My history professor my freshman year of college hated the phrase “history repeats itself.” I never gave it much thought before having him explain it, but I realized he is correct. History can never actually repeat itself because any event in history is a singular occurrence. However, history can have trends resurface over time. This makes it more appropriate to suggest history may not repeat itself, but certain trends will come back in fashion.
If this is the case, then Penn State football fans should be very excited about the upcoming football season.
Last night, North Carolina’s men’s basketball team celebrated a national championship with a sloppy and foul-heavy victory over Gonzaga, serving up plenty of smiling Jordan images for a refreshing change of pace. That gave the ACC another national championship to celebrate nearly three months after watching Clemson celebrate a College Football Playoff national championship. I did some quick research to find out the last time the ACC had a national champion in football and men’s basketball in the same calendar year, and I found the answer to be rather fascinating.
Last time @TheACC teams celebrated CFB & MBB national titles in same calendar year: 1982.
1981 Clemson football
1981-1982 UNC men's ball
— Kevin McGuire (@KevinOnCFB) April 4, 2017
The last time the ACC had a national champion in football and men’s basketball in the same calendar year, it just so happened to be Clemson in football and North Carolina in basketball. That is amazing to me. What makes this even more fascinating is the 1981 season was the last time Clemson had won the national championship in football. UNC adding another national title to their basketball collection was less a shot in the dark and bound to happen, so the Tar Heels falling in line just months after Clemson ended its championship drought is merely a coincidence. It is an eery coincidence, though.
But what does this have to do with Penn State? That’s simple. This is what happened the following football season…
The way Penn State ended the 2016 season and appears to be heading into 2017 gives Penn State fans plenty to be excited about for the upcoming season, and the Nittany Lions should be considered a playoff contender. Could history keep this throwback trend going just a little longer?
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