An image of former QB Trace McSorley wearing a campaign button supporting a trio of Penn State Board of Trustees candidates went up on Facebook earlier this week, and the school legend isn’t happy about it.
Here is the image McSorley is referring to. https://t.co/vCGL5LVO3Y pic.twitter.com/oGl0GapP6j
— Joe Smeltzer (@joesmeltzer775) April 6, 2023
Earlier this week, the Facebook page “Anthony Lubrano for PSU,” which endorses trustee Anthony Lubrano, posted two pictures of McSorley, which appear to have been deleted.
The image in question, which has been circulating on Facebook for the past few days, ahead of Penn State's Board of Trustees election. pic.twitter.com/DUx7D54QPI
— Nate Bauer (@NateBauerBWI) April 6, 2023
The one on the left was of McSorley and his new wife, Kasey, who he married March 25, at their wedding reception.
The one on the right is a solo picture of McSorley smiling and giving a “thumbs up” gesture.
The second picture is ordinary, except for one thing: McSorley is wearing a button that reads “RE-ELECT PSU TRUSTEES ANTHONY LUBRANO
JAY PATERNO
ALICE POPE.”
Lubrano’s post had no caption on it.
Pope’s page took care of that.
”Congratulations to Trace McSorley and his beautiful bride!” the page “Alice Pope Penn State Trustee,” wrote in response to Lubrano’s photos.
”And thank you, Trace, for supporting LUBRANO-PATERNO-POPE for re-election to the Board of Trustees. Voting begins April 10.”
This post also appears to have been taken down.
Most people reading the post probably guessed that McSorley, now with the Arizona Cardinals, had nothing to do with it going on Facebook. McSorley confirmed that with a lengthy Twitter post Thursday afternoon.
”PENN STATE NATION,” the post began.
”It has been brought to my attention that there is a picture of me wearing a button supporting candidates up for re-election with the Penn State Board of Trustees. The use of this image as my endorsement was done without my permission, and I am not endorsing any candidates for Board of Trustees.”
— Trace McSorley (@McSorley_IX) April 6, 2023
Unlike Lubrano and Pope, Paterno didn’t post anything about the image. But of the three candidates, Paterno’s name is the most recognizable, and the following part of McSorley’s post will be perceived by many Penn State fans as a shot at Paterno.
“One thing I do endorse,” the post read, “is supporting those candidates who are in full support of Coach (James) Franklin and Penn State football. I wholeheartedly support Coach Franklin and what he is working to accomplish at Penn State 1000%.”
This will raise a few eyebrows because, in February 2021, Paterno voted against a $48.3 million football upgrade project, which got approved.
Regardless of whether McSorley intentionally took a shot at Paterno— which is unclear— at least some fans will see it that way. The next part of McSorley’s statement could also be seen that way.
” Coach Franklin has been excellent both on and off the field and has portrayed ‘Success with Honor’ through every turn of his career at Penn State. He has the best interest at heart for not only the players and program he leads, but also Penn State University as a whole.”
McSorley’s use of the phrase “Success with Honor” might not have anything to do with Jay Paterno. Jay’s legendary father, Joe, coined the term, and Penn State people have used it with pride for decades. But what’s interesting about McSorley using those three words is that Jay Paterno is one of five co-founders of Penn State’s primary Name, Image and Likeness collective. The name of that collective is “Success with Honor,” a name Jay Paterno gave to it when it formed last March.
Paterno and “Success with Honor” have been scrutinized lately, primarily due to the departure of former men’s basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry to Notre Dame. A portion of the fanbase believes that a lack of NIL progress was one of, if not the main, reason Shrewsberry left Penn State.
Less than 72 hours after Shrewsberry agreed to move to South Bend, Paterno tweeted a staunch defense of Penn State and the “Success with Honor” collective.
Fact: Dedicated #PennState fans/community & @success_w_honor met every basketball NIL request. The latest increase exceeded in just 2 days. That’s how #PennStateAlumni responded. Those spreading any counter-narrative only hurt the program’s coaching search & future. #WeAre
— Jay Paterno (@JayPaterno) March 25, 2023
The tweet received criticism from Penn State fans and led to a multi-tweet tirade from football legend Michael Mauti, who referenced Paterno voting “no” in 2021.
McSorley ended his post by continuing to express his faith in Franklin.
” I believe he is the man who can lead our beloved program to great heights,” he wrote, “while continuing to bring excellence and pride to our university.”
Board of Trustees election voting begins April 10 and runs through May 4 at 9 a.m. Also running, in addition to Lubrano, Paterno and Pope are:
- Kevin Carey
- Randolph “Randy” Houston Jr.
- Ali Krieger
- Melinda Kuritzky
- Uma Moriarity
Correction: An earlier version of this article called the image of McSorley wearing a Board of Trustees endorsement button “doctored.” This has not been confirmed to be true, and McSorley’s Twitter statement didn’t indicate that the image of him wearing an endorsement button was altered. This has since been updated.
