Penn State Players, Coaches Honor Franco Harris at Rose Bowl

Following suit with the Pittsburgh Steelers and head coach Mike Tomlin, Penn State head coach James Franklin and Penn State players came off the Penn State bus wearing a No. 34 Franco Harris jersey.

The Penn State Nittany Lions have arrived in the Rose Bowl pic.twitter.com/CAQWsAlW1T

— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) January 2, 2023

The Pittsburgh Steelers did the same thing for their Dec. 24 game against the Las Vegas Raiders, at the suggestion of Penn State alum and current Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth.

RELATED: Steelers emotionally retire Franco Harris’ No. 32.

Harris played for Penn State from 1969-71, rushing for 2,012 yards and 24 touchdowns as a fullback for Penn State playing alongside Lydell Mitchell in the backfield.

Harris went on to play 13 seasons in the National football league, playing 12 of them for the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he was most known for the “Immaculate Reception”, which took place on Dec. 23, 1972. He also was the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl IX and finished his career with the second-most rushing yards in NFL history with 12,120 and 100 total touchdowns.

Harris meant a lot to the Penn State community after he left Penn State after his time at Penn State when he started his business with Mitchell called Super Bakery, which was renamed RSuper foods and also acquired the Parks Sausage Company in Baltimore which was the first African American company to go public in the United States.

Penn State did a touching tribute to Harris before the Rose Bowl, much like the Steelers, and they’re hoping to honor Harris with a win as well in the Rose Bowl.