STATE COLLEGE, - Calvin Lowry and his teammates in the secondary have been looking forward to a special senior season.

Lowry, a safety, is one of four seniors in a Penn State secondary that figures to be an integral part of the Nittany Lion defense.

"We talked about this day-in and day-out, our senior year and how we wanted it to be," Lowry said. "It's starting to work itself out and hopefully it works out in the end and we end up in the Rose Bowl."

That would be big a step up from last season, when Penn State finished 4-7 (2-6 Big Ten), its fourth losing record in five years.

While a sputtering offense took much of the blame, the defense was solid. In total, nine starters return from a unit that allowed just over 15 points per contest.

There's at least one question right now on defense - the status of sophomore linebacker Dan Connor, who figured to be a starter. He was suspended indefinitely last week by coach Joe Paterno for allegedly placing harassing phone calls.

Beyond that, Paterno and the coaching staff have been trying to get their defensive players to block out the accolades.

Senior cornerback Alan Zemaitis, a team captain, says the defense has taken Paterno's statements to heart. He says he has a different outlook this season.

"The guys that are around me, my senior class, are guys that worked hard all through winter and the summer programs," he said. "So coming into this season I feel like its really going to build on what we did at the end of last season, going into this season and feeling confident."

Starting opposite Zemaitis at corner is Anwar Phillips, who was repeatedly picked on by opposing offenses last year. Opposing teams were avoiding Zemaitis, but Phillips did well and led the team with four interceptions.

Lowry has been a fixture in the secondary the past two seasons, while Harrell saw some starting time in 2003 before a neck injury the following spring nearly ended his career. Harrell figures to replace the graduated Andrew Guman at strong safety.

After Harrell fractured a vertebrate in his neck last spring, one would expect the injury could change the way he plays. And it has changed - just not in the obvious way.

"It does kind of change how you play," Harrell said. "Once you have an injury that kind of threatens whether or not you'll play again, you go out there with more aggression and passion than you had before."

Notes:

Sophomore receiver Mark Rubin is out for the year following surgery to repair a dislocated right ankle. Rubin sustained the injury in practice on Friday and underwent surgery Monday in State College. The 6-3, 210-pound Rubin had 16 catches for 187 yards in eight games last year and entered this season as one of the Nittany Lions' most experienced receivers. ... Senior defensive end Lavon Chisley has been ruled academically ineligible for the upcoming season. Chisley recorded 14 tackles and one sack last year.