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Penn State Football Signals Return To Campus With Michael Jordan-Esque Statement

In the legendary words of Michael Jordan, we’re back.

Penn State football welcomed 75 student-athletes back to campus Monday morning and officially recognized the occasion by issuing a somewhat-satirical press release reminiscent of Jordan’s (first) return to the NBA.

“The following statement was released today by Penn State Football in response to the phased return of student-athletes to The Pennsylvania State University campus,” the team wrote. “We’re back.”

The Nittany Lions’ statement included a variety of nods to Jordan’s infamous PR stunt, including listing head coach James Franklin as a media contact and replacing the “- 30 -” at the bottom with a classic “- WE ARE -“.

Jordan issued the original statement in March 1995 following a brief 18-month sabbatical from basketball. Facing a league-wide MLB strike and armed with a fax machine, the Hall of Famer published the letter, and the rest was history.

After paying homage to Jordan’s iconic fax, you’ve got to wonder if Penn State football has a few tricks up its sleeve. A few months after his return, Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to yet another three-peat. Could a string of national titles be in the cards for the Nittany Lions? Well, only time will tell.

Clever tweets aside, Penn State will gradually return more and more student-athletes from additional teams to campus in the coming weeks as part of a phased return to normalcy. They’ll be tested and quarantined upon their return. Those cleared will participate in voluntary, small-group workouts while following public health guidelines.

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About the Author

Matt DiSanto

Matt proudly served as Onward State’s managing editor for two years until graduating from Penn State in May 2022. Now, he’s off in the real world doing real things. Send him an email (mattdisanto86@gmail.com) or follow him on Twitter (@mattdisanto_) to stay in touch.

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