1st time poster, How did you take the loss? Was the day after brutal too?

[Pennstate4life]

Hey guys, Newbie here. Been a Penn State football fan for 30 plus years. For my very first thread I thought it would be almost therapeutic to hear from other faithful about what your initial reaction to that gut punch loss was. (I know everyone is/was mad, what I mean is once the game ended did you just sit in silence? Scream @ your TV? Get hammered if you already weren't. Where did you watch the game? Were you there? Anybody else having a hard time washing this loss off?

For myself I watched the game with several family members @ my sister's house. We yelled WTF in unison after that 4th and 5 playcall. Then when the game was over we just kind of sat in silence for like 30 seconds. My wife and I drove home and I have kind of been in a "did that just really happen" state since. Honest to god the last time I felt this bad after a loss was 2005 @ Michigan. Probably because I was there.

Anyways what's say you?

 

[LurkerLazarus]

Felt bad for a few minutes, then went to bed. Life goes on.

Could be a lot worse. Just watched my team lose in front of 110,000 by one point, to one of the best programs in the country. Probably won't lose more than one more, the rest of the way. I'll take that any day, compared to being say, Pitt or Rutgers.

 

[psualt]

Was a bit shocked at the end. Hard to believe you can lose a game that was clearly in hand two years in a row. The lack of perspective on this board is mind boggling and embarassing. Disappointed is the best way to describe it.

 

[PS4814]

Upset/disappointed for about 5 minutes simply for the last play, but was okay after that. Been rehashed here all Sunday but for me we played the best team in our conference to within a point during what is supposed to be a rebuilding year, with a roster that is starting several freshmen and younger players. Proud of the way our guys played all out, the mistakes/poor tackling stink but hey that’s why we play the game.

I was and am more upset though about the poor behavior by some of our “fans” online after the game. Trashing our coaches and players to the point that KJ spoke out about it on twitter.

 

[Lyons212]

Felt bad for a few minutes, then went to bed. Life goes on.

Could be a lot worse. Just watched my team lose in front of 110,000 by one point, to one of the best programs in the country. Probably won't lose more than one more, the rest of the way. I'll take that any day, compared to being say, Pitt or Rutgers.

I agree. I really try to keep in mind all the program has been through since 2011. When the sanctions hit in 2012, did anyone think we would be this good at this point in time? 2016 was great, problem is it is creating some unrealistic expectations. This team really needs a few more great recruiting classes to win games against Ohio State without having to play a near perfect game. I hate losing to them.

 

[AWS1022]

Hey guys, Newbie here. Been a Penn State football fan for 30 plus years. For my very first thread I thought it would be almost therapeutic to hear from other faithful about what your initial reaction to that gut punch loss was. (I know everyone is/was mad, what I mean is once the game ended did you just sit in silence? Scream @ your TV? Get hammered if you already weren't. Where did you watch the game? Were you there? Anybody else having a hard time washing this loss off?

For myself I watched the game with several family members @ my sister's house. We yelled WTF in unison after that 4th and 5 playcall. Then when the game was over we just kind of sat in silence for like 30 seconds. My wife and I drove home and I have kind of been in a "did that just really happen" state since. Honest to god the last time I felt this bad after a loss was 2005 @ Michigan. Probably because I was there.

Anyways what's say you?

I try to keep it in perspective. I used to let losses ruin my week, but let’s face it, if you’ve been a fan for a long time, we’ve had far more disappointments than successes (as pretty much every team has). We’ve won two NC’s in history, so that’s a lot of disappointments if that’s the only unit of measure being used. We had the dark years, where learning to accept losses was a way of life. We’ve had the sanctions, which no other program can relate to except SMU. So if any fan is using undefeated seasons and NC’s as their barometer (outside of Bama currently) maybe they need to find another hobby.

 

[burghslim]

I live in Columbus so my worst day will be Monday when I am back at work. I have to take the OSU decorations off of my door and listen to people trying to talk about the game.

 

[Mile High Lion]

Not too big of a deal. It used to be in high school, college, anytime before 30 but now I realize there are more important things in life. I look at it this way. No one ever got cancer because their sports team lost a game and no one's cancer was ever cured because their team won a game.

 

[Obliviax]

I live in Columbus so my worst day will be Monday when I am back at work. I have to take the OSU decorations off of my door and listen to people trying to talk about the game.

