Before this season started, there were some choice words Penn State coach Joe Paterno often used when he talked about the performance of his wide outs in 2003.

Among them were dubious descriptions like "pathetic" and "terrible." Since the start of spring practice, the receivers were identified as the weak components of a struggling program.

Who, then, would have expected one of those wide outs to be the man who called for a players-only meeting following Penn State's 21-7 loss to Boston College?

Because if the Nittany Lions do, in fact, bounce back from last week's 21-7 loss to Boston College, senior wide out Gerald Smith might be the No. 1 guy every Penn State fan should be thanking.

"Actually, it was Gerald that came up and called this meeting," quarterback Zack Mills said. "He did the majority of the talking."

And it has been Smith who has appeared to galvanize the team's unity in what could have been a turbulent week of preparation for tomorrow's game against the University of Central Florida.

"Gerald is an emotional guy; he is," Mills said. "It's his personality and nature to kind of step up and say something."

There were plenty of things to say on that Monday, of course, just two days removed from Penn State's first loss of the season. And it's safe to assume a few people beside Smith had points to add. Fullback Paul Jefferson and utility player Michael Robinson have been identified by their teammates as guys who have taken a leadership role this week.

But at the meeting, Smith delivered the main message, and it was a simple one: This season has to be different.

"Basically we can go two ways," Mills said, describing the tone of the players-only meeting. "[We can] let this loss get at us and affect us the whole season or we can get better."

The Lions face a crossroad this week following the defeat at Boston College similar to the one they faced after their 27-14 loss to BC in the second game of last season. Obviously the 3-9 record that ensued from that loss is fresh in Smith's mind. And another downward spiral like last season is something he -- heck, everyone on the team -- wants to avoid.

"We gotta be able to bounce back from those types of things," Smith said. "That's one thing where the senior leadership has gotta step up."

As a fifth-year senior, Smith seems to have been stepping up everywhere he can. Not just as a locker room leader, but also as a guy who's getting things done out on the field. He had a career game against BC last week, catching five passes for 74 yards. Through two games, he's totaled nine catches for 122 yards.

"Gerald has just been awesome," Robinson said. "He's very passionate and encouraging to this team and he has stepped it up big."

He also wasn't shy this week in saying that everyone on the team needs to be more responsible about getting to team meetings with the coaching staff on time. Smith said issues involving missed meetings, such as Austin Scott's absence at a team meeting the Monday before the BC game, can not happen in the future.

"We wanna eliminate something like that immediately," Smith said. "We're handling that as a team and I don't expect anymore problems like that."

Smith might be the kind of player Penn State needed more of last year. Motivating his teammates with some emotional prodding, he knows what needs to be said away from the field. But he's also performing when he's on it, and ultimately that's what makes teammates listen.

That's what makes the emotion work.

"He has done a great job channeling that," Mills said. "He's really, really stepped up. If we didn't have Gerald, we'd be in trouble."