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Black Shoe Diaries

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DOMINATE THE STATE

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YAY HOOPS(?): Penn State vs. Sacred Heart Open Thread

The Nittany Lions face Sacred Heart for their second straight game in the BJC. The Pioneers are coached by Anthony Latina. The game will be streamed on Peacock at 6:00 PM. If you haven’t done so already, check out our preview. As always, the usual open thread rules apply: Don’t link to any streams, don’t post […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

Basketball: Sacred Heart Preview/Open Thread

It’s another Saturday and another day where Penn State’s mens basketball team will be on the floor as the same time as the football team. This time, the Lions are home at the BJC for a 6 p.m. tipoff against Sacred Heart. The game can be seen on the Peacock app. Penn State is coming […]

2 months ago | 1 read

Early Morning and Noon Games Open Thread: Penn State vs. Rutgers

Welp, it’s not the ending we imagined, but it’s time to make the most of it while we can. Penn State can earn bowl eligibility with its third consecutive win. The only thing standing in their way is a 5-6 Rutgers squad who is also fighting to keep their season alive. Grab a plate of […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

Fall Sports Update: Women’s Hockey Stays Unbeaten

Women’s Hockey (16-0) It was a tighter margin than the team has been used to this season, but the women’s hockey team stayed unbeaten with 5-3 and 4-3 wins over RIT last weekend. Penn State had allowed more than two goals just once in its first 14 games. In Game 1, Mya Vaslet and Maddy […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

BSD Mailbag 11/28/25

Homer Ozzie & The Straw asks: Should I go to the game on Saturday? And if I do, who should I drag with me? I think it’ll be a little too cold for the kids to enjoy it. Marge will go if I push but she won’t be dying to do it for sure. If […]

2 months ago | 2 reads

Interviews with Frenemies: Rutgers

Penn State heads to Piscataway on Saturday looking to even its mark at 6-6 and reach bowl eligibility. Meanwhile, Rutgers has the same mark and the same goal. So how has the year gone for the Scarlet Knights? We checked in with Andrew Rice, managing editor of On the Banks, our sister SB Nation Rutgers […]

2 months ago | 1 read

The 9 College Football Games to Watch During Rivalry Week

Please forgive me for some of the brief game summaries below, but I have good reason. For one, it will save you from reading “it’s a game where you can throw the records out” over and over again. Secondly, I’m writing this post-Thanksgiving meal while digesting an outrageous amount of food.   FRIDAY (#7)Ole Miss at […]

2 months ago | 1 read

BSD Staff Predictions Roundtable: Rutgers

The Lions take the gridiron for their final regular season game on the road against Rutgers, both teams needing a win for bowl eligibility. How does the staff see this one playing out? Chris Penn State is a team resurgent following wins against Michigan State and Nebraska. After 6 straight losses in the middle of […]

2 months ago | 2 reads

Penn State vs. Rutgers: Game Preview

Penn State tries to close out the regular season with a three-game winning streak as both teams fight for bowl eligibility. Penn State (5-6, 2-6) vs. Rutgers (5-6, 2-6) Kickoff: 3:30 p.m., SHI Stadium, Piscataway, NJ The Betting Line: Penn State -10.5 TV: BTN, 3:30 p.m., Jeff Levering (play-by-play), Jake Butt (analyst), Brooke Fletcher (sideline) Weather: A cool but […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

Hockey Film Room: Power Play Tweaks

While football takes the spotlight on Thanksgiving Day, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving is one of the biggest nights of the year for hockey. Having Andouille lentil soup for dinner and watching the Penguins game on Thanksgiving Eve is an annual tradition for my family just as much as the turkey and stuffing. With Thanksgiving Eve […]

