Introducing: Nittany Lions Kickoff 2011

I don't know if it's the fire in Mauti's eyes or the blood on his knee, but I absolutely love this cover.

It was another long spring full of working weekends and way past my normal bedtime, but I'm pleased to announce the third edition of Maple Street Press' Penn State preview magazine is due to hit bookshelves this July. You may notice on the cover we changed the name this year. The magazine formerly known as We Are Penn State now goes by Nittany Lions Kickoff 2011.

Just like past editions of WAPS, Nittany Lions Kickoff 2011 brings you unprecedented Penn State football coverage that you will not find anywhere else. Unlike other college football preview magazines where you get maybe one or two pages devoted to Penn State, Nittany Lions Kickoff 2011 gives you 128 pages of advertising-free coverage of nothing but Penn State football.

After the jump you can get a quick rundown of what you can expect to see in this year's edition.

• Complete Roster Breakdown - Like always, yours truly breaks down the roster to let you know what Penn State loses, what returns, and who's going to step into bigger roles this season. Let me tell ya, I was sweating bullets writing the quarterback piece in late April not knowing what the quarterback situation was going to look like in September, but I think we'll be okay.
• Detailed Opponent Previews - Matt Nimerosky (a.k.a. Rowlffdogg from JoePa'a Doghouse) breaks down each opponent on the schedule in unbelievably knowledgeable and entertaining fashion.
• Jeffrey Pearson provides a recap of the 2010 season, because we know you can't wait to relive all the excitement of that 7-6 season.
• Joe Marsh tells you which five players are poised to have breakout seasons.
• Jon Johnston from Corn Nation tells the story about how Nebraska came to join the Big Ten from the perspective of a Nebraska fan.
• Audrey Snyder, formerly of the Daily Collegian and now writing for MLB.com, gives you an upclose look at D'Anton Lynn who figures to be one of the leaders of the team this season. Between you and me, all of the articles are great, but this is one of my favorite articles in the publication.
• Joe Marsh pens another article explaining why Penn State is sure to improve on their 7-6 performance from last year.
• Kevin McGuire from the PSU Examiner and The Nittany Lions Den and probably another half-a-dozen publications I'm leaving out talks about the affect that social media is having on college football.
• Adam Bittner explains the new Big Ten and how the divisions and championship game are going to work. (This one's for you, casual Penn State fan who doesn't even know Nebraska is part of the conference now!)
• Dan Vecellio, formerly of Onward State, recaps the quarterback controversy of 2010 and talks about how the race may shake out this fall.
• Kevin McGuire offers up an article talking about Stephfon Green and Silas Redd and the running back by committee.
• Mike McGrew (a.k.a. J. Schnauzer of JoePa's Doghouse) explains oversigning and how some teams use it to gain an advantage.
• Ben Jones introduces you to the 2011 freshman class.
• Your humble blogger gives you a recruiting update for the class of 2012. Prognosis: Much better than the class of 2011 so far.
• A.J. Cassavell, formerly of the Daily Collegian and also now writing for MLB.com, gives you a close up look at defensive coordinator Tom Bradley who we nearly lost to teams looking for a head coach this winter. A.J. delivers the funniest quote of the magazine when Bradley responds to his request for an interview. Of course, I'm going to make you buy the magazine to see it.
• Eric Scaife (a.k.a. our own carolinaeasy) uses his unique football coaching experience to describe Alabama's zone blocking scheme and what Penn State needs to do to stop it better than they did in Tuscaloosa last season.
• Tim Aydin of Linebacker-U.comprovides a list of possible replacements for Joe Paterno. When he's ready to step down in 2021, of course.
• Chris Brown from Smart Football and the New York Times breaks down the zone blitz and how Penn State uses it. Really great stuff for you guys who love to talk x's and o's.
• As always, I love to include a few articles about Penn State history. This year Adam Bittner kicks it off by talking about the bad blood between Penn State and Nebraska from the 1982 and 1994 seasons.
• Then I contrast the Nebraska lovefest they got when they joined the Big Ten last summer with the way Penn State was treated back in 1989.
• Finally, as a tribute to the 25th anniversary of the 1986 National Championship, Joe Marsh brings that magical season back to life.

 As you can see, that is a tremendous amount of Penn State coverage. For just $10, you're not going to find a better deal out there. Whether you're a new fan or a Beaver Stadium veteran, there's something in this magazine for you.

Nittany Lions Kickoff 2011 can be found at your local book store, drug store, grocery store, or on newstands anywhere books are sold in the Pennsylvania area starting July 19th. Or, if you pre-order online at Maple Street Press you can get your copy in the mail a few weeks early starting June 27th. So go order your copy today!