One Word For Penn State's Rose Bowl Experience: Ouch

On January 1, 2009, the Granddaddy of Them All made Nittany Lion Nation its red-headed stepchild. During the first half—which saw the Trojans put up 31 points, it seemed that all my fears had come true. I feared that USC might kick the crap out of Penn State. I feared that USC's oversized receivers might rip undersized Lydell Sergeant, AJ Wallace and Anthony Scirrotto apart. I feared that USC's defense would be far too good for Penn State's offense. With the half-time score of USC 31, Penn State 7 in the Rose Bowl—I was right. My fears had come true. Truth be told, though, it wasn't all about USC. Penn State did quite well at shooting themselves in the foot—particularly in THAT second quarter—when the Trojans put up 24 unanswered points after being held 7-7 in the first quarter. Here are just some of the mistakes:   Early on in the first quarter, Aaron Maybin forced USC quarterback Mark Sanchez to fumble. It was brought back for offside—on ... (link)