The Newly Anointed Alumni Golfer

For those of you who may not have met me yet, I am the new guy. My name is Nick Scarpello, and I am honored to join the ranks of this highly esteemed group of track & field alumni golfers. Of course, to get to this point, I had to first go through a very important vetting process. And so fellow alumni golfer David Baskwill invited me to meet him on the White Course’s ninth green at 9 o’clock for my first test. I actually have some footage from the meeting.

After the necessary newbie pranking was over with, David got into the hard interview questions. First, I had to tell David that I've never won a free game in mini-golf. No extra benefits: still eligible.  Next, I had with me a titanium driver and demonstrated for him that I do in fact have a slice worse than Charles Barkley.

Bad golfer:  check.

Next I reached into the back pocket of my golf slacks and pulled out printed race results from last week's Henderson Distance Carnival.

This may confirm the rumors you have heard. In my first post-collegiate race, I was indeed defeated by not one, but two, high school runners. Therefore I officially enter into that generation of athletes complaining about new generations getting faster each and every year. Take note also of fellow alumnus Owen Dawson in eighth.

From left:  Kyle Dawson, Me, Owen Dawson,
and PSUT&F rising senior Glen Burkhardt.
May 31, 2014. Henderson Distance Carnival.

Overly-enthusiastic runner:  check.

I had David convinced. But just to be safe, we did Rusty Boots and the bond was sealed.

So that sequence of events is basically what brought me here today. That, along with a passion for running, a sincere desire to help in connecting the Penn State T&F family worldwide, and a firm belief that there is something special about our community. Just the fact that a Penn State T&F Alumnus whom I have NEVER met, David, (the story told above is completely fabricated) has invited me to contribute to this blog, and to do it with the help of a teammate and friend (Matt Groves) I think speaks volumes about what it means to be a Penn Stater. So thank you, David.

My goal here will be to help all present and future alumni golfers to recognize and appreciate the closeness of the Penn State Track & Field family, and to take pride in knowing that you…yes, YOU… are a valued part of this tradition. Whether you were a mid-pack fighter or an All-American, you are, and always will be, Penn State. And we are proud of you.

On another note, the team’s NCAA travel group should be touching down in Portland right about now. The championship action for Penn State starts this Wednesday, June 11, with Melissa Kurzdorfer in the Hammer at 4:30 p.m. EST. Mahagony Jones will be the first Nittany Lion on the track: she runs in the 100-meter semifinals on Wednesday at 8:45 p.m. EST.

Here is TV/broadcast info for the weekend:

Wednesday:  6:55 p.m. EST on ESPN3

Thursday:  6:55 p.m. EST on ESPN3

Friday:  7:30 p.m. EST on ESPNU

Saturday:  5:00 p.m. EST on ESPNU