There have been a few schools over the years who claim to be Linebacker U. Aside from Penn State, USC and Miami have all made claims for the title. Now, UCLA is getting in the mix. Seriously.

#linebackeru pic.twitter.com/psyVu1hswP

— UCLA Football (@UCLAFootball) June 17, 2013

According to Draft History, a tremendous resource for NFL draft history, UCLA has had 31 linebackers drafted since 1936. Miami has had 37. USC has had 54. Penn State has had 61.

UCLA has had four linebackers drafted since the 2000 NFL Draft. Penn State has had six linebackers drafted since 2010.

I like you UCLA, I really do. But find a new nickname because this one just does not fit.

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Before you go download the demo for NCAA Football 14, be sure to get caught up on some Penn State news and some info from around the Big Ten and beyond. Or go download now, read this, and then go play the demo (let us know what you think about the demo as well).

Safe to say Bill O'Brien has earned his pay in his first year on the job at Penn State. Now, as StateCollege.com makes note, O'Brien is due for a much-deserved raise. According to the terms of his contract, as relayed by Mike Poorman's story, O'Brien is set to see his contracted pay increase by five percent starting July 1. This is nothing new, as we had already known about O'Brien's contract terms since the day he was hired, but Poorman does bring up a good point. These contract terms could very well change at any time, if the coach and university happen to agree to new contract terms. It might be worth considering as O'Brien will remain a hot commodity in the coaching rumor mills in the next offseason if he continues to produce in the face of NCAA sanctions.

O'Brien has said he looks forward to coaching at Penn State and has done a marvelous job in moving the program forward in many respects, still whether or not he remains at Penn State through the end of his extended contract (as a result of NCAA sanctions) remains in doubt to many (myself included).

In other news, and perhaps without much of a shock factor, a number of former Penn State football players and coaches -- 325 to be slightly more precise -- are in support of the lawsuit filed by the Paterno family recently, which attempts to overturn the sanctions levied by the NCAA. The NCAA has already won a victory in the courts, with a lawsuit seeking similar overtures being thrown out by a federal judge.

If you missed it last week, Penn State will prohibit bags at football games this season. The policy will be the same as the one used for the Blue White Game this spring, which prohibits fans from bringing back packs, bags and purses in to Beaver Stadium. The policy announcement came a day after the NFL announced a league-wide policy doing the same. [GoPSUSports.com]

Public ticket sales for Penn State vs. Syracuse in MetLife Stadium begins today at 10 a.m. As you can see by the countdown on the site, over on the right side of your browser, there are just 75 days until the first kickoff. [GoPSUSports.com]

In basketball, Penn State's Pat Chambers continues to make a serious recruiting push in Philadelphia. [City of Basketball Love]

Campus Insiders recently touched briefly on incoming quarterback Christian Hackenberg (before spending more time on a featured interview discussing USC's incoming quarterback Max Browne]. [No 2-Minute Warning]

Michael O'Connor made his college choice before his senior year, adding potential depth to Penn State's quarterback position in 2014. Photo: IMG Academy (via Flickr)

If there is one thing that can be said about Bill O'Brien's recruiting skills, it is that he can attract solid quarterbacks. With Christian Hackenberg highlighting the Penn State Class of 2013 and JUCO-transfer Tyler Ferguson also joining the program, it may have been a slight surprise to see the Nittany Lions already line up a four-star quarterback for the Class of 2014 this weekend. Quarterback Michael O'Connor, from Bradenton, Florida's IMG Academy, offered his verbal commitment to Penn State to give Penn State a little more depth at a key position.

So, what is Penn State getting in O'Conner? [Lions 247]

Breaking down O'Conner [Fight On State ($)]

Penn State's quarterback depth is a logical concern for the 2013 season following the transfer of Steven Bench to South Florida. The competition for the starting job this season will be between Hackenberg and Ferguson, but neither have any division one experience of course and this could be a little bit of a work in progress this fall. O'Conner is saying he will be given a chance to compete right away once he arrives (he intends to enroll early ($) to be eligible for spring practices), although right now I would be surprised if he manages to beat out Hackenberg or Ferguson for 2014.

