As Joe Paterno sat down to meet with the press the day after his team's 38-24 Rose Bowl loss, a pair of former colleagues stopped by, unannounced.
Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer, who had clashed with Paterno both on and off the field during their time in college football, wanted to wish the 82-year-old coach well in their own, unique way.
"To hell with those bastards," Switzer said. "You just keep doing what you're doing."
Paterno said encouragement like that is even more rewarding after one of the most challenging seasons of his 43-year head coaching career.
So difficult in fact, that there was a time he said he thought it might be his last.
When he met with the media on Jan. 2, Paterno said his hip problems got so bad there were times he thought he might get out of coaching.
"I'm glad it's over," Paterno said of the 2008 season. "It's not been a comfortable year for me. Before I got the operation, every day was an ordeal physically. Regardless of whether it was football or what, it was tough to concentrate.
"It's been a tough year for me personally, but I think in a lot of ways it's been very rewarding. It was a productive year, but I'm glad for me, personally it's over."
But after undergoing hip replacement surgery in November, Paterno said he feels fine. The surgery helped relieve his pain and discomfort to the point where Paterno said he thinks he'll be back coaching on the sideline next season.
And he'll have that chance after signing a three-year contract extension with the university in December.
Paterno said the contract extends to his coaching staff, which he said is an example of the kind of loyalty the university has shown him throughout his career.
"The contract established the fact that Penn State is committed to a certain kind of program, regardless of whether it's an old guy leading it or a younger guy," Paterno said. "There's a little bit more that goes behind it than just actual contract."
Day to remember
Offense: Daryll Clark set a Penn State bowl record with 273 yards passing against the Trojans. He accounted for all three of the Lions' scores (2 passing, 1 rushing) and while he did throw two picks, they came in desperation time. Having to deal with pressure, Clark completed 59 percent of his passes and amassed 290 yards of offense.
Defense: A day after his high school coach was killed in a car accident, Navorro Bowman played like a man possessed. Starting with an open-field take down of shifty Joe McKnight on Penn State's first play on defense, Bowman finished with eight tackles, five for loss and a sack.
Day to forget
Offense: Evan Royster was just getting going when a sprained left knee in the first quarter sidelined him for the game. Royster wanted to get back in and even put on a brace, but team doctors wouldn't allow him back on the field. Royster finished with 34 yards on six carries in the first quarter, including a 15-yard scamper on his first run.
Defense: The Rose Bowl will be marked by Penn State's secondary getting shredded for more than 400 yards and four touchdowns. The veteran grouped was outmatched and appeared confused at times, especially on Ronald Johnson's 45-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter. There wasn't a defender within 10 yards when Johnson snagged the pass.
Did you notice?
The USC Song Girls in their long-sleeve white sweats and short, short, short skirts ... Former Lions John Cappelletti, Rosey Grier, Michael Robinson, Ki-Jana Carter and Don Abbey on the sidelines ... The pregame flyover by the almost silent B-2 stealth bomber ... The loud explosions that greeted both teams running out of their respective tunnels.
Extra point
After every USC touchdown, Trojan players spilled onto the field and danced on the sideline, with many doing their best "Soulja Boy."
After USC scored to go up by 24 late in the second quarter, linebacker Rey Maualuga, amid rains of boos, ran to Penn State's end zone, pointed at the Lion fans and stomped on the white "P" in "Penn State."
And after Trojan safety Taylor Mays was flagged for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Jordan Norwood, Mays jumped around the field and screamed in celebration.
At halftime, Trojan coach Pete Carroll was told if his team kept celebrating the way it had during the first half, it would be flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct. Carroll said he couldn't have been happier with the warning and wanted to draw a penalty.
"That's the most awesome thing I ever hear," Carroll said. "We're having so much fun they want a 15-yard penalty. I was going to get the penalty called on us just so we could get a penalty called on us for having too much fun, but I forgot in the fourth quarter."
Daryll Clark, however, had other thoughts on the Trojans' celebrations. He said USC went over the line, but added it's the way the Trojans play and the only way he could have stopped them was to beat them.
"That's their thing, they've been doing it every game," Clark said. "Make no mistake about it, it's very disrespectful but they're going to do what they want to do, and it wasn't like we could've said anything, they were kicking our behinds. It is what it is."
