What a Buzz-Kill: Penn State Faithful Shocked Again

I’ll set it up for you. After being in the best student section in the country for four years, I’ve come to memorize the Penn State chants, traditions, and cheers.

Not surprising.

So while at my brother’s house last night, watching Iowa struggle to put up much of a fight through three quarters, I had no problem with Jeremy Boone punting away after a mediocre Penn State drive. I thought I’d even have some fun with it and join the student section in yelling “Booooooneee” at the proper moment—just to see how many people in the room knew what I was referring to.

It went a little like this: “Booooooneee – uh oh, oh nooo…”

If you’re a Penn State fan, you know the reaction. Silence. What resulted was a huge momentum swing—along with the lead—in Iowa’s favor, and a combination of turnovers in the final minutes cost the Nittany Lions their first loss at home since 2007.

My Penn State family around me featured infuriated, confused, saddened, or otherwise inebriated fans wishing to turn back time just a couple minutes. I walked up to my nephew’s room as the final minute ticked away and sat down, the both of us staring at the television in astonishment. The conversation that follows is verbatim:

Me: “Hey.”

Tyler: “Hey.”

(pause)

Me: “I can’t believe it.”

Tyler: “Me too.”

(pause)

Me: “I’m… hurt.”

Tyler: “Me too.”

Yes, this is the extent my family goes to when it comes to Penn State football.

Heartbreak aside, give the Hawkeyes credit. They came into Beaver Stadium unaffected by the size of the crowd or the sense of revenge in the atmosphere. They played well, hung in the game, and when the big plays were needed they stepped up. Bravo especially to Ryan Donahue, the Iowa punter who deserves an Academy Award for his performance on fourth-and-long. That flop couldn’t have been better orchestrated by Shaquille O’Neal down low in the post.

I also won’t mention the fact that I predicted an early upset in an earlier article here, just after last week’s Temple game. Or that we didn’t look like a No. 5 team at all. I won’t mention that I included Big Ten conference play as a huge test Penn State wasn’t ready for.

Boy, I hate when I’m right.