“Nittany Lions miss ample opportunity to beat Buckeyes”.

If I had written this yesterday as I intended, it would have read very differently. As the No. 3 team in the country, Penn State was in position to finally break through its glass ceiling against an Ohio State team that seemed vulnerable a week ago against Nebraska (which, by the way, just lost to UCLA).

As the seconds ticked away and the Buckeyes scored first down after first down to run down the clock, the feeling dawned that Penn State would once again fall just short of the bar in the Big Ten. They had plenty of opportunities, but not being able to score an offensive touchdown since 2022 once again proved to be too much.

And then the rest of the college football day happened. Clemson lost. Not only did Texas A&M lose, they were embarrassed. Pitt's undefeated season comes to an end. Georgia needed a lot of luck to get rid of a Florida team that might be without its head coach at the end of the season. The Big 12 could very well be a single-team league based on Iowa State and Kansas State's losses this season.

What's the point of all this? It's simple: If the worst thing that can happen to us as Penn State fans is losing to Ohio State again, still making the playoffs and possibly making it a home game, then we're doing pretty well .

Let's go back to the Georgian team for a moment. They won two consecutive national titles. They should get the gold standard after Nick Saban retires. But with Kalen DeBoer at the helm, Georgia went to Tuscaloosa ready to exorcise her demons. An almost complete comeback later, and fans continue to wonder whether it was a Nick Saban problem or an Alabama problem. Well, maybe James Franklin has a problem with Ohio State, just as Kirby Smart, the de facto best coach in the country, has a problem with Alabama.

It's not about mitigating the loss. It burns badly. Rather, the goal is to put everything in perspective. First, things could always get worse. We could already be out of the running for the 12-team playoffs, but we're not. Second, we could find ourselves in Georgia territory, a team that beats almost everyone else but can't easily catch its white whale.

That's not a given, but with a win in the next four games the Lions are all but guaranteed a spot in the playoffs. At this point, it's a new season. What the Nittany Lions do from there will be what it is, but at least they have a chance now.

Maybe that's what people meant when they said the season wouldn't matter anymore because of the 12-team playoffs. I just can't bring myself to be too disappointed by the loss. Yes, it's annoying to be faced with the same hurdle over and over again and not be able to overcome it. Yet, as I sit here and look at what lies ahead, I'm still excited that Penn State still has something substantial to offer, that Ohio State didn't end the Nittany Lions' season by stopping them on fourth down , with which if you're lucky enough they might still be alive for a conference title. And most importantly, this defeat does not disqualify them from the biggest prize of all.

This time last year I posted about the prospect, but out of desperation, knowing every remaining game on the schedule was just a formality. Today it's about the significance of each remaining game, because the Nittany Lions aren't quite out yet.