STATE COLLEGE — An early-morning rally for Penn State football players could provide the perfect opportunity for fans to try to sway star tailback Silas Redd to stay in Happy Valley.

Organizers of the community rally plan to show up outside the football building at dawn Tuesday to greet Nittany Lions for early-morning workouts. Former player Tim Sweeney said he hopes the event gives players a lift during a difficult time for the program.

NCAA sanctions in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal will keep Penn State from postseason play the next four seasons. The NCAA has allowed current players to transfer and play right away, waiving the standard rule of sitting out a season.

Redd, a 1,200-yard rusher who would be a focal point of coach Bill O’Brien’s reconfigured Penn State offense, visited Southern California during the weekend. Another good season could have the junior with the dazzling open-field spin move headed to the NFL draft a year early next spring.

On Monday, backup safety Tim Buckley, a former walk-on, became the first player to transfer from Penn State in the wake of the sanctions after returning to his native North Carolina to play for North Carolina State. Penn State also confirmed Monday that former starting quarterback Rob Bolden had left the team, though the demoted signal-caller was given the OK to consider other schools before the NCAA meted out its landmark punishments on July 23.

A handful of other players are at least considering a transfer, leaving the possibility open that Buckley’s decision might lead to a chain reaction. Still, the majority of O’Brien’s core players appear to be sticking with Penn State, determined to weather out what could be a stormy season for the program.

“What these guys have had to endure and overcome, nobody has ever been faced before in college football,” said Sweeney, a businessman who hosts an online radio show. “There aren’t any better representatives of our university than our football team.”

Sweeney said he and his fellow host Keith Conlin, came up with the “Rise and Rally” event that has garnered community support. He said more than 1,000 people have indicated on Facebook they will attend the rally, which is scheduled to start at 6 a.m., in order to greet Nittany Lions before their morning lifts.

O’Brien said at Big Ten media days last week in Chicago that more than 50 players have re-affirmed their commitment to Penn State, though he did expect some transfers. Two Class of 2013 recruits have de-committed over the last week, but six prospects visited O’Brien during the weekend before, standing by their verbal commitments.

“We have a really unique opportunity at Penn State to do something really special,” one of the six recruits, Cedar Cliff High senior Adam Breneman, said in a phone interview. Breneman, of Camp Hill, Pa., is considered one of the top tight end prospects in the country.

“We have a chance to bring a community together. We have a chance to be remembered for a long time and give a community hope.”