Penn State will honor its 1982 national championship team at halftime today, and for Mike Zordich, the timing couldn’t be better.

Zordich is the defensive backs coach for today’s opponent, Central Michigan.

Forty years ago, as a true freshman, the Youngstown native started three games and played in seven — including the Sugar Bowl against Georgia — while contributing solid defense and sure tackling in helping crown the Nittany Lions No. 1 for the first time.

“It’s always special to come back to Penn State,” Zordich said earlier this week.

Zordich, 58, spent six years (2015-20) on Michigan’s staff so he’s familiar Beaver Stadium’s visiting sidelines.

But this weekend will be different because “so many of my teammates will be commemorating our (40th anniversary of) our national championship.”

Zordich had one of the best NFL careers of any Penn State defensive back. Drafted in the ninth round by the San Diego Chargers in 1986, he spent 13 seasons with four teams, primarily as a starter with Philadelphia and Arizona.

“Arizona was a great experience,” he said. “We had all the kids out there, but we could never get over the hump (to playoffs). Philly was probably the best years – being from Penn State, being so close to Ohio. Back then, TV wasn’t like it is now. When you’re in Arizona, you weren’t recognized back home so much because you weren’t on TV.”

After his days as a player, Zordich got into coaching, first at Youngstown State, then six years at UM before landing with the Chippewas.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed it,” he said. “Michigan was a great experience and now at Central Michigan, it’s a great staff and great people.”

Central Michigan comes in 1-2, having lost at Oklahoma State (58-44) and South Alabama (38-24) before blanking Bucknell, 41-0, last weekend.

Zordich got home in time to see Penn State taking control of Auburn.

“They’re fun to watch, really explosive,” he said. “The Auburn game was awesome. The running game is strong, and they have really good receivers. It will be fun.”

Part of Zordich’s PSU legacy is his son, Michael, himself a quality fullback and an outstanding leader who, along with Michael Mauti, Matt McGloin and others, helped keep the program from crumbling in 2012 after the NCAA sanctions.

“That whole class was something special,” Zordich said. “They really kept it together, especially with all the other schools knocking on their doors. For those kids to unite — they really only had two of three defections — I give credit to that whole class for being strong and sticking together.”

Michael Zordich, who will be on hand this weekend, runs a beef processing plant in Ohio. Zordich’s older son, Alex, played football at Buffalo, and his daughter, Aidan, is a Penn State graduate. His wife, Cindy, was a PSU cheerleader.

Zordich cracked the lineup in 1982 when Harry Hamilton was injured.

“They found ways to keep me in the game plan when Harry returned, and I thought that was cool that they recognized my ability to play,” he said. “We had such good leadership with guys like Ken Kelley, Pete Speros, (Todd) Blackledge, Walker Lee Ashley, Curt Warner, and I looked up to them.”

Zordich grew into a team leader — a four-year starter, very rare at that time — and kick-started the 1985 season by returning an early interception 32 yards for a touchdown at Maryland.

“The previous two years (1983-84) were rough for us, and there was a whole lot of hype about Maryland,” he said. “It was a great way to start the season.”

“Mike was a dynamic player,” Tom Bradley, the former Lion assistant coach who recruited him, said. “Very versatile. We lined him up at corner, safety. I still remember him returning that interception after his shoe came off.”

The Lions went unbeaten in 1985 before losing to Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl for the national title. Many of the returnees who had redshirted, like Shane Conlan, Bob White and Don Graham, led the Lions to the win over Miami in the Fiesta Bowl the next year.

“Those guys got two rings,” Zordich, an All-American in 1985, said.

Part of Zordich’s heart will always be at Penn State, and when he looks around and soaks up the atmosphere, he knows his mind will take him to the days when his road to success was paved, and to Joe Paterno.

“I loved that man,” he said. “So many of my teammates will be commemorating our national championship, and that will be special for all of us. I’m sure we’ll all be thinking about Joe and thanking him for the impact he had on our lives.”

Rudel can be reached at 814-946-7527 or nrudel@altoonamirror.com. You can also follow him on Twitter@neilrudel.