If you’re a Penn State sports fan, you probably have one of Lou Prato’s books sitting on your bookshelf.
Prato, a veteran journalist and sports fanatic, rose to prominence among Penn State fans as the Nittany Lions’ unofficial historian. He also played an instrumental role in founding the university’s All-Sports Museum and served as its founding director, ultimately dedicating thousands of hours to his alma mater, its community and its stories.
Figures throughout the Penn State community are mourning the loss of Prato, who died in State College Tuesday at 87 years old. He leaves behind a legacy as an instrumental Penn Stater who never shied away from sharing his stories and knowledge with others.
“Lou Prato was the authority on all things Penn State Athletics history,” Penn State athletics director Pat Kraft wrote in a statement. “From the moment I met Lou, I could tell how much sharing the stories of Penn State meant to him and how important it was to him to keep those stories alive.
“His passion for this University was only matched by his love for his family. There will never be another Lou Prato and we will miss seeing him around our Penn State Athletics events. Our thoughts are with [his wife] Carole and Lou’s children during this difficult time.”
An icon for Penn State sports fans, writers
Prato graduated from Penn State in 1959 after serving as the Daily Collegian’s sports editor. He went on to pursue a lengthy journalism career that included time as an Associated Press reporter in Pennsylvania and a broadcast news director in Detroit and Dayton, Ohio, among other areas. He continued writing about sports as a contributor to Sport magazine and Blue-White Illustrated and later pursued an academic career directing Northwestern University’s journalism program in Washington, D.C. Prato returned to Happy Valley as a communications instructor and lecturer at Penn State in the late 1990s.
Mike Poorman, a senior lecturer for Penn State’s Bellisario College of Communications and its director of alumni relations, recalled meeting Prato when the latter moved in just a few doors down in Stormstown in the late 1990s. The pair grew close over the years that followed, especially through their near-weekly lunches with the late radio voice of Penn State football, Fran Fisher.
“If I ever would write a story that involved history, if Lou wasn’t quoted in it, he was certainly an integral part of it,” Poorman told the Centre Daily Times. “Lou was everywhere. He attended every football coach’s press conference from the day he moved back in the 1990s up until he wasn’t there in person, but he was watching through Zoom. He was a fixture.”
Prato rose to prominence among Penn State sports fans through his writing. Perhaps no book of his was more influential than 1998’s “The Penn State Football Encyclopedia,” which chronicled 110 years of Nittany Lions football . Other significant titles in his catalog include “100 Things Penn State Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die” and “Game Changers: Penn State.”
Prato’s work was critical to uncovering and sharing the origins behind Penn State’s famed “We Are” cheer, whose history has evolved over time. Poorman said the late author was about halfway finished a book exploring the life and career of trailblazing running back Wally Triplett and Black football players at Penn State.
“Lou was working up until the day he died,” Poorman said. “It was his goal to finish this book on Wally Triplett.”
Decades of influence, shaping the next generation
Prato’s standing among the Penn State football community remained strong for decades, even as new faces took over the program. Poorman recalled how Prato’s presence and personality could capture a room’s attention — even when the head honcho walked past.
“Lou would always sit in the back, but in the front row, there were bleacher seats. And for many years he sat next to Fran Fisher, and for many years he sat next to Steve Jones,” Poorman said.
“Lou would sit there and people, young and old, would go back and say hi to Lou as he would hold court. But when the head coach came in, whether it was Joe [Paterno] or Tommy Bradley for a little while or [Bill] O’Brien or James [Franklin], they all came in and gave a hello to Lou, a sort of salute. All of those head coaches deserve credit for acknowledging Lou’s role as the historian of Penn State football. Every time, it was touching.”
Prato worked closely with Penn State reporters and students and remained supportive of the next generation of sportswriters, Poorman said. Over the years, he spoke to alumni groups and mentored Penn State students. He also served on the Bellisario College Alumni Society board and the All-Sports Museum board.
The Bellisario College Alumni Society awarded Prato with its Alumni Achievement Award in 2016, helping to recognize decades of service and achievement at Penn State. He also served on the Radio and Television Digital News Association’s board of directors for more than 20 years and saw a scholarship established in his name in 2001.
Steve Jones, the longtime play-by-play voice of Penn State football and men’s basketball, remembers Prato as an important resource for anyone who wanted to follow the Nittany Lions or learn more about Penn State sports.
“Lou was an absolute treasure,” Jones told the Centre Daily Times. “He was a treasure as a friend, as a resource and a colleague. He was just so special in every way, and he loved Penn State. The university, the history of it. That’s why the encyclopedia and the museum meant so much to him, because he was able to chronicle all of that great history and put it into a book and a museum that people can walk into and enjoy and live that history. He was just very special.”
Alongside figures like former athletic director Tim Curley, Prato opened Penn State’s All-Sports Museum in 2002 to honor the achievements and history of Nittany Lions student-athletes. Jones says the museum, located across two floors in the southwest corner of Beaver Stadium, may not have panned out without Prato’s dedication and vision.
“What made Lou great at what he did was that he was such a professional that he checked every detail,” Jones said. “He didn’t take shortcuts, and because of that, people have an exact viewpoint of how Penn State football got to the 1998 season. Same story with the museum. He didn’t take any shortcuts trying to put all those displays initially together.
“It’s not just the 31 programs now, but also some that no longer exist like bowling and boxing. He had to go back and find — and it was sitting in a closet underneath some other stuff — the trophy Penn State got for finishing in third place in the NCAA Final Four in 1954. Lou found it! That’s the kind of guy he was. In other words, ‘If I’m willing to do this, I’m willing to do it right.’ He would turn over every stone to do it right because that’s the kind of professional he was and how much he cared.”
Prato is survived by his wife Carole, his son, Scott, and his daughters, Vicki and Lori. Arrangements will be announced at a later date, Penn State said.