Most of my tOSU friends have been pretty good. They know they stole one. Other than that, it is just entertainment. Life is too short. In the end, the game would have had zero impact to my life. It was great entertainment, Sunday morning it was on to seeing what new way the Browns would lose (they never disappoint!).

 

[BUFFALO LION]

Hey guys, Newbie here. Been a Penn State football fan for 30 plus years. For my very first thread I thought it would be almost therapeutic to hear from other faithful about what your initial reaction to that gut punch loss was. (I know everyone is/was mad, what I mean is once the game ended did you just sit in silence? Scream @ your TV? Get hammered if you already weren't. Where did you watch the game? Were you there? Anybody else having a hard time washing this loss off?

For myself I watched the game with several family members @ my sister's house. We yelled WTF in unison after that 4th and 5 playcall. Then when the game was over we just kind of sat in silence for like 30 seconds. My wife and I drove home and I have kind of been in a "did that just really happen" state since. Honest to god the last time I felt this bad after a loss was 2005 @ Michigan. Probably because I was there.

Anyways what's say you?

Actually, the way our receivers had been dropping key passes all day long, and the way we have been unable to hold on to leads late in key games, I almost had a premonition this would happen as soon as we missed the 2 point conversion. At the end, we were all screaming about Franklin blowing his time outs, and then running what he did. I guess I was just more pi$$ed than surprised, and just sat there for awhile while the crowd filed out.

This loss wasn't in the same galaxy as the 1989 Alabama game. The end of that game was like an out of world experience.

We had been bashing the Alabama defense by just running the ball down their throats on that final drive, and thought Blair Thomas had scored right before the FG attempt. I was sitting right in the corner of the end zone when that FG was blocked, and as soon as that happened, it's like I went into an immediate trance. I literally thought I was dreaming, and that they would give us another chance to try it again.

You could have heard a pin drop in the stadium. Quietest I've ever heard it except for the Alabama players celebrating like they had just won the Super Bowl. A flag was thrown which gave us some sliver of hope, but deep down, I knew it was just a celebration penalty on Alabama.

That is even more vivid in my brain right now than the 4th and 5 play Saturday. I can remember exactly what I was saying right before that 1989 FG attempt like it was 5 minutes ago. And that gut wrenching, out of body feeling I had right after we missed it will be with me forever.

 

[Player2BNamedL8r]

Like several have posted here, with age comes perspective. A younger version of myself would let this one linger. Today, not so much. I’m still on edge during the games and even threw my hat once or twice (to the amazement of my 8-year old son). By the time my head hit the pillow later that night, I had sufficiently decompressed to the point where I had a pleasant/productive Sunday (winning probably would’ve impacted the rest of my weekend moreso than losing).

 

[psuro]

I kicked my neighbors cat all day Sunday. That's how I dealt with it.

And it wasn't an easy chore since my first act was to convince my neighbor to buy a cat.

 

[AWS1022]

I kicked my neighbors cat all day Sunday. That's how I dealt with it.

And it wasn't an easy chore since my first act was to convince my neighbor to buy a cat.

Didn’t he have a kid you could kick?

 

[psuro]

Didn’t he have a kid you could kick?

Kid graduated from Princeton and moved out. Ungrateful punk.

 

[Big 0]

I live in Columbus so my worst day will be Monday when I am back at work. I have to take the OSU decorations off of my door and listen to people trying to talk about the game.

I am so happy I moved out of there after 18 extremely unpleasant years and don’t have to go to work to hear all the crap the OSU fans, just about everyone at work, are spewing. Then they couldn’t let it go and would remind me about it throughout the year.

 

[PennStateTurf2002]

I was bummed a while but starting to look forward to the next game. We certainly aren’t on par with Ohio state yet and anyone who thinks we are would be crazy. We are close, we absolutely are but look at the participation report...the staff clearly didn’t have a lot of experienced depth they were comfortable with in that atmosphere and in that type of game. I have a feeling when we play Michigan that number will grow quite a bit from Ohio State game. The problem with playing this game in September.

 

[Pennstate4life]

Like several have posted here, with age comes perspective. A younger version of myself would let this one linger. Today, not so much. I’m still on edge during the games and even threw my hat once or twice (to the amazement of my 8-year old son). By the time my head hit the pillow later that night, I had sufficiently decompressed to the point where I had a pleasant/productive Sunday (winning probably would’ve impacted the rest of my weekend moreso than losing).

Oh, same here, I'm in my 40's now, and I handle losses a heck of a lot better than I did in my late teens, 20's and even early 30's. Those days a loss like this would linger for a whole week.

