In 2008, it appeared for a while as if Penn State had a team that may be a legitimate national title threat.
Lead by Daryll Clark and the revolutionary “Spread HD” offense (which was just Jay and Galen Hall finally catching up with the rest of the country), the Nittany Lions had been boat racing teams early in the season. And after a narrow victory at the Horseshoe thanks to Mark Rubin and the slippery fingers of Terrelle Pryor, Penn State reached No. 3 in the country and were favored in each of its three remaining regular season games.