I recognize this is a bit later than usual but I felt it was important to do an edition of Did You Notice following the Northwestern game.
In part, I waited because I wanted to see how all of what happened played out. I wanted to let some of this settle before I reacted to it.
And I also went to the Steelers game on Sunday (more on that in a little bit) and prioritized a few other blog items that have been published here and here – with a few more coming this week. We also recorded this week’s podcast, which you can listen to here.
I’m not sure we will ever experience anything like Saturday again so did you notice:
• The atmosphere inside Beaver Stadium was as apathetic as ever. It may never get more apathetic either. Even too was it that way in the tailgate lots.
Many of them, well into the late morning, were not as full as they’d been by the same time of day when Penn State hosted Oregon a few weeks prior. When you walked into the stadium, there was no buzz on the concourse and it felt far less crammed than usual. No one was in a hurry to get to their seats, no one was in their usual pregame rush.
At the seats and throughout the game, it felt as though no one wanted to be there either, but no one could find other plans to avoid being there. It was awkward at times. The crowd, which was at full volume against Oregon, only entered the game after Devonte Ross’ long catch.
It was more clear than ever that Franklin had lost Penn State fans and that fans had given up on him – even if Penn State had beaten Northwestern.
Surprisingly, there weren’t as many boos as I’d expected. The jeer during his introduction on the jumbotron, which was debated if it would be shown, was not overly hostile.
But as the clock ticked down with Franklin’s time winding to an end at Penn State, the “Fire Franklin” chant grew throughout the entire stadium. It was more hostile but even had a tenor of tiredness. I think this fact is missing from a lot of the larger national conversations. Even if Penn State had found a way to come back, would it have mattered? No one was excited.
People were just done.
• I buy a Mountain Dew for myself and a water for Anna at the Scott’s Roasting stand on my way to the seats at every game. I never remember Penn State taking the caps off of water bottles before. It was clear that Penn State had anticipated fans would throw them at Franklin should things turn south.
A few others texted me about it and it turns out vendors had to sign paperwork on Saturday saying they could be dismissed if they gave a water bottle with a cap. It will be interesting to see if this changes for Indiana.
(A quick pro-tip: Next time you buy a water at the store buy an Aquafina, save the cap and put it into your – or your partner’s – clear bag. Then you will have one.)
• I was surprised to see the pregame pump up video was still the one used for Oregon about expectations and “whatever it takes” to go 1-0. It was also easier to hear because of how quiet the stadium was.
• All of the ads reverted back to the their pre-White Out form. The one for Confer’s Jewelers about a championship having a “nice ring” to it was rather ironic in that moment though.
• I don’t know that people expect gourmet meals when they step inside Beaver Stadium, but the food prices should warrant a better quality product. At the Oregon game, I grabbed a burger from a kiosk near our section and it was not good. But in the spirit of journalism (and because I forgot to take a picture) I wanted to see if it was a fluke.
It was not. I got the Penn State Burger, which costs $13.65, a gross overinflation of price for a gross burger. Not only was the burger cooked extra well-done, it was thin and almost crispy with how dry it was. It was lukewarm as well. The cheese, which made government cheese look like the finest France has to offer, was hardly melted and served no other purpose than to increase the price. Compared to other dependable food options inside Beaver Stadium, the burger was a waste of money at that price point.
Even high school lunches were better than this. Again, I’m not looking for a once-in-a-lifetime meal. But as prices creep up, fans deserve value in what they’re paying. They’re not getting it. Needless to say, I will not be purchasing a burger again.
• Earlier in the day, Penn State opened a pop-up near Gate E featuring Generations of Greatness merch and the selection was excellent. Not only were there merch I had not seen before, but each purchase came with the ability to append a patch to the item you bought. If you were there early enough, you also got a pack of cards featuring former Nittany Lions in the NFL from various years. There was also an area where you could have a card of you made. It was a cool interaction and experience that resulted in my forking over $30 for a new hat – one which I will now associate with the firing of Franklin.
• My favorite Homecoming tradition will forever be the full playing of “The Nittany Lion” by the Blue Band and the Alumni Blue Band.
• Penn State had the score of the Oklahoma-Texas game backwards on the out-of-town scoreboard. That felt like a miss.
• Garry Gilliam will always be intertwined in my Penn State football fandom because he was the first Penn State football player I got to know on campus. He also gave me and a few friends tickets to the 2012 Nebraska game, which started a love for roadtrips. It was cool to see him get a moment like that inside Beaver Stadium.
• As I mentioned, we were in Pittsburgh on Sunday for the Steelers win over the Browns and the NFL stadium experience is so much better. The amount of information you get, the graphic packages and so much more blow every college stadium I’ve been to out of the water. I was also surprised to see that beer was about $1.50 cheaper than inside Beaver Stadium.
And yes, this means that I was at the Steelers game when I found out the news. This will be a “where were you when” moment for Penn State fans. Former SSSWS correspondent Eric Sion was at mile 24 of the Chicago Marathon when he found out. And a few of you were also in some interesting spots as well.
Thanks to everyone who shared – and if I missed something, let me know at darian@stuffsomerssays.com
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