There were flashbulbs. The largest-ever Beaver Stadium crowd was moved as Adam Taliaferro returned to the field -- walking. A win would have given Joe Paterno a share of Bear Bryant's all-time victory record. Even after Miami scored, Larry Johnson returned Penn State's first kickoff reception to midfield. There was hope.

But quickly, it was apparent how the game was going to be, with Miami's 11 manhandling Penn State's.

You could see them getting knocked flat on their butts. Gus Felder, all 316 pounds of him, up one second, straight down the next. The Miami lineman would just explode off the line, in one simple, stated movement, his momentum gouging through the Penn State line until, there he was, Matt Senneca.

The Penn State defense would take the field and that same line, that same trench, seemed tranquil. The ball would leave the center's hand, and seemingly little would happen after that. Ken Dorsey would drop back, take his five seconds, lock in, and fire.

So there were exceptions. On first downs, sometimes, there would be a sector of activity on that line. It would just clear out, without the violence you'd expect. Instead, the whole would just appear, and there went Clinton Portis.

A month later the Lions were off to their first 0-4 start ever, losers in 14 of their last 19 games.

And, then there were whispers. The Nittany Lions are weak. They get pushed around. That's why Penn State no longer dominates: it doesn't compete in the weight room and as a result it can't compete on the field.

Strength training tends to stick out at Penn State because the Lions employ a system decidedly different from mainstream ideas on the issue. It is often the one aspect of the program that is most vigorously attacked as the reason for any faltering on the field.

But as much is to be expected when an issue is cut so sharply with such an evident divide. In fact, it is the only way anything can play out when a Technicolor issue is depicted in black and white.

The majority of college football teams train using Olympic-style power lifting. Penn State employs the other training methodology, known as high intensity training, or HIT.

Light was cast on the discrepancy between the two last January, when the top-ranked running back in the country, Kevin Jones of Cardinal O'Hara H.S. in Philadelphia, threw down a Penn State jersey and revealed his college choice: Virginia Tech.

In a Philadelphia Inquirer article dated Jan. 17, Tom Jones, Kevin's father and the strength coach at O'Hara is quoted as saying: "We're looking at the training practices at both schools. We're looking for the same type of (weight and speed) training we're doing now. This is not a done deal. Everyone thinks he's going to Penn State. That's not exactly true."

Tom Jones advocates an Olympic system, so if the above statement represent the truth about what his son was looking for, Penn State was never really an option. Jones himself would later say that the training issue was "part of the reason, but not a real big factor."

Tom Jones's only comment on this story was, "(Kevin's) down at Tech and he's happy, I'm happy, I guess Joe's happy."

Of course, Jones is just one recruit and his choosing a different school possibly because of its weight-training program is not indicative of any sort of inherent problem with HIT. Rather, it serves to illustrate just how strong the sentiment is toward one program or the other.

There is a prevailing sense of ignorance between strength coaches concerning the variety of programs out there. Each program, whether Olympic-style or HIT, is tailored not only to fit individual program needs, but to individual player needs as well.

So there tends to be much banter back and forth between sides and very little actual communication. Recent work by men like Michigan State strength coach Ken Mannie has served to lessen the divide and provide common ground for Olympic-style training and HIT to stand on. Yet the general strength-training community, as well as the public in general, still carries many misconceptions toward the HIT style of training.

Rumors persist around State College that Penn State players train at local gyms using Olympic techniques in order to get stronger. Several former Lions have been highly critical of the system, so much so that one was reportedly considering a law suit against Penn State for not training him correctly.

Yet other players stick with the system throughout their pro careers.

So are the whispers justified, or is it just paranoia?