“You’re walking into the gates of Hell”
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-Â OSU Tackle Kirk Barton referencing Beaver Stadium
From the Field:
These are the ones you dream of. These are the ones that cost the Pennsylvania economy millions of dollars in lost time. Time spent daydreaming and websurfing. Time spent on YouTube and on the cell with your buddies. These are the games that give you chills, with just a simple thought about what the game might be like.
#1 Team in the nation
Fall chill in the air
8pm kickoff
An opponent who hasn’t lost a regular season game since WE last beat them. At night. Fall chill in the air.
Our boys will be ready, and our crowd will put this team on their shoulders and carry them to victory. Beaver Stadium has become the most intimidating place to play a college football game under the glow of stadium lights in the country. There are no competitors. Our students are ready. Our alumni are ready. Our Blue Band is ready. Our cheerleaders, mascot, drum major, concession vendors, ushers, scoreboard operators, bathroom cleaners, wheelchair pushers, hot dog sellers, first aid team in the lime green vests, and everyone else in that stadium are ready to prove that in 2005 against the Buckeyes we were just getting warmed up.
From the Parking Lot:
The beauty of the big game is evidenced by the lack of focus on virtually anything else in your life. Here are some of the quotes that have been written by fellow tailgaters to me this week:
“A day of rain, drinking, shots, and fried food….I may have to bring some ol milluakee cause it dosent get any better than this!!!”
“I just rammed my head through the computer….” -after reading the quote in the title of this post
“Eh, that ought to get us through lunch!!” -reference to the 65 Jello shots in my refrigerator
I’ve also confirmed that this is a unprecedented week as I’ve gotten at least a dozen emails through the website asking me random questions about tailgating at PSU. The parking lot will be a carnival on saturday. Colors and smells, people and pride. All with one goal. Becoming at least a factor in a game that means everything.Â
To get you all in the mood, check out a couple of the videos from YouTube that I’ve condensed on a page at PennStateTailgate.com. Oh, and prepare for the goosebumps!
GO STATE, Beat the BUCKEYES!
Home is where the gameplan is…
From the Field:
It’s not easy rooting for this team. Talk about hot and cold. I’m not sure Wisconsin is that good, but we destroyed them. And we actually looked like a college football team, instead of a deer in the headlights that we look like on the road.Â
The point is, this team looks different at home. They look prepared, they look confident, and they look they believe they can win with the gameplan they’ve been given. That’s not the way this team looks on the road, and it all comes down to coaching. And the truth is in the numbers. At home since 2000 we’re something in the neighborhood of 19-1. Since 2000 we’re 11-24 on the road. You do the math. In this age of parity in College Football (yes, that’s right South Florida is #2) you can’t go on the road, play conservatively and expect to win, even if you feel like you have have the talent. Big Ten football may have once been that way. Well in 2007 it is more appropriate to say may the smartest team win. Gameplanning is about finding another team’s weakness and exploiting it in the hopes of victory. Michigan had weaknesses. They had a freshman QB who we didn’t pressure nearly enough. They had a secondary we didn’t challenge nearly enough, and they had a running back that destroyed us over the left said for 60 minutes, without a sniff of adjustment. Illinois is a very talented team, but they had weaknesses, and we didn’t expoit them, still had a chance to win, and let it slip away. We had no business not winning that game by 10 points, but our coaching staff didn’t give us a chance to win. Joe Paterno is constantly saying “we’re a young team, and we’re not that good yet.” In 2007 all the teams are young. All of them are fast. And the good ones are finding a way to win each and every week with cutting edge coaching, solid player development, and an attitude of success. The ways of the Nittany Lions aren’t fitting that mold.
After a victory that showed what we’re capable of, it brings some optimism that we’ll come out next week and find the best way to beat Indiana and take care of it. It shouldn’t be close. We should win. And then the #1 ranked Buckeyes enter Beaver Stadium. Eight o’clock kickoff. Hostile environment. Home is where the gameplan and the fans are.
From the Parking Lot:
So I admit it. I’m a fair weather poster. I can’t bring myself to write things after losses. It’s too hard and too frustrating. I could never make it as a writer. But after the sweet victories? It’s easy.Â
The parking lot before the game on Saturday was buzzing about all of the off field issues that have plagued the Nittany Lions this year. The parking lot afterward was filled with fans somewhat impressed and wondering what if.
The tailgate as always was top notch. Another media interview brought out the best in the tailgate and brought some more attention to our growing group of friends. Check out the CDT article here. Pay close attention to the myriad of negative comments coming from the uninformed Centre Countians. I have nothing bad to say about these people (at least publicly) but I encourage all of them to stop by our tailgate and see what all the excitement is about. Friends, family, food, and fun. That sounds like the best way I could ever think to spend a day.Â
Until next time, GO STATE! BEAT HOOSIERS!
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