Penn State Scandal: What the Players Had to Say After the Nebraska Loss

Penn State faced one of the most difficult weeks in its program history this past week as allegations of sexual abuse by former assistant Jerry Sandusky began to surface publicly. The Nittany Lions administration battled with what actions to take, but they decided to start by firing long time head coach Joe Paterno.

The fans showed a wealth of support for the coach, leading to riots in the streets and visitors to Joe Paterno’s home to show support. No one was quite sure how the Penn State players would respond this week, but they played strong and fought hard against the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

At the end of the day, a loss on the football field is a minor concern for the Penn State faithful, but the larger picture may be that playing at all was a new beginning for the program. Here are quotes from the new coach and players after the loss to Nebraska.

Head Coach Tom Bradley

“I felt today that just maybe the healing process started to begin.”

Coach Bradley put it best by saying that any progress is progress. The football program at Penn State has been scarred by the actions of a destructive and sick man. It has also been scarred by the inaction of former leaders inside the school and athletics department.

The Penn State faithful responded with a big showing in Happy Valley to support their team. Moving forward is a must for the program and making a new chapter in the book of Nittany Lions football began today.

The changes are far from over in State College, PA, but the process of healing has seemed to begin.

Linebacker Nate Stupar

“It was a tough game. There were a lot of emotions going on, I used the emotions to fuel the fire.”

The sentiment felt by senior Nate Stupar was no doubt replicated by the Penn State players in this game against Nebraska. The Nittany Lions have faced so much adversity that the response was impossible to project.

There were many different ways that the Penn State players could have responded in this game, but the Nittany Lions played very well in the game. They made a late charge and attempted a comeback, but they fell just short.

Tight End Andrew Szczerba

"We wanted to go out and play for him, play for the victims and play for Penn State.”

Tight end Andrew Szczerba spoke those words in regards to a question about the emotions prior to the game. He began the conversation by saying that seeing Joe Paterno's empty seat on the bus brought tears to the team’s eyes.

These players are a part of something that has become bigger than football and bigger than a University. How they responded today spoke volumes to the heart that this program has regardless of the leadership.

Head Coach Tom Bradley

“The support from those students and solidarity with what they believed in.”

Coach Bradley was speaking on the students' response to the past week and the outpour of support from the community to the program and the victims of the actions. He led into speaking of how students were contacting to program asking to volunteer in any way possible to help abused children.

For all the bad that has come and were produced from this situation, this community has joined together and provided continuity that seems renewed. The school and community will now provide a large surge of support to a cause that is far undermanned.

QB Coach Jay Paterno

“Our kids were resilient, they stayed focus and played hard”

Jay Paterno fought back tears and a wealth of emotion while discussing the aftermath of a tough loss for the NIttany Lions at home to Nebraska. When asked what he thought about the events of the past week, he answered and then followed with this quote.

He was focused on his team and spoke to their resilience. It was a tough loss for the team and a moment of growth for the Penn State nation. The future is now but the focus must to be to never forget the lessons learned in the past week. Life is much bigger than football.