Knoch offensive lineman Cole Lassinger (77) has spurned numerous Division 1 scholarship offers to attend Penn State, where he may try to walk on.

JEFFERSON TWP — The football opportunities were there.

Delaware, Akron, Valparaiso, Buffalo, Saint Francis, Lehigh, Lafayette, etc., were all ready to offer Knoch senior Cole Lassinger scholarship money to come play.

He spurned them all.

The 6-foot-4, 280-pound lineman is headed to Penn State University to major in ceramic engineering. His father owns such a business in Sarver and is a Penn State graduate.

“I want to follow in his footsteps, in school and business,” Lassinger said.

So is his football career over?

Maybe.

Lassinger is considering walking on and trying to earn a spot on the Nittany Lions roster.

The odds — and the karma — may be against him.

Lassinger has gone to Penn State football camps in the past and got to know Nittany Lion offensive line coach Matt Limegrover. He was on his radar as a potential preferred walk-on.

“That coach wound up getting fired after last season,” Lassinger said. “I was going to attend the Penn State camp this summer, but it was canceled because of the pandemic.

“Nobody knows what's happening (with college football) now. I'll see how things go, but I'd rather be an invited walk-on.”

Limegrover is expected to be hired as a senior analyst with the University of Michigan football program.

Don't expect Lassinger to follow him there.

A guard-defensive end at Knoch, Lassinger has been playing football since seventh grade. He's been injured during each of his high school seasons, but has been an all-conference player..

Two concussions, a broken hand and a pulled back muscle are a few of the maladies that have plagued Lassinger in the sport.

“Cole is just a gutty, hard-nosed kid,” Knoch coach Brandon Mowry said. “He's a strong lineman with good size. A lot of Division I college teams were interested in him.

“He's doing what he wants to do. It's education first and I give him credit for his decision. Whether football works out for him (at Penn State) or not, he's setting up his life.”

Even if Lassinger decides not to walk on for the 2020 season, he's not ruling out doing so in future seasons.

“I don't have to be in a rush,” he said. “Football's not the reason I'm going there. If I really miss the game and I see an opportunity to get a roster spot, sure, I might go for it in another year or two.”

Mowry admitted the odds of making a major college football team as a walk-on are slim.

“There are so many guys there on scholarship and the preferred walk-ons are pretty much guaranteed a roster spot,” Mowry said. “I know Cole was hoping for that.

“They take a few walk-ons every year, but there aren't many spots available.”

Lassinger said he knows a lot of high school players who choose a college based on football possibilities.

“I know I can't play football forever,” he said. “I'll always love the game. My education is my priority. That's what my decision is all about.”