On This Day: Larry Mangan Makes Penn State History

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – On a sunny State College day on May 16, 1980, junior Larry Mangan toed the starting line hoping to make Penn State history.

“I woke up and went for a little shake out run in the morning and I was nervous. It had been on my mind for a couple years.” Mangan said. “I had gotten close for the first time, I had run 4:01 a year earlier so it was on my mind that I thought I could do it. The Saturday before, it was at the Pitt Invitational, I had run 3:42.0 (in the 1500m) to break the school record…which was the equivalent to a sub-four minute mile so I felt I could do it.”

Four minutes later, he had done just that. Mangan broke the tape in a time of 3:58.4 to become the first Nittany Lion in Penn State history to run a sub-four-minute mile. Mangan outraced Sosthenes Bitok, who would later run for the Kenyan Olympic team.

“He (Sosthenes Bitok) took the pace so I give him credit because he led most of the race. I was able to get him with about 80-meters to go. And that was his first sub-four as well.” Mangan added.

Today marks the 40^th anniversary of Mangan’s historic run. Mangan’s time at the 1500m mark also set the outdoor track record at 3:42.5. Mangan’s times weren’t the only records that were set on that day in 1980. Richmond’s Hillary Tuwel clocked 14:00.73 to set the outdoor track record in the 5,000m.

Mangan success was not limited to the track as he was a member of the Nittany Lion cross country team that finished fourth, third and third in 1978, 1979 and 1980 at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Mangan earned All-America honors in cross country during the 1980 season. He was joined by teammates Alan Scharsu and John Zishka on the All-America team.

Mangan also spoke about his head coach, the late Harry Groves.

“He (Coach Groves) put Penn State track & field on the map from 1968-2006. He recruited well. He was an excellent distance coach and he surrounded himself with coaches who were strong in the other disciplines and he was a motivator…He believed in a system and it worked for a really long time….He invested in me and he trusted me.”

Penn State remains a big part of the Mangan household. Larry’s daughter, Olivia, threw javelin for the Nittany Lions and graduated in 2014. Larry had a son graduate from Penn State in 2016 and his youngest son is a member of the Penn State class of…