Regardless, Penn State is quickly adding some depth to the position, and the hope is that with proper coaching they may be able to hold on to this stock pile of quarterbacks. Since 2008 Penn State has seen five quarterbacks transfer out of the program (Pat Devlin, Kevin Newsome, Rob Bolden, Paul Jones and Bench).

An Associated Press article this week gave Penn State football fans hope, as school trustees publicly expressed their desire for leniency from the NCAA in reducing the Nittany Lions’ crippling sanctions. The frequent, glowing reports from former Senator George Mitchell (the NCAA-appointed overseer for Penn State’s compliance) also lend credence to the view that the NCAA may be satisfied enough with Penn State to reduce the penalties. 

Some PSU fans argue that any talk of clemency from the stubborn NCAA is a pipe dream. Others would be satisfied with nothing less than an immediate kowtowing from the collegiate sports authority, complete with a sign around the neck of a tarred-and-feathered Mark Emmert reading “I am devil.” Opinions are all over the board.

However, if a few members of the board of trustees are willing to bring it up, I think it’s worth our time to talk about what a reasonable approach to the sanction reductions might look like.

Todya was big news for Penn State football, with the 2015 Big Ten schedule being released. But the schedule just got  alittle more interesting. Penn State's 2015 game against Maryland will be played in the home of the reigning Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens. The Big Ten East Division contest between traditional regional rivals Penn State and Maryland will be played in M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.

#PennState will play Maryland in M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Oct. 24, 2015. 1st game vs. Terps in Md. since 1993

— Jeff Nelson (@GoPSUJeff) June 3, 2013

The game will be the first played between the two schools in Baltimore since 1991, when Penn State blew away the Terps by a score of 47-7. Penn State and Maryland have faced each other in Baltimore three times, with Penn State owning a 2-0-1 edge. All other games in the series have been played on home campuses. Penn State has played another game in Baltimore though. In 1947 Penn State played Navy in Baltimore, winning 20-7.

Just as they will do in 2014, Penn State and Rutgers will play in the first official Big Ten game of the 2015 season. The Big Ten released the 2015 conference schedule this morning, confirming the date for Penn State and Rutgers to open the 2015 season once again being used as the conference opener. The two Big Ten East rival will play in Beaver Stadium on September 19, the date previously agreed to by the schools as part of a non-conference arrangement.

Allowing Penn State and Rutgers to keep that game as scheduled allows for Penn State to continue exploring scheduling options to fill a bye week in October or November, a problem that needs to be addressed for the 2014 season as well. Penn State opens the 2015 season in Philadelphia against Temple and plays the following two games in Beaver Stadium against Buffalo and Rutgers. As it stands at the moment, Penn State has the next two weeks of the schedule that are vacant. Penn State also has a bye week inserted in mid-November before hosting Michigan. Do not expect that week to be filled with a game. It would be more likely to see Penn State attempt to fill the first available two open weeks in late September and early October to fill out a 12-game schedule.

Penn State will host Indiana, Illinois, Michigan in their other three home conference games. The Nittany Lions will visit Ohio State, Maryland, Northwestern and Michigan State. The Spartans remain the regular season finale opponent for Penn State.

The 2015 season will remain an eight-game conference schedule, but the Big Ten will be moving to a nine-game conference schedule starting in 2016.

Check out Penn State's updated 2015 schedule.

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Penn State added offensive line coach Noah Beh (Scranton Prep) to the Class of 2014 over the weekend. Beh attended a skills camp this weekend and was recruited by offensive line coach Mac McWhorter, according to Lions 247. Beh, a three-star prospect according to the 247 Sports Composite rankings, also held offers from Boston College, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Temple, Virginia and a couple of FCS programs (Colgate and Yale).

Running backs coach Charles London discusses recruiting. [PennLive]

That Ireland game seems to be coming together. Central Florida sent administrators to Ireland to scope out potential venues. It would be their home game, after all. [Orlando Sentinel]