Blue White Illustrated

At the beginning of the week, Penn State is a two-and-a-half-point favorite, but the public remains wary of what the sanction-depleted Lions might be able to do against their more formidable Big Ten comTHRILL OF THE petition. By game day, CHASE Mauti had Illinois is a one-point favorite, despite being a huge game for the blown out in two of its Nittany Lions, finishfour games, 45-14 at ing with six tackles Arizona State and 52– and two intercep24 at home against Louisiana Tech. Few in tions, one of which he the media – even the returned 99 yards. Illini beat reporters – think Illinois will win, and Penn State's reporters are nearly unanimous in picking the Nittany Lions, although their victory margins vary widely from one to 21 points, with a consensus somewhere in the middle. A sampling: Bob Flounders, The (Harrisburg) Patriot-News: "This one is personal for Penn State's football program. Score prediction: " 20-17. Nate Bauer, Blue White Illustrated: "There is an undeniable extra motivation for this game, both from the players and the Penn State coaching staff, regardless of whatever they're saying publicly about not holding a grudge and having more important things to worry about. Score " prediction: 24-13. Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune: "Both coaches downplayed this week Illinois' recruitment of Penn State players over the summer, but fans still will be watching for signs of hostility between the programs. Penn State is on the upswing after two straight victories, and the rise looks like it will continue in Champaign. Score pre" Steve Manuel diction: 21-17. << Joe Juliano of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes, "The Nittany Lions open their Big Ten schedule on Saturday at Illinois. Of course, the subplot is the fact that coaches from the Fighting Illini staff came to State College in July shortly after the NCAA handed out its harsh sanctions to recruit Penn State players. If coaches and players are still angry about this, then they're doing a good job of hiding it." Saturday, Sept. 29, 2012 There was plenty of room for parking in the public tailgating lots near Memorial Stadium and a lot of empty seats inside as the 11 a.m. kickoff approached for the nationally televised game in the 70,904seat stadium. The fans who showed up saw one of the great plays in Penn State football history, for which Michael Mauti two days later would be selected the Walter Camp Football Foundation's National Defensive Player of the Week. The crowd, announced at 46,734, included what would turn out to be the smallest contingent of Penn State fans for any of the five away games. Only 725 tickets were sold by the Penn State athletics department, but those ticket-holders did get to see the Penn State Blue Band. The band is allowed to travel to only one away game per year during the regular season, and in 2012, the Illinois game was that game. So in reality, this was also the band's bowl game. I'm not sure they picked the right game, but for my wife and me and the other 723 Penn State fans who were on hand, revenge was sweet. Even with a new coach, Illinois fans have soured on their team in the previous two years, and when this game is over, the reason is obvious. About the only thing the home team wins is the opening coin toss. In the Lions' previous four games, they scored twice on their first possession and reached the opponent's 24- and 45-yard lines in the other games. This time, however, the offense goes three-and-out and is forced to punt from its own 31. The punt goes 47 yards, and just as the returner is about to catch the ball, he sees Mauti roaring toward him, loses his concentration and drops the ball a second before Mauti smashes into him. Penn State's new long snapper, run-on senior Mitch Furman, who played last week for the first time in his five years on the team, recovers at the Illini 26-yard line. On fourth-and-3 at the Illini 7-yard line, Sam Ficken's field goal attempt goes awry, but Illinois is penalized for roughing the kicker. Two plays later, Zach Zwinak bashes over left tackle for the touchdown, and Ficken adds the PAT. A few minutes later, Matt McGloin scores on a 1-yard quarterback sneak after a 60-yard drive. With six and a half minutes to go in the first quarter, Penn State leads, 14-0. But the offense sputters and both teams miss field goals – Ficken's is wide left from 47 yards – before the Lions go 72 yards for a touchdown on a 21-yard re-

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