During this week's practices, Penn State has used the stories of two historic defeats to gain inspiration for tomorrow's game -- and to move on from last week's loss to Michigan.
The players have talked about head coach Joe Paterno's 1982 team -- a group that lost its fifth game of the season, but won every contest after that on its way to a national championship.
There's also been talk among this year's players about the 2005 Lions -- who lost to Michigan in that season's seventh week, but won the rest of their games en route to an Orange Bowl victory.
The message is clear: Last week's loss doesn't mark the end of the season, Paterno said. There are still seven more Big Ten games left, beginning tomorrow at noon, when the Lions visit Illinois' Memorial Stadium.
Fittingly, it's the same place that the 2005 team began to shake off its loss to Michigan with a 63-10 victory over the Fighting Illini.
Don't be so quick to compare this year's team to the 2005 squad, though, Paterno said. There are different players in different positions -- all with their own chances to have an impact on the game.
In its 2005 loss to Michigan, the Lions' offense stayed strong behind quarterback Michael Robinson. With his 239 yards in the air and 67 yards on the ground for two touchdowns, he kept the Lions in the game until it ended with the Wolverines on top, 27-25.
Anthony Morelli's efforts at Michigan last week weren't as successful: The senior quarterback threw for only 169 yards and didn't make any gains on the ground.
Still, this year's players can't resist making the comparison to the 2005 team.
"Everybody brings it up," junior center A.Q. Shipley said. "Everybody knows about it."
Penn State's win over Illinois in 2005 is one that the Illini want to forget. This week, Illini coach Ron Zook looked back at that 63-10 loss and called it "a low point in my coaching career."
Zook was only in his first year as the Illini head coach. After that game, Zook said, he didn't know what to do -- he had just lost his fifth game in a row and felt like he needed help. Zook called a meeting with his team.
"Fellas, this is as bad as it's ever going to be," Zook recalls telling his team. "Tonight is as bad as the program is ever going to be. From here, we are going to start and move forward."
Two years later, Zook is happy with the way his team has improved, but is still not satisfied. It finished with a 2-10 record in 2006. As the season progressed, however, the Illini stayed close to their opponents. The average margin of defeat in their last seven games was about one touchdown.
That competitiveness carried over to this year, Illini junior defensive lineman Will Davis said. This season, the Illini have already surpassed 2006's win total, starting out 3-1.
"We can beat everybody on our schedule," Davis said this week. "The sky's the limit. We have turned a corner. A lot of people are gonna see how much better we are this year."
