Mr. Blackledge, a seven-year veteran of the National Football League, joined CBS Sports in 1999, after spending several years broadcasting for ABC Sports, ESPN and the Big East Television Network as both a game and studio analyst.

A 1983 graduate of Penn State, Blackledge was an academic All-American and earned Phi Beta Kappa status as a junior at Penn State. He was the starting quarterback for three seasons, guiding the Nittany Lions to a 31-5 record, including three New Year's Day bowl victories and a national championship in 1982.  In the spring of 1997, he was elected to the Academic All-American Hall of Fame.

The Penn State Forum is a lunchtime speaker series offered by the Faculty Staff Club and is sponsored in part by the Penn State Bookstore. It is open to the public. Tickets are $11 for non-members and $9 for members, and include lunch. Reservations can be made by mail or by stopping by the Faculty Staff Club office at 103 HUB-Robeson Center. Tickets will be on sale at the door on a first-come, first-served basis. Lunch begins at 11:30 a.m. followed by the speech and a question-and-answer session at noon. For more information call (814) 865-7590.

The next Penn State Forum speaker is Bertrice Berry, comedienne and talk show host, who will speak on "Finding your Purpose" on Wednesday, April 11, at the Penn Stater.

**aen**

Contact:  Amy Neil, Department of Public Information, at (814) 865-7517 or email aen4@psu.edu.