UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa., April 22, 2015 – Senior defensive tackle Anthony Zettel (West Branch, Mich.) has been named to the preseason watch list for the 12th annual Lott IMPACT Trophy, as announced by the Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation. The Lott IMPACT Trophy honors the top defensive player in college football who makes the biggest impact for his team, both on and off the field.
 
After moving from defensive end to defensive tackle in 2014, Zettel enjoyed his most productive season on the field in the blue and white. A fourth-team All-American selection by Athlon Sports and an All-Big Ten first-team pick by both the coaches and media, Zettel logged career-best totals with 17 tackles-for-loss and 8.0 sacks. His 16.0 career sacks rank tied for No. 15 in Penn State history and his 27.0 career TFLs are just five shy of entering the top-15 in the PSU record books.
 
Zettel was the only FBS player to rank among the national leaders in sacks and interceptions per game in 2014. The athletic defensive lineman nabbed three interceptions, the most by a PSU defensive lineman since at least 1959, to tie for the team lead in the category and added one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and eight pass deflections.
 
Off the field, Zettel is among a group that helped the football complete a program-record of more than 1,900 total hours of community service during the summer and fall of 2014. The community service efforts began with volunteer hours at the Pennsylvania Special Olympics Summer Games on June 6 and ended on Dec. 26 with a visit to Sloan-Kettering Memorial Hospital in New York. A July 23 visit to the Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital was also a highlight of the team’s efforts.
 
The criteria for selecting student-athletes for the Lott IMPACT Trophy Watch List and subsequently the finalists and eventually the overall winner, is based on both athletic ability and character attributes, with  character transcending the on-the-field accomplishments of the players. The acronym for IMPACT is Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community and Tenacity. The nominees are considered for their academic standing at their university, their community contributions, their leadership skills and their overall character.
 
The 12th annual Lott IMPACT Trophy Award Banquet will be held Dec. 13 at the Pacific Club in Newport Beach, California.