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Today’s edition of “days until” marks just 59 days and we celebrate that by heading to Chocolatetown, U.S.A. and remembering former Penn State offensive lineman Andrew Nelson.
Nelson, a three-star recruit from Hershey, Pa., chose the Nittany Lions over Pitt, Maryland and Northwestern among others.
He saw the field relatively quickly and in doing so had quick success, earning second-team freshman All-American honors by Athlon Sports and Scout as a redshirt freshman in 2014. He was also Big Ten All-Freshman selection from BTN.com, ESPN.com and 247Sports.
Unfortunately for Nelson, a slew of knee injuries derailed the big man’s career a bit. He played in just nine games in 2015, six in 2016 and five in 2017. Nelson showed he was capable of playing either tackle position and when healthy was a particularly strong presence at right tackle.
As a senior in 2017, he shared the Ridge Riley Memorial Award at the annual team banquet, sharing the award which represents “sportsmanship, scholarship, leadership and friendship” with Troy Apke.
Nelson currently serves as graduate assistant in the strength and conditioning department for Eastern Tennessee State University.