After leaving PSU, Breneman finds fresh start at Massachusetts

He jokes about screaming at the TV set, cheering on the players and coaches he knows so well to the biggest victory of their lives.

He watched one of his close friends make the stunning touchdown catch to get it all started.

He watched that night from Massachusetts with his best friend who helped save his football career.

What could have been the most excruciating time turned into the most exhilarating last month — Adam Breneman watching his former Nittany Lions win the Big Ten championship.

It almost seemed strange that they climbed all the way back without him. The nation's top tight end recruit from Camp Hill helped lead Penn State football through the aftermath of the Jerry Sandusky scandal and NCAA sanctions.

He's still close to many there, such as fellow tight end Mike Gesicki, who he mentored through pass-catching struggles in 2015. The two still talk and FaceTime for hours, despite being football worlds away from each other.

"When I watch him on TV now I kind of look at him as a little brother, except that he's taller than me and heavier than me and jumps higher than me.

"He's just got to cut out that stupid touchdown celebration," Breneman said with a laugh.

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Former Lion Adam Breneman to play for UMass

Breneman's past leads to a future more promising than ever as he prepares to return for his senior season playing tight end at the University of Massachusetts. He confirmed the return for his final year of eligibility earlier this week to the York Daily Record before announcing it on Twitter on Friday afternoon.

Breneman believes his stunning recovery from an expected career-ending injury never could have happened so smoothly if he had stayed at Penn State.

That's where his best friend comes in.

It has led to a storybook transformation for the player with family ties to York County — the one who still credits his success to his time at Penn State.

Former Lion head coach Bill O'Brien sent Breneman a text message when that Big Ten title game ended.

"That," O'Brien proudly told him, "wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for you."

•  •  •

It's been an entire year since Breneman gave up football.

He couldn't take the chronic pain in his left knee anymore. He couldn't practice, no less play in games, and felt as if he was wasting precious scholarship space at Penn State.

So he took his undergraduate degree and left the Nittany Lions and football behind. At age 20, he began running a successful state senate election campaign for republican Mike Regan.

"I was fed up with (football)," he said. "I didn't have much faith anymore."

Working 12-hour campaign days provided his knee with months of unintended rest and healing, which is exactly what it required. After leading Regan to a primary victory last spring, Breneman noticed something wonderfully odd:

It didn't hurt to run anymore.

By early July, his Cedar Cliff teammate and good friend Andrew Ford began challenging him. And Breneman re-considered everything he thought he had lost.

Ford, a quarterback, had just transferred from Virginia Tech to Massachusetts. Breneman's former roommate at Penn State, Austin Whipple, had also transferred to UMass. And Whipple's father, Mark, was the Minutemen head coach.

"You're the best tight end I ever played with," Ford told him. "If you're healthy, you need to play football."

Breneman said coach James Franklin urged him to return to Penn State. Instead, he chose Whipple's pro-style, tight end-focused offense — and attempting his comeback far from the limelight.

"More than anything I wanted a fresh start. I was pegged as the injury guy (at Penn State). I was the hometown guy there. I didn't want to be a distraction going back there."

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He remained pain-free at UMass and quickly acclimated to a new offense. He and Ford looked like they were at Cedar Cliff again, one always knowing where the other was on the field.

Breneman did not drop a pass all season. He led the nation in receptions by a tight end (70) and was second in yards (808) and touchdowns (eight).

He and his coach believe those numbers will get even better in 2017.

•  •  •

Breneman doesn't turn 22 until March.

He's accomplished so much already, though, recovering from a torn ACL in his right knee and now internal damage in his left. He fundraised to fight Lou Gehrig's disease. He helped lock down Penn State's critical 2013 recruiting class during its toughest time.

He ran a political campaign and turned down a well-paying staff job. He expects to complete his MBA in less than a year.

He continues his comeback for a promising but sometimes overmatched UMass, which won only twice last fall. He could turn pro now, but he said his NFL evaluation projected him anywhere from a fourth-round pick to going undrafted. He knows he can do better.

Coach Mark Whipple described last fall as "just the tip of the iceberg" for Breneman. He expects him to be a team captain and an even stronger leader.

"He doesn't get too big-headed, and he's very hungry with a lot to prove," Whipple said. "His training in the offseason, he wasn't able to do that last year. So he'll be a little bit quicker (next season). He'll be stronger, he'll be more physical.

"You can't walk into a place and be a leader if you haven't proven it. He's proven it now."

The next step, Ford said, is proving to be the best tight end in the nation.

Breneman prefers to look at is if he's found a second football family on the next step of his journey.

"Definitely at times I miss Penn State," he said. "I'm a Penn State guy. I will always fight for that school.

"My coaches, teammates at Penn State changed my life for the better a long time ago."