College football fans couldn't turn on the television last week without hearing about Vince Young and Reggie Bush. The superstars from Texas and Southern California, respectively, dominated the coverage, single-handedly representing their teams.

Down in Miami at the Orange Bowl, a different story was unfolding.

Penn State football was revived in 2005, culminating with a 26-23 triple-overtime win over Florida State. And it wasn't because of one man.

Joe Paterno drew most of the headlines in his battle with Seminoles coach Bobby Bowden, but as the game and season proved, the Nittany Lions' success came from their entire rosters.

The heralded senior class, led by quarterback Michael Robinson, carried the team throughout the season. The seven seniors on defense came up huge in their final collegiate game by shutting down the Seminoles' offense.

Freshmen bolstered the seniors in their quest, particularly at wide receiver, where Deon Butler, Justin King and Jordan Norwood forced opponents to respect the Lions' passing game, opening things up on the ground.

And when it mattered most in the Orange Bowl, depth players rose to the occasion, as Ethan Kilmer and Austin Scott were invaluable to the Lions' victory.

As a group, the team gave its school and fans something to root for -- and did they ever. Miami was overrun with blue-and-white-clad fans, delirious in their team's success. To say that Penn State supported its team would be an understatement.

Even after a heartbreaking last-second loss to Michigan back in October, fans rebounded along with the team to create some of the biggest crowds in Penn State history. The sting of the loss was lessened by hindsight -- even with a victory over the Wolverines, the Lions wouldn't have been playing for the national title.

After the 2002 season, the Lions weren't able to carry their momentum from a New Year's Day bowl into the next season, and fan support wavered.

This time, here's hoping the return to good football stays, both on and off the field.