Beaver Stadium roared, Zack Mills smiled and, for a few hours on an otherwise dreary Saturday in November, all was right again in the world of Penn State football.

In a season where the Nittany Lions lamented needing just a few more plays to win each game, everything finally went right Saturday as the Lions thrashed Michigan State, 37-13, to close out their 2004 schedule.

Penn State (4-7, 2-6 Big Ten) finished with a losing record for the fourth time in the last five seasons but finished a season with consecutive wins for the first time since 1998.

"It's a great feeling to end like this," senior safety Andrew Guman said. "It's bittersweet just because I'm done now, but it's a lot better to end it like this than it would be with our heads hanging, [walking] off the field. We came out and we played hard, and we have nothing to be ashamed of from this season."

Unlike last season, when the Lions collapsed in the final game against the Spartans (5-6, 4-4), Penn State carried momentum from last week's goal-line stand that sealed an emotional win over Indiana to finish the season on a high note.

"They've hung in there, and hung in there, and hung in there," Penn State coach Joe Paterno said. "And I'm not walking away as if they're a 4-7 team. I'm looking at it as if they are a bunch of kids that have really hung together, and they've gotten a lot out of their experience. They'll be better people for it. I think Penn State's proud of them."

Coaches, players and fans alike could be proud of the effort put forth in the third quarter that put the Lions ahead for good.

Trailing 6-3 to start the second half, the Lions took the ball 75 yards down the field and got a 1-yard Tony Hunt touchdown plunge to take the lead.

Hunt's score ignited the Lions, and interceptions by Tamba Hali and Paul Posluszny on Michigan State's next two drives set up two Mills touchdown runs on ensuing plays.

Mills ended the third-quarter flurry by adding a 6-yard touchdown pass to Michael Robinson. The senior finished his final game in a Penn State uniform with 105 yards passing and led the Lions with 74 yards rushing.

Mills' touchdown pass gave him 41 for his career, tying him for the school record with Todd Blackledge and Tony Sacca. Mills will leave Happy Valley holding 18 Penn State records.

The stunned Spartans suddenly found themselves down 31-6, and any hopes of a comeback and a bowl-game bid were out the window just as quickly.

"They came out in the second half and played smarter, harder and better than we did," Michigan State coach John L. Smith said. "We didn't get the job done."

Though the Lions defense had been stingy all season, it still had difficulty coming up with that one big play that could change the momentum of a game -- until Saturday.

It started with the Spartans driving to add to a 3-0 lead in the second quarter when cornerback Anwar Phillips intercepted Drew Stanton in the end zone, a play from which the Spartans offense was never able to recover.

Calvin Lowry joined the fun with two interceptions of his own, as Penn State intercepted Michigan State quarterbacks five times.

Donnie Johnson blocked his second punt of the season, Robbie Gould closed out his career with three field goals on the day, including a season-long 47-yarder in the second quarter, and the Lions head into the offseason with some confidence.

"We felt the whole year, if we can just get one win, we might not lose for two years," Penn State quarterbacks coach Jay Paterno said. "And [last week's win over Indiana] might be -- 20 years from now we might look at it, and that goal-line stand might be the most important four plays in the history of Penn State football, who knows. And we're gonna try and make it that way."