johnnie Troutman and sophomore left tackle DeOn'tae Pannell.

Sean Lee, the fifth-year senior co-captain from Upper St. Clair, has been counting down the days until practice begins. He sat out last season and has not participated in full contact drills since tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during a scrimmage in April 2008. Paterno recently said that Lee reminds him of Jack Ham, the one-time Penn State star and former Steelers' Hall of Fame linebacker who serves as a color analyst on the Lions' radio broadcasts. Lee started 26 consecutive games in 2006 and '07, where he finished second in the Big Ten in tackles with 138 and was named defensive MVP of the Alamo Bowl. He and redshirt junior Navorro Bowman will comprise one of the best linebacker duos in the country.

Senior quarterback and co-captain Daryll Clark will be one of the key figures in Penn State's offense in the early going, along with redshirt junior tailback Evan Royster. Clark, a first-team All-Big Ten pick last year, will need to exhibit plenty of patience until his young receivers develop and his inexperienced offensive line meshes. Clark's 2,592 passing yards a year rank third in school history. He accounted for a single-season record 29 touchdowns (19 passing, 10 running) in his first season as a starter. He also threw for a career-high 341 yards against Michigan State in the regular-season finale as the Lions earned a share of the Big Ten title and sewed up their first Rose Bowl bid since the 1994 season.