Origins of "We Are... Penn State" Cheer
Watch former PSU football player Wally Triplett, a key member of the 1947 Penn State team--he caught the game-tying touchdown pass against Southern Methodist at the Cotton Bowl in January 1948--give his take on the racially charged, yet defiant origins of the "We are... Penn State" cheer that continues to echo today.
Like any good rally cry, I suspect this one did come from humble origins, as Mr. Triplett's story tells, repeated enough times in enough places that no one's really sure exactly how it it started. The President's remarks are elusive, and so are the comments from the historians interviewed here.
The Historical Digital Collegian (1887- ) might yield more clues.
I originally wrote about Wally Triplett, Dennie Hoggard, and the issue of race and segregation in college football in February 2006. (I see those links are broken. Try these: 1946 team and 1947 team goes to the Cotton Bowl.)
In case you're wondering, Joe Paterno didn't join the PSU coaching staff until 1950. In 1948 he was still a player, at Brown University.
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Hi Mark. I think you will enjoy this clip along with the other psu supporters in you office. Click on the arrow on the picture to view the video
Love you!
Hopefully, this works. Enjoy.
what is the original link to this video?
Sorry, the hyperlinks take you to the site, but I should have included the name... it comes from the GoPSF.com site: http://www.gopsf.com/video/watch/118/Wally%20Triplett
This originally ran on the PSU football recap show in the 2008 season. There are a couple more variations of Wally telling the story elsewhere.
GOOSEBUMPS!!!
Amy D. - It appears the video is no longer available for download. Any idea where I can get a copy? Also, there are some people saying that the "We are Penn State" cheer did not really originate with Steve Shuey's response but was actually copied from an SC cheer many years later. Have you had a chance to investigate that allegation?
Jim -
You can still download it from the original site: http://www.gopsf.com/#/video-vault/Family/118/
If the link doesn't work, at http://www.gopsf.com, it's in the "Video Vault" section, under "Family."
Amy.
Oh, and no, I haven't had time to investigate other possibilities. Seems like someone must remember how it got started!