 

[pandaczar12]

You could feel it coming most of game. It started from the fumble before the half. It got stronger when they didn't kick the FG on 4th down. When TM didn't run for the first and threw the ball past the line, it was almost assured. I even called the 96 yard OSU drive before it started. I was able to come to term with the loss before the game was over... so it wasn't bad.

PSU played their hearts out, and were clearly the better team, regardless of the scoreboard.

 

[Cosmos]

I try to keep it in perspective. I used to let losses ruin my week, but let’s face it, if you’ve been a fan for a long time, we’ve had far more disappointments than successes (as pretty much every team has). We’ve won two NC’s in history, so that’s a lot of disappointments if that’s the only unit of measure being used. We had the dark years, where learning to accept losses was a way of life. We’ve had the sanctions, which no other program can relate to except SMU. So if any fan is using undefeated seasons and NC’s as their barometer (outside of Bama currently) maybe they need to find another hobby.

Hmmm.
First, I wouldn't describe fandom as a "hobby." A hobby is something you enjoy doing. It's an activity. Whereas being a fan is a spectator's sport. It's apples to oranges comparison. Perhaps some folks here need a hobby.

Second, in JoePa's prime (1966 - 2001) we competed for the NC every four years. That seemed to be the model until his brother died. In that context winning two NCs, going undefeated four other years and having one loss in an additional four is pretty darn successful. It rates right up there with Bama. We were an elite program.

Fast forward to today. CJF didn't say anything in his post-game presser we didn't already know. We are not an elite program. But as evidence by our performance-- particularly against OSU these past three seasons-- the talent gap in closing. And at breakneck speed considering the recent sanctions. If I may be bold enough to say, anyone who thinks otherwise was delusional.

Going into Saturday I expected to lose by 11-18 points. It wasn't unreasonable considering how Haskins was lighting things up and given our defensive woes. So for me Saturday wasn't all that disappointing. I was disappointed for the kids but they will find losing builds character. It's a ashame it takes a 19-year old kid, KJ Hamler, to tell adults to layoff the coach.

 

[fastlax16]

Had a 9 hour drive back on no rest Sunday which led to a grumpy day. Ravens beating the Steelers helped.

 

[nits74]

Actually, the way our receivers had been dropping key passes all day long, and the way we have been unable to hold on to leads late in key games, I almost had a premonition this would happen as soon as we missed the 2 point conversion. At the end, we were all screaming about Franklin blowing his time outs, and then running what he did. I guess I was just more pi$$ed than surprised, and just sat there for awhile while the crowd filed out.

This loss wasn't in the same galaxy as the 1989 Alabama game. The end of that game was like an out of world experience.

We had been bashing the Alabama defense by just running the ball down their throats on that final drive, and thought Blair Thomas had scored right before the FG attempt. I was sitting right in the corner of the end zone when that FG was blocked, and as soon as that happened, it's like I went into an immediate trance. I literally thought I was dreaming, and that they would give us another chance to try it again.

You could have heard a pin drop in the stadium. Quietest I've ever heard it except for the Alabama players celebrating like they had just won the Super Bowl. A flag was thrown which gave us some sliver of hope, but deep down, I knew it was just a celebration penalty on Alabama.

That is even more vivid in my brain right now than the 4th and 5 play Saturday. I can remember exactly what I was saying right before that 1989 FG attempt like it was 5 minutes ago. And that gut wrenching, out of body feeling I had right after we missed it will be with me forever.

Buffalo, I too was at that Alabama game. When I returned the following week, the people who sat in front of me asked if I was OK. I made them all laugh when I said "Yeah, I was even able to return to work by Thursday." I still think the Sugar Bowl loss to Alabama was worse given what was at stake. Tell you what though. This and last year's loss to Ohio State rank high. Many like to rationalize these losses, but there is no excuse. Same goes for the Rose Bowl. Other than the Wisconsin one, we just can't seem to close out the win in big games. This is very troubling.

 

[MrDibbs]

I also slept fairly well Saturday night.

My expectations coming into this season were anywhere from 8-4 to 11-1. Knowing that OSU was an opponent said that 12-0 was not a reasonable expectation and quite frankly, PSU always seems to lose to somebody that should have been a victory. The second part of that sentence is st a very real possibility, given the future opponents.

Went to a chili cookoff yesterday afternoon, wearing a Penn State shirt. Two people (1 acquaintance and 1 stranger) asked me how I was holding up. My response was that the sun came up, it's a beautiful day and the chili was decent. There will be more games.

