Penn State Football: Tonight, the Haters Were Right

On Dec. 11, 2023, Twitter user @drewjanda put out a since-deleted post that now lives in sports meme infamy. It read as follows:

“The haters said I couldn’t do it. And they were correct. Honestly great call from the haters.”

It perfectly encapsulates the Nittany Lions’ Saturday night meltdown at the hands of Wisconsin. 

The game began with a 17-0 blue-and-white lead, including back-to-back interceptions by the defense which sent the Homecoming crowd ablaze. By the end of the night, Penn State had imploded, dropping its Big Ten opener 24-20. That same crowd supplied the first smattering of boos of the Matt Campbell era.

Adding to the misery was the grueling nature in which the Badgers battled back, not through a particularly potent offensive performance, but with clunky, disorganized drives. Wisconsin quarterback Colton Joseph missed throws, the offensive line struggled in pass protection and the receivers gathered little separation, but the visitors still trumped what Penn State produced offensively in a comeback that slowly felt inevitable.

“We really struggled to find a rhythm … I think we had a lot of play opportunities to be made,” Campbell said after the game. “Obviously, it’s an area we’re going to have to significantly improve if we’re going to be the team we want to be. We’ve got the players and the people to do it, but we’re going to have to make the right improvements.”

The defense held up its end of the bargain, holding Wisconsin to just 10 points entering the fourth quarter but crumbling late when fatigue set in, thanks to repeated three-and-outs by the offense. The special teams were also solid — Zay Robinson dazzled once more with his shiftiness on returns, and kicker Ryan Barker drilled both field goal attempts and both extra points.

All in all, the defense supplied six points off Josiah Zayas’ pick-6, the kicking unit added eight, and the Nittany Lion offense had the other six as by far the weakest link.

At one point during the fourth quarter, Penn State’s crowd — which deserves immense credit — had forced three false starts for 15 yards, while Taylor Mouser’s unit had mustered just 10 yards. In other words, the fans had more fourth-quarter yards than the Nittany Lion offense until the final drive of the game.

Quarterback Rocco Becht began the game four-for-five, and after that point, went eight-for-24, while the offense — which was sluggish to begin the game — grinded to a complete halt. Midway through the game, a sleeve was applied to Becht’s left calf for a potential injury, but it’s hard to attribute that to his shortcomings.

The play-calling was questionable, including multiple runs on third-and-long and some unnecessary trick plays later in the game. The personnel decisions were questionable, with running back Carson Hansen once again getting the start despite James Peoples having better production both throughout the season and once the game started.

Additionally, whether it was Campbell’s or Mouser’s decision, the offense seemed unsure of itself. Backup quarterback Alex Manske was brought in for a package that had been hinted at during the offseason, but after tight end Gabe Burkle false started, Manske came off the field and never returned.

Also, the offense came out of the third quarter break and lined up to go for it on fourth and 1 before burning a timeout just to punt instead. Maybe they were hoping to see a different defensive alignment, but it’s a tough look regardless after having all break to prepare the play.

Among the 108,014 announced in attendance, and the hundreds of thousands of Penn State fans watching from home (sorry to those affected by the Peacock broadcast quality), there were certainly many Iowa State and Virginia Tech fans also tuning in for a successful hate watch.

All of the critiques poured on Campbell, the staff and the players throughout the offseason felt validated.

The “Matt Campbell isn’t reliable as a favorite” haters were correct.

The “Iowa State East” haters were correct.

The “Rocco Becht has accuracy issues” haters were correct.

The “this staff isn’t ready for the Big Ten” haters were correct.

At least, for one night they were. And one night doesn’t define a season, nor does it define a coaching tenure, but sometimes you just have to tip your cap — honestly, great call from the haters.