‘They really weren’t tonight’ — Dan Lanning’s compliment to Happy Valley should still be considered a challenge the next time Penn State hosts Oregon
Dan Lanning had nothing but great things to say about Beaver Stadium’s environment — but there’s a challenge issued in there anyway.
The Penn State Nittany Lions‘ double-overtime loss to the Oregon Ducks had a little bit of everything. There were heavy hits, momentum swings, a frantic fourth-quarter comeback and the blow for blow exchanges that make college football’s overtime structure so fantastic. The Lions didn’t give the home crowd much to cheer about on offense through the first three quarters — scrapping offensively while struggling to get things going on the ground as they had in last year’s Big 10 Championship Game.
But even a restless crowd at Beaver Stadium is still a home crowd at Beaver Stadium. When the dust settled between these two teams, Oregon’s head coach Dan Lanning was quick on the draw to compliment Penn State’s playing environment before praising his team’s ability to handle it.
Dan Lanning felt his team handled the White Out noise and negated one of the best home field advantages in all of college football
“That crowd’s probably worth seven points, and they really weren’t tonight. I didn’t feel that. The only time we beat ourselves was when we beat ourselves. The only time we really struggled was when we beat ourselves. It was going to be a battle, we had to figure out what worked but they handled this environment and it ended up not being a factor for our team. That’s why you play college football, that environment was unbelievable.”
— Oregon coach Dan Lanning on playing at Beaver Stadium
To Lanning’s point, Oregon was penalized just four times for 34 yards throughout the course of the contest. They did not appear to have prominent communication issues that have been known to pop up throughout the course of a game with a rowdy crowd. They did not turn the ball over — although they tried on a miscue at the mesh point that saw quarterback Dante Moore pounce back on the football.
The folks in the stands ultimately don’t have pads on. The plays aren’t theirs to make. But Oregon’s trip to Happy Valley finished with a respectful tip of the cap and a smile — plus a win for the Ducks and a happy flight home across the country. The next time the Ducks come to play Penn State, it will be up to everyone with the program to make them feel it more. The Lions could help by giving the crowd more to be amped up and noisy for throughout the course of the entire game. But Penn State fans should remember the polite challenge that Lanning has leveed on his way out the door for next time.
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