LOS ANGELES _ Koa Farmer was so excited to find out he would be starting in the Rose Bowl, he didn't even bother to put on pants.
Farmer, a Penn State sophomore linebacker and the lone native Californian on the Nittany Lions' roster, was spending Christmas at home with his family last week when he got word from defensive coordinator Brent Pry that he would be making his second career start on one of college football's biggest stages.
"My dad's outside in the garage, and I ran outside in my underwear to tell my dad," Farmer said. "My dad was going crazy."
Farmer's dad will be in the stands Monday _ along with, by Farmer's estimation, more than 100 other family and friends _ to see his son take the field for the Nittany Lions less than 20 minutes from his hometown of Lake View Terrace, Calif. Farmer is in line to get the starting nod at linebacker for Penn State after regular starter Manny Bowen was suspended earlier this week for a violation of team rules.
"It's going to be really emotional, man," Farmer said. "To be able to look up in the sky, see the mountains I grew up around, seeing my family in the stands, just knowing my family's (there). It's going to be a really great environment."
Until Monday gets here, though, one of Farmer's secondary jobs has been playing travel guide for his teammates, many of whom have never been to California before.
They've hit the usual tourist haunts like Santa Monica and Hollywood Boulevard, but perhaps unsurprisingly, most of Farmer's tips have revolved around food. Farmer said the two requests he has gotten most were where to find In-N-Out hamburgers and Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles.
"Roscoe's was awesome," linebacker Brandon Bell said. "I had to get the Obama Special with an extra wing. Actually Koa told me that. He told me, 'Get that extra wing because you're going to want that extra chicken wing.' Usually the Obama Special is just one waffle and three wings, but got to get that extra wing."
In exchange for some local knowledge, though, Farmer has had to ask his teammates for some favors in return. Each Penn State player got six tickets to Monday's game, but Farmer needed a whole lot more than that to accommodate all his local fans.
Since his parents don't regularly make the trek out to State College, Farmer is usually more than happy to give away his tickets to Penn State's home games. This week, though, the shoe is on the other foot.
"I'm like, 'Hey, I remember giving you a ticket, you owe me one this time,' " Farmer said. "A lot of guys came through for me."
Farmer said his mom had 400 people RSVPed to her pregame tailgate, which includes some other Penn State parents.
"I'm going to try to get as many tickets as I can," he said. "If they're not going to be in the stadium, they'll be outside the stadium watching the game."
Growing up "maybe 15 minutes" away, Farmer attended countless UCLA football games at the Rose Bowl before he left for State College. Monday, though, will be his first time at the Rose Bowl game itself.
"Honestly, I haven't really peaked yet with my excitement," Farmer said. "I don't want to say it hasn't hit me yet, but I'm not really wasting my energy. We'll practice well, get ready, prepare really well and hopefully I'll peak at the right time."
Farmer played in 13 games this season, with one start. He made 27 tackles, including 4{ tackles for loss and three sacks. Most of his action has been on special teams, but defensive coordinator Brent Pry didn't see any problems with him taking on an increased role this week.
"He's a warrior, he can play a lot of snaps," Pry said. "He's in great shape, he's a good athlete."
Farmer's teammates also have faith he'll be able to handle the spotlight of playing so close to his hometown.
"He makes plays in practice all the time," linebacker Jason Cabinda said. "No worries at all, in any kind of way. Just excitement, to be honest. Just excitement to see him really unleash and see what he's going to be able to do this game."
