The Penn State seniors went out in style Saturday.

Style, that is, to the tune of 52 points.

For many graduating Lions, the 52-7 drubbing of Indiana (2-9, 1-6 Big Ten) was the product of not only a season's worth of frustrations brought about by a 3-8 record (1-6 Big Ten), but a career's worth of disappointment.

"I really admire this group of seniors," Penn State football coach Joe Paterno said. "The fact that they could have given in at any time, but didn't, has shown a lot about this group."

While some seniors will be packing a career losing record along with their diplomas, all that mattered against the Hoosiers was the return of that winning feeling.

"It felt good. I kind of forgot what winning felt like," senior fullback Sean McHugh said. "It's nice to be able to be in the locker room, laughing around and having a good time, especially since this was the last time I was playing in Beaver Stadium."

After Indiana's initial offensive drive saw the Hoosiers methodically march down the field behind the running prowess of freshman back BenJarvus Green-Ellis for their only score of the day, the Nittany Lions went on an offensive rampage.

Leading the Lions offensively was the senior and freshman wide receiver tandem of Tony Johnson and Maurice Humphrey. Humphrey led Penn State in receiving yards with 121, while Johnson was tops in touchdown catches with three.

For Johnson, who had worked his way back up the depth chart after serving a two-game suspension for being charged with driving under the influence, it was an afternoon to remember as he capped off his final stand in Happy Valley with a career day.

"As a senior, it means a lot to me," Johnson said. "Not only my performance had an impact, it was how we played as a team. It all made a big difference for us."

Johnson was not the only player who returned to old form. Redshirt junior quarterback Zack Mills completed 12 of 19 passes for three touchdowns as he continued to show signs of consistency and improvement.

"We wanted to send the seniors off with good memories," Mills said. "The seniors played great overall, and I think it was a great send-off."

The theme of garnering a home finale win for the seniors on the team was something held by all of the underclassman Lions.

"It was the seniors' last home game, so we wanted to make it special," Humphrey said. "We were just having fun out there. We didn't think we were going to beat them by this many points, but those types of things just happen."

The 52 points the Lions put on the board were the most the team had scored all season. It was not an accident, however.

Humphrey said at half time, Paterno told all the players he wanted them to put up at least 50 points on the Hoosiers, whether it was on offense or defense.

Even though yesterday's game was far from a marquee match-up as two of the bottom-feeding teams in the Big Ten fought for ninth place, nothing could replace the proper senior send-off.

"A win is a win," McHugh said. "It's as simple as that. I don't care if you're playing Oklahoma or Indiana, especially if you haven't been winning much. I don't care if we were playing a high school team -- it felt good to win."