Per Obligatory tradition, one of our most popular features returns: the Penn State football preview in which Chris enlists the assistance of fellow LION 90.7fm alum Mike Levine, to analyze the Nittany Lions roster in two installments, beginning with the offense. As undergrads, they brought their half-dozen listeners such unforgettable gems as Joe Paterno's record-breaking 324th career win versus Ohio State and such forgettable disappointments as most other games in the 2001 season. Now they unpa...
Aug 20, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 173
As if the excitement and national hype - and the attendant dread and pressure that accompany them - couldn't get any more intense, Penn State made its AP preseason poll debut at #2, receiving only a handful fewer first-place votes than top-ranked Texas. State's dizzying perch near the top of the charts is the topic of conversation, but not without a characteristic diversion, this time in the form an opening monologue from our most beloved (and most reviled) cast member. Come for Kevin Horne's de...
Aug 12, 2025•54 min•Ep. 172
There's no denying it: Excitement is in the air in Happy Valley. Autumn's arrival always brings the energy of students returning to campus and the anticipation of another Penn State football season, but the attention and enthusiasm swirling around this year's version of the Nittany Lions is something special. With Penn State debuting at #3 in the Coaches Poll and a litany of national talking heads naming James Franklin's squad as the team to beat for the national title, the preseason hype has be...
Aug 05, 2025•52 min•Ep. 171
Welcome the podcast's Fall 2025 sponsor: Gold Hen *Use promo code MAILMAN at checkout The roster has never been deeper or more talented. The vibes have never been more positive. According to James Franklin, the alignment with administration and support from boosters has never been better. In Franklin's tenure, entering its 12th year, the expectations have never been greater, and that means the stakes have never been higher. So with all these top talents returning to Penn State for one final run ...
Jul 29, 2025•48 min•Ep. 170
As with our Fall roster breakdowns, Chris enlists the assistance of fellow LION 90.7fm alum, former FIU and Miami Hurricanes broadcaster Mike Levine, to analyze the Nittany Lions' current complement of talent as Spring football comes to a close and yet another "transfer portal window" lurches toward merciful closure. With a lengthy list of returning stars, much is certain about the title-contending squad State will field in the Fall, and yet a surprising number of questions abound. Heading into ...
Apr 24, 2025•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 169
Grab your pencil and your paper. We take one last, lingering look back at 2024, in all its glory and heartbreak, before turning our attention to a new season brimming with promise, as another Blue-White weekend ushers in a Summer of hope. HOSTED BY: Brandon Noble , Mike "The Mailman" Herr , Kevin Horne , Chris Buchignani...
Apr 17, 2025•56 min•Ep. 168
BREAKING NEWS, BONUS CONTENT! James Franklin and Pat Kraft swung for the fences and made contact. Chris and Brandon give their snap reactions to Penn State's tectonic move to break the bank and poach Jim Knowles from the defending champion Ohio State Buckeyes to becomes the new Nittany Lions defensive coordinator. Full podcast to follow soon. Watch on For The Blogy's YouTube: https://youtu.be/wV9IJF-IWhU?si=DtiVHV7bd6nkjcSh HOSTED BY: Brandon Noble , Chris Buchignani...
Jan 26, 2025•19 min
A sad fact of sports fandom is that most seasons end in disappointment. The higher you scale the ladder of anticipation, the harder the crash if you falter, and it is also an unfortunate truth that the pain of some losses can cut so deep and last so long that it crowds the many happy memories of the wins that came before. The Nittany Lions ended their historic 2024 campaign snatching misery from the jaws of euphoria. So with Noble at the coaches convention and Mailman probably off skulking aroun...
Jan 14, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 167
The NIL Era giveth, and it taketh away. On the veritable eve of the first-ever playoff game in Beaver Stadium, Penn State fans were hit with the double-whammy of two quarterback-related bombshells. While public confirmation of Drew Allar's long-rumored return for next season has fans and portal wideouts alike buzzing with excitement for 2025, that enthusiasm is tempered by the resulting departure of Beau Pribula, Allar's backup and a key cog in Andy Kotelnicki's offensive Rube Goldberg machine. ...
Dec 17, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 166
The Obligatory Cinematic Universe expands with a blockbuster crossover event as the gang gets back in the podcasting saddle. Noble, Kevin, and Chris team up with Steve Garguilo and Tim Buckley of the Let's Talk Penn State Podcast (like The Avengers, but with idiots). Enjoy this "meeting of the minds" and perspective on the state of the program heading into the Maryland game. The regular gang returns next week to sum up a memorable season for the Nittany Lions heading into the postseason. Enjoy t...