I was also at that Alabama game. Unreal feeling. The worst for me though was the Sugar Bowl against the Crimson Tide. I was a nutso fan back in those days and I was physically ill for a couple days after Suhey/Guman each got stuffed at the goal line.

I am glad that I have matured (maybe not grown up yet).

To the original poster, welcome! You will find much enjoyment here as long as you learn to separate the chaff from the wheat.

 

[BUFFALO LION]

Buffalo, I too was at that Alabama game. When I returned the following week, the people who sat in front of me asked if I was OK. I made them all laugh when I said "Yeah, I was even able to return to work by Thursday." I still think the Sugar Bowl loss to Alabama was worse given what was at stake. Tell you what though. This and last year's loss to Ohio State rank high. Many like to rationalize these losses, but there is no excuse. Same goes for the Rose Bowl. Other than the Wisconsin one, we just can't seem to close out the win in big games. This is very troubling.

Oh, no question the Sugar Bowl loss was worse wrt the big picture. I was absolutely devastated after that game. I think both Fitzke and Guman were over on the 2nd and third down plays. But I had over 6 minutes to let that sink in and hope for a miracle.

If I had one of those two games to win, it wouldn't even be a sliver of a paper cut close. Give me that Sugar Bowl win and National Championship any day, hour, or minute of the week. But at least after that goal line stance, there was still a mathematical probability of hope that we could still tie or win that game with a turnover. Alabama got the ball back on their 1 yard line.

The '89' game on the other hand was an instantaneous, split second fall from enormous, over the top elation, to utter depression within a matter of seconds with absolutely no hope for even a small miracle. Game was over. Done. Never to be played again. Now get out of the stadium and live with it.

I was literally dazed and thought I was dreaming after that play. I was actually so whacked out that I thought they would give us a second chance. Maybe the closest thing to an out of body experience in my life even though I was the one warning everyone before the kick that we hadn't won the game until he actually made it.

 

[MontereyLion]

What pisses me off is that though we dominated for most of the game, lead in all catagories except for 2 (sacks and score), only lost by one point, Ohio State moved up to #3 and we moved down to #11. So there are 7 teams that are better then us and worse then Ohio State. We play the game over again today and we win by 2 TDs...cause we will have learned how to defend a freakin screen.

 

[HazletonLion]

I'm ok, experienced worse losses. I'm more pissed how our fans are acting towards JF. I feel we are 1 maybe 2 recruiting classes away from that constant threat for a playoff berth.
OB & JF really inherited a mess, most experts said it will take 7 years after sanctions to get to where we once were, in certain ways they were kind of right. The Big championship Rose & Fiesta bowls were events that surprised me as a fan, even though we were decimated with injuries on the OL & LB corps.
I'm disappointed only in the basic play of some of our 4**** recruits, expected better tackling, dominance etc.
Teams like ND, Mich, Tennessee, LSU etc, have been struggling to get to where everyone wants to go only they didn't have sanctions.
Again put it in perspective, not as bad as you think.

 

[83wuzme]

For me the worst thing was having to seat near an OSU fan who behaved like a total dick the whole game. As an example, he gestured with both middle fingers and extended arms to the entire stadium during the alma mater. It’s an away game for his team. Who does something like this ?
I so much wanted to see this guy’s expression after OSU lost. It almost happened.

 

[fizzyskittles]

I'm fine, I don't let this stuff ruin my day. I want to win but I understand that realistically we won't win them all. All I ask for is effort and I saw effort Saturday.

 

[Nitt1300]

I'm fine, I don't let this stuff ruin my day. I want to win but I understand that realistically we won't win them all. All I ask for is effort and I saw effort Saturday.

Yep, I've been a fan for 50 some years now- this wasn't the first tough loss, and won't be the last. Losses hit the players and coaches a lot harder than they hit us anyway- so whining about this is just that-whining.

And men don't whine.

 

[LurkerLazarus]

For me the worst thing was having to seat near an OSU fan who behaved like a total dick the whole game. As an example, he gestured with both middle fingers and extended arms to the entire stadium during the alma mater. It’s an away game for his team. Who does something like this ?
I so much wanted to see this guy’s expression after OSU lost. It almost happened.

I know a lot of OSU grads. None of them are like that.

