Thoughts From The Valley: Oh My God We Won

The Hangover

HOW I AM FEELING: Confused. Befuddled. But oh-so-happy. Because against all odds, My Beloved Penn State Nittany Lions actually beat Michigan on Saturday night, 41-31, in their finest performance of the year. You might even say that they "dominated" the Wolverines. It was … stunning. More on This Wonderful Game below. But suffice to say, this is as giddy as I've been all year. Viva Autumn. 

WHAT I AM DRINKING: Wine. Because I'm out of beer. Because on Friday night TCFA Podcast Sound Engineer Bobby came over and drank all of my Great Lakes Commodore Perry Double IPA. Thanks Bobby.

WHAT I AM LISTENING TO: WRTI-FM. Temple University. Classical all day. Jazz all night.

VILLA UPDATE: On Sunday afternoon at Villa Park, my boys from the Villa suffered the indignity of a 0-0 draw against their hated cross-town rival, Birmingham City. There’s a real Michigan-Michigan State, Alabama-Auburn, Texas-Texas A&M dynamic to the Villa-Birmingham rivalry, which became clear earlier this week, when one of the Aston Villa blogs referred to City fans as “knuckle-draggers" and called on Villa management to disinfect the visitor's section after the Blues fans left. Good stuff.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE WEEKEND

I was wrong.

And I am so very happy that I was wrong.

I have already been treated to a myriad of angry taunts from Penn State fans/readers/etc. who have been all too pleased to remind me that, last week, I said My Beloved Nittany Lions had no chance—none at all—of beating Michigan.

I mean, I really believed that, folks. I was certain the Wolverines would not only win, but win comfortably. I was fully prepared to watch one of the most embarrassing losses in Penn State football history.

Then the game started.

And everything I thought would happen didn’t happen. Everything I thought couldn’t happen did happen.

The Nits ran the ball at will. The Nits threw the ball at will. The Nits stuffed the Wolverines with a three-and-out on their opening drive, contained The Fastest Player In Big Ten History just about as well as could be expected, made big plays on special teams, got an absolute monster of a game from the much-criticized Evan Royster and even ran a fake field goal—a fake field goal!—to seal the win.

I kid you not when I say that I watched most of the first half in a silent daze. I sat there, stunned, trying to figure out how and why the Nits, who have been so devastatingly boring all season, suddenly had become … entertaining. I almost did not believe what I was watching was actually happening.

But it was happening.

It did happen.

And all at once, it seems, the clouds have parted. The season has been born anew. My Beloved Penn State Nittany Lions are now 5-3—which just looks a whole lot better than 4-4—and find themselves in a position to actually make a run at a decent bowl game. The Insight Bowl. The Gator Bowl. Dare I say it ... the Outback Bowl.

Ah, folks. I’m just so happy. Happy for the first time all season. Happy to have something to hope for.

Happy, I guess, just to have hope.

I was wrong.

And, damn right, I am so very happy I was wrong.

THREE YARDS AND A CLOUD OF DUST

THREE: Brian Kelly is a great football coach. Brian Kelly is a winner. And Brian Kelly, I still contend, will eventually turn Notre Dame into a Top 10 program. So, yeah, I believe in Brian Kelly. But I also believe Kelly is the only person responsible for Notre Dame’s stunning-but-not-really-all-that-stunning loss to Tulsa in South Bend on Saturday. The situation late in the fourth quarter was as follows: The Irish had the ball deep in Tulsa territory, trailing 28-27, with just seconds left. The obvious choice here was to send out kicker David Ruffer (who is a perfect 18-for-18 during his career) to win the game with a 36-yard field goal. Right? Well, not right. Not according to Kelly, at least, who instead decided to call The Worst Possible Passing Play In That Situation, a fade route to Michael Floyd. Mind you, folks, the Irish were playing at the time with a backup quarterback—specifically, a backup, 18-year-old, freshman quarterback who had already thrown two interceptions on the day. So it was no great surprise to anybody, except maybe Kelly, when Tommy Rees’ awful pass to Floyd was indeed picked off. Asked later if he was second-guessing himself for The Worst Play Call In Recent Notre Dame History, Kelly said: "Over my career I have not second-guessed my play-calling. You always look at the execution of a play, and whether the players are in position to execute it."

TWO: As for Tulsa? Well, as you might imagine, the Golden Hurricane are simply over-the-moon with this triumph. As coach Todd Graham told the Tulsa World: “To go to Notre Dame and win is something these players and coaches will remember for 50 years. We understood how significant it was." By the way: Notre Dame is the first BCS opponent Tulsa has beaten since 1998.

ONE: Do not be surprised—not in the least—if Michigan defensive coordinator Greg Robinson aka The Man Who Destroyed Syracuse is removed from his position before the season is over. Though Robinson has been dealt a bad hand here—he has no talent; none; zero; zilch—The Snake-Oil Salesman Wearing A Wizard’s Hat needs to show the powers-that-be that he’s serious about winning. As The Zooker proved last year, that goal can be accomplished by throwing your assistants under the bus. I expect this to happen sooner rather than later.

TOUCHDOWN: I know Oregon’s strength of schedule is weak, and I know the Ducks still have to play tough (?) games against Arizona and Oregon State. That being said, I simply don’t see the Ducks losing this season; their offense is quite simply otherworldly—something the likes of which we have never seen before. So, yes, I’m going to assume that the Ducks are going to play in The Mythical National Championship Game. What does this mean? Well, among many other things, it means that the Rose Bowl would be contractually obligated (yep) to invite a non-BCS team. Which means TCU, Utah or Boise are very likely headed to Pasadena (!). Ohio State fans, prepare for your beatdown.

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