Nov 27, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 165
A video released by Penn State's Athletic Department after the famous 2016 Ohio State game that kick-started the program's revival from the sanction era showed Coach Franklin exhorting his team at halftime: "Opportunity is knocking." Eight years and zero wins over the Buckeyes later, opportunity is knocking again. This weekend, everything and the kitchen sink from the world of college football converges on Happy Valley, from two national pregame shows to a future Hall of Fame center (but no form...
Oct 31, 2024•45 min•Ep. 164
They called it a trap game. They said the Nittany Lions were vulnerable. They questioned our offense and dismissed our defense. But when the lights came on at Camp Randall, both units - each of them thriving in their own way this season under new coordinators - played complementary football, containing, and eventually bludgeoning, the Badgers. Even an injury at the most important position on the field couldn't slow this team on a mission, as Beau Pribula conjured memories of another Number 9 in ...
Oct 29, 2024•40 min•Ep. 163
James Franklin and the Nittany Lions got the coveted, elusive, statement-making win they so desperately needed by defeating USC... or so it seemed. The Trojans' College Park Collapse over Penn State's Bye Week underscored the point that if the program is to make its first appearance in the college football playoff, then the team must keep stacking wins as the favorite. Another challenging road test awaits PSU when they travel to Madison for a night game against the Badgers in Camp Randall Stadiu...
Oct 23, 2024•50 min•Ep. 162
It may take an extra bus trip to Harrisburg to get there, but the road date everybody circled on Penn State's 2024 schedule is finally upon us. Conference expansion has delivered the first-ever meeting of the Nittany Lions and Trojans as Big Ten foes, and even though USC's upset loss at the hands of Minnesota drained the contest of much of its fanfare, the stakes for Old State are unchanged. As top-ranked teams topple all around the them, the imperative for Penn State remains to survive and adva...
Oct 09, 2024•46 min•Ep. 161
Well, "Bert" asked, and Nittany Nation answered. Penn State fans and media may have taken some liberties with the context around Bret Bielema's, "White Out Energy, whatever the hell that means," quotation, up to and including a passive-aggressive screening of a carefully-edited clip of it on the Beaver Stadium Jumbotron before kickoff. But find your fuel, right? When the Lions most needed their support, the raucous crowd intervened to impact the Illinois game at critical moments. The guys talk a...
Oct 03, 2024•54 min•Ep. 160
One mild upset in Lincoln and suddenly Penn State's Homecoming is set up for clash of nationally-ranked unbeatens under the Beaver Stadium lights that has fans calling for an impromtu and unofficial second "White Out" - a game that will surely have national viewers tuning in during the Georgia/Alabama commercial breaks. The University is also set to recognize the 1994 Big Ten Champion Nittany Lions. With an offense that may have been the most potent in the sport's history, the team certainly ran...
Sep 26, 2024•56 min•Ep. 159
During the dull offseason months when football-starved fans obsess over such things, many observers noted a conspicuous flaw in the final version of Penn State's 2024 schedule (not to be confused with the several other interim versions that came and went thanks to the ever-expanding ranks of the Big Ten). A bye week in only the third week of the season seemed less than ideal - too early in the year and sandwiched between two nothing opponents, it appeared neither useful for recovery nor as prepa...
Sep 20, 2024•38 min•Ep. 158
In retrospect, perhaps it was inevitable: the season-opening road trip, the convincing win over a team and fanbase that talked a big game and couldn't back it up, the sleepy noon kickoff time, the unintimidating competition. Each of these factors combined to render all of Penn State, from the players and coaches on the field to their loyal supporters in the stands, completely unprepared for the concussive opening salvos fired by the fearless Falcons of Bowling Green. Fans expecting to see the th...
Sep 12, 2024•52 min•Ep. 157
College football is back in all its glory, and for Penn State and many other would-be contenders across America, the rites of Fall have been renewed. The Nittany Lions began the journey of 2024 on the road for a statement game that told everyone from the legions of ludicrously overconfident Mountaineer fans to the doubting Thomases on this very program to the likes of Nick Saban, Urban Meyer, and Pat McAfee to shove it up their ass. And if the histrionics of suddenly-demonstrative quarterback Dr...
Sep 04, 2024•54 min•Ep. 156
Once again Chris is joined by fellow LION 90.7fm alum, former FIU and Miami Hurricanes broadcaster Mike Levine, to analyze the Nittany Lions roster in two installments, this time turning to the defense. Like the their counterparts on offense, the 2024 Nittany Lions D will be guided by a new coordinator, former Indiana head coach Tom Allen, who will be charged with continuing the tradition of great Penn State defense upheld so capably by now-Duke coach Manny Diaz. With playmakers at every level a...
