Robert Bolden connected to Two World Wars!

Robert Bolden is the first freshman QB to start the season in 100 years. Here's a couple of related stories.

E.E. "Shorty" Miller started at Quarteback for PSU as a freshman in 1910 and lettered in1911, 12, and 13.  (He established a PSU single-game rushing record that held up for more than three-quarters of a century until Curt Warner rushed for a couple hundred yards against Syracuse in the 1980's.)  Shorty's picture hung on the wall at the Tavern Restaurant in State College for more years than I can remember.  Then, one day, his picture was missing, and replaced by a picture of a local lawyer who also was a Penn State football Player. 

I mentioned the missing photo to the management, and they were kind enough to have a the photo replicated, framed, and inscribed, and presented to me as a gift!   It now hangs in our Penn State Downstairs Bar. If I could figure out how to Insert a picture using the Media & Assets thing on this website, I would publish it. But that is another story. The url for the picture is http://picasaweb.google.com/114984209594396217193/ShortyMiller#5513171144050782882

At the time, the Tavern had a retired PSU employee working as bartender named Lou, who trained most of the bartenders who worked at the Adam's Apple at the Tavern during the 80's and 90's.  When I asked about the missing Shorty Miller photo, Lou informed me that Shorty Miller had been his High School Principal in Harrisburg.   

I thought that this was ironic, so I pass it on, but a better story is one about Lou and the Tavern... 

Pat Dougherty, (a nephew of Duffy from MSU coaching fame) owns the Tavern and makes it a point to take a few of his employees on relatively fancy vacations as a reward for doing good work.  He told a story about taking Lou and a few students to Italy.

They flew into Philadelphia from State College, and Lou informed Pat that he had been on 17 previous airplane flights, but this was the first time he landed on the ground in an airplane!  Lou was trained as a paratrooper in WW2, and never had the opportunity to land in a plane. He jumped out of 16 training flights, took a ship to England, and one last flight jumping into Europe on D-Day!  Lou enjoyed the landing and the trip to Italy.

The Big Ten Network reported that Robert Bolden was the first freshman to start for a PSU opening game since Shorty Miller.  Here's hoping that folks are talking about Bolden a hundred years from now.

Time to Get Taped Up, Where's My pipe?

For The Glory, Roll over the Tide!

Joe from Boalsburg