2 months ago | 5 reads

Snap Counts: Nebraska

46 Penn State players had at least one snap in Saturday’s 37-10 demolition of Nebraska. NOTE: Season totals in parentheses Offense: 51 snaps (704) Quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer: 51 (339) Running Backs Kaytron Allen: 40 (395)Nicholas Singleton: 19 (334) Wide Receivers Devonte Ross: 32 (334)Trebor Peña: 31 (457)Kyron Hudson: 28 (493)Koby Howard: 17 (104)Liam Clifford: 4 […]

2 months ago | 1 read

Midweek Musings – Gone So Fast

We as fans hang around for the vast majority of any calendar year without football to watch. We discuss coaching changes, facility upgrades, recruiting wins and losses, transfers, what qualifies as a sandwich, and so on, for 40 weeks out of the year. And it’s all enjoyable, but for many of us it’s just filler, […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

Just the Stats: Penn State vs Rutgers

Penn St. Nittany Lions (5-6; 2-6 Big Ten) vs Rutgers Scarlet Knights (5-6; 2-6 Big Ten) 3:30 p.m. ET, November 29—BTN SHI Stadium (Capacity: 52,454 / Piscataway, NJ) Tableizer using codebeautify.org Penn State Value (Nat’l Rank) Value (Nat’l Rank) Rutgers Advantage Rushing Offense (ypg) 166.4 (63) 201.7 (127) Rushing Defense (ypg) Passing Offense (ypg) 179.1 […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

Bowl Projections 2025: Week 13

Welcome back to our weekly series tracking some of the bowl/CFP picks for Penn State football following each game, This season, we will follow ESPN, Yahoo, College Football News, and CBS Sports, with occasional bonus picks from other publications. Yahoo Sports/College Football News: Bowl/CFP Seed: Pinstripe Bowl Location: New York, NY Date: December 27th, 2025 […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

Penn State 96, Boston University 87: Defense Is Optional

While both Penn State and Boston University got off to a bit of a sleepy start, it was only a matter of time before the Nittany Lions imposed their will on the Terriers. It was a first-half offensive onslaught for Penn State as nine players scored and six scored multiple times. It was Josh Reed, […]

2 months ago | 2 reads

YAY HOOPS: Penn State vs. Boston University Open Thread

Coming up at 7:00 PM EST exclusively on Peacock, the Nittany Lions and the Terriers will wage battle at the Bryce Jordan Center. If you haven’t seen Eli’s preview, then you may want to check that out. Otherwise, comment away below to your heart’s desire. Just make sure you don’t post anything illegal, pornographic, or […]

2 months ago | 1 read

Penn State vs Boston University Preview: Lions Back Home

The last time we saw the Nittany Lions, they played a competitive game with Providence for about 30 minutes, then, after coming back from a 12-point deficit to make it a three point game, a pair of threes by the Friars opened it back up, and that was all she wrote. Now, the Lions look […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

This Week in Happy Valley: Decisions, Decisions

Terry Smith on advocating himself to be Penn State’s next coach. Kaytron Allen was named Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week. Drew Allar is on schedule with his recovery and is looking ahead to the NFL Draft. PFF named Penn State as its Offensive Line of the Week for its performance against Nebraska. The […]

2 months ago | 1 read

Blessed & Honored: Jackson Ford Visits Penn State

Kevin Brown Flips to West Virginia Four-star offensive lineman Kevin Brown flipped to West Virginia last week: Brown’s dad was an offensive lineman at West Virginia, so this flip is hardly a surprise. Penn State’s 2026 class is now down to 10 total players, ranking No. 81 in the country. Elijah Littlejohn Commits to Georgia […]

2 months ago | 0 reads

Nittany Lions in the NFL 2025: Week 12

Here’s a list of the current Nittany Lions in the NFL listed by 53-man roster: *Just a reminder that again this season, I will not include players like Juwan Johnson and KeAndre Lambert-Smith that did not finish their college career at Penn State* Arizona Cardinals: Blake Gillikin, PJ Mustipher Atlanta Falcons: Arnold Ebiketie Baltimore Ravens: […]

2 months ago | 1 read