College Football Scores: Penn State Loss Will Continue Downward Spiral

Things cannot get much worse than they are at the Penn State University.

Following a week of dismay with the Jerry Sandusky scandal which led to legendary coach Joe Paterno's dismissal, the Nittany Lions failed to capture a win on Saturday in a 17-14 loss to fellow Big Ten foe Nebraska.

This game was their last home game of the year. Now the Nittany Lions will be finishing out the season on the road at Ohio State and Wisconsin, both relatively strong Big Ten foes.

This loss has bad implications written all over it for the Nittany Lions, and now one must question where they will stand to finish out this season.

Things will not be easy, and Saturday's loss made worse an already difficult situation.

These are what Saturday's results mean for the Nittany Lions on the field and in the polls.

Big Ten Implications

With this loss, the Nittany Lions are likely going to lose their spot as the front runners in the Leaders Division. Wisconsin is right there with them, and considering that it will be hosting Penn State in the final week or the regular season, it is hard to imagine the Badgers' losing at that point in time.

A game on the road next week against the Ohio State Buckeyes may be the final nail in the coffin, which could result in the Nittany Lions falling two games below the Badgers. The Nittany Lions basically need to win out in order to make the Big Ten championship game.

BCS Implications

Saturday's loss hurts the chances of the Nittany Lions making any major bowl this offseason. With nobody in the Big Ten being a major player, whoever wins the championship game will get the automatic bowl bid for the Rose Bowl.

It isn't impossible, but it is hard to imagine the Nittany Lions overcoming everything that is going on, including defeating Wisconsin, Ohio State and whoever wins the Legends Division.

Nothing is written in stone at this point, but it is a pretty sure thing to say that Penn State will be looking to play in a bowl outside of any of the major BCS bids.

Where Does Penn State Go From Here

As previously mentioned, this last week has not been easy for Penn State's football team or university as a whole. The win would have been a real feel-good moment for the university, but at this time they can only hope to find some sort of good feeling on the football field.

Nothing will be forgotten from the week that Joe Paterno was dismissed, but Penn State knows they still need to honor the university they play for, because this situation has nothing to do with the current players.

The Sandusky situation needs to be taken care of away from the football field.