The Nittany Lions went to Camp Randall with a goal in mind: beat Wisconsin, go 1-0, and prepare for the next opponent. The Wisconsin team Penn State was about to face was coming off a three-game winning streak, where they beat every team by at least 20 points. Wisconsin was hitting its stride, and, on the other hand, Penn State needed a huge comeback in its last game, and underwhelmed in the game before that.
Then, things started to play out like narratives of years past. Things didn’t go Penn State’s way, Wisconsin, despite ineffective play, still found itself in position to win the game, at least in the first half.