Aug 27, 2024•57 min•Ep. 155
Per Obligatory tradition, one of our most popular features returns: the Penn State football preview in which Chris enlists the assistance of fellow LION 90.7fm alum, former FIU and Miami Hurricanes broadcaster Mike Levine, to analyze the Nittany Lions roster in two installments, beginning with the offense. As undergrads, they brought their half dozen listeners such unforgettable gems as Joe Paterno's record-breaking 324th career win versus Ohio State and such forgettable disappointments as most ...
Aug 26, 2024•56 min•Ep. 154
On the cusp of another season of Nittany Lions football, the guys get together to discuss their dreams, aspirations, and fears for this year's team. Can new coordinators Andy Kotelnicki and Tom Allen bring the fresh perspective that jolts this squad into a higher gear? Will the talented depth so meticulously stockpiled through recruiting bear fruit? Has Drew Allar maximized the offseason to progress as a player and leader? What perils lie in wait over a schedule that appears manageable yet inclu...
Aug 23, 2024•58 min•Ep. 153
From the 12-team playoff to the "green dot," the 2024 college football season promises plenty of changes, large and small. As Penn State's opening kickoff in Morgantown approaches, the guys pause to reflect on all the newness coming to the sport this year and speculate about how it all might turn out. They share plenty of (occasionally insightful) thoughts on Year One for the expanded playoff, new conferences that are more geographically nonsensical than ever, and on-field additions like coach-t...
Aug 14, 2024•52 min•Ep. 152
Are you frustrated because the Nittany Lions appear to be losing out on recruits, at home in PA and across the country, because Old State can't seem to meet their lofty financial demands? Are you confused because even though we're nearly half a decade into the "NIL era," it still makes very little sense to you? Are you disappointed because you sense that Penn State's shortcomings in the NIL space may be costing the team otherwise winnable games? Maybe you're angry because after such a loss, an a...
Aug 06, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 151
Hey folks. Great news (maybe). If you’re reading this, it’s probably at least good news: The most lovable, least reliable Penn State podcast on earth is back, and this our promise to you - we’ll be here for every week, at least once per week, from now until at least the end of the calendar year, all thanks to the support of the awesome folks at ForTheBlogy.com , the website and YouTube channe l that brings you some of the best and most original coverage of the Nittany Lions out there. The best w...
Jul 31, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 150
Penn State wrapped up another 10-2 regular season that was, yes, in some respects a failure - a failure to achieve the lofty goals that were set justifiably high at the season's outset - but also represents a rarified outcome among all Power 5 programs. The guys look back on the how the 2023 campaign ended and discuss the future for the Nittany Lions and all of college football as we head into Championship weekend. HOSTED BY: Brandon Noble , Mike "The Mailman" Herr , Kevin Horne , Chris Buchigna...
Nov 30, 2023•59 min•Ep. 149
What more can you say? We try to come up with something. The guys wrap up the Michigan win over Penn State that slammed on the door on the Nittany Lions' hopes for making the four-team playoff before the format is retired at the end of this season. Could fan favorite Joe Moorhead return to Happy Valley? Will Penn State be in the market for a new defensive coordinator as well? Can Rutger give the Lions a scare on Saturday. We're closing the book on the Wolverines (and 2023, really) and starting t...
Nov 16, 2023•51 min•Ep. 148
For the second time in four weeks, James Franklin and the Nittany Lions are facing one of the biggest games in recent program history. This time, they will play in the welcoming environs of Beaver Stadium and carry the hopes, not just of Nittany Nation, but the entire nation, with them. Can Penn State - America's Team for this one week - play the scrappy underdog hero to Michigan's 80's teen movie villain? Or will we add another entry to the list of disappointing losses against top competition? ...
Nov 09, 2023•57 min•Ep. 147
Penn State narrowly escapes what would have been a devastating loss to a terrible Indiana Hoosiers team and instead travels to College Park to face nose-diving Maryland with a hint of momentum from Drew Allar's game-winning deep strike. Will this faint hope prove to be merely a mirage, or did Allar's first interception unlock something crucial in his development as a quarterback? The guys review the near-debacle versus Indiana and touch on the week's biggest college football stories - the first ...
Nov 02, 2023•56 min•Ep. 146
Another meeting of top tens for the Nittany Lions. Another matchup with the Buckeyes. Another trip to the Horseshoe. And yet another predictably miserable result. For nine months, we built this team up as the one that was capable of breaking the cycle and finally putting Penn State into the four-team playoff field in its final year. When the moment of truth arrived, nothing was different. The guys continue working through their emotions in the wake of Penn State