 

[PennStateNate]

Hey guys, Newbie here. Been a Penn State football fan for 30 plus years. For my very first thread I thought it would be almost therapeutic to hear from other faithful about what your initial reaction to that gut punch loss was. (I know everyone is/was mad, what I mean is once the game ended did you just sit in silence? Scream @ your TV? Get hammered if you already weren't. Where did you watch the game? Were you there? Anybody else having a hard time washing this loss off?

For myself I watched the game with several family members @ my sister's house. We yelled WTF in unison after that 4th and 5 playcall. Then when the game was over we just kind of sat in silence for like 30 seconds. My wife and I drove home and I have kind of been in a "did that just really happen" state since. Honest to god the last time I felt this bad after a loss was 2005 @ Michigan. Probably because I was there.

Anyways what's say you?

Was upset for about 30 seconds. But as others said life goes on. We are fans. Not players, coaches, owners.

Woke up Sunday went to mass then breakfast with the family. Life went on.

 

[katchthis]

I know a lot of OSU grads. None of them are like that.

You know the doctor ones, not the 'subway alums" . Just like the ND fans, the wanna be alums are typically the worst .

 

[PennStateNate]

I was bummed a while but starting to look forward to the next game. We certainly aren’t on par with Ohio state yet and anyone who thinks we are would be crazy. We are close, we absolutely are but look at the participation report...the staff clearly didn’t have a lot of experienced depth they were comfortable with in that atmosphere and in that type of game. I have a feeling when we play Michigan that number will grow quite a bit from Ohio State game. The problem with playing this game in September.

Oh stop.

2016; We beat Ohio State
2017: Played even with them
2018: outplayed them


We are on par with them. We are just still learning about finishing games.

 

[LurkerLazarus]

You know the doctor ones, not the 'subway alums" . Just like the ND fans, the wanna be alums are typically the worst .

Quite possibly. Most of them are indeed docs.

 

[Player2BNamedL8r]

What pisses me off is that though we dominated for most of the game, lead in all catagories except for 2 (sacks and score), only lost by one point, Ohio State moved up to #3 and we moved down to #11. So there are 7 teams that are better then us and worse then Ohio State. We play the game over again today and we win by 2 TDs...cause we will have learned how to defend a freakin screen.

I think that there are at least 7 teams that could beat either tosu or PSU....and nobody is going to beat Bama.

 

[83wuzme]

I know a lot of OSU grads. None of them are like that.

The other visiting fans in my section did not behave like this.
In my experience, though, the worst behaved BIG fans I have encountered at Beaver Stadium are Michigan.

 

[Nitt1300]

The other visiting fans in my section did not behave like this.
In my experience, though, the worst behaved BIG fans I have encountered at Beaver Stadium are Michigan.

Meatchicken- the home of unjustified arrogance

 

[fizzyskittles]

Yep, I've been a fan for 50 some years now- this wasn't the first tough loss, and won't be the last. Losses hit the players and coaches a lot harder than they hit us anyway- so whining about this is just that-whining.

And men don't whine.

And this team always gives effort . They have not quit in the last three years as far as I see it.

 

[psulongago]

Hey guys, Newbie here. Been a Penn State football fan for 30 plus years. For my very first thread I thought it would be almost therapeutic to hear from other faithful about what your initial reaction to that gut punch loss was. (I know everyone is/was mad, what I mean is once the game ended did you just sit in silence? Scream @ your TV? Get hammered if you already weren't. Where did you watch the game? Were you there? Anybody else having a hard time washing this loss off?

For myself I watched the game with several family members @ my sister's house. We yelled WTF in unison after that 4th and 5 playcall. Then when the game was over we just kind of sat in silence for like 30 seconds. My wife and I drove home and I have kind of been in a "did that just really happen" state since. Honest to god the last time I felt this bad after a loss was 2005 @ Michigan. Probably because I was there.

Anyways what's say you?

Don't know what you are trying to infer, was unquestionably a great game, an on the edge of your seat game. Yes, a tough loss but the game proves we are competitive with OSU. Proves to me PSU has the skill and talent to run the table; will only get better. This year lost Barkley, Gesicki and Hamilton plus some on medicals. Next year lose McSorley, big, big loss, but I don't think a whole lot more. Not sure if we are ELITE but every team should be afraid.

 

[demlion]

I slept like a baby. Woke up every two hours and cried like hell.

 

[doofis]

It's entertainment. Vicarious entertainment. I was entertained.

Turned it off after the credits ran and skinned my recurve-killed doe in the chilly Fall air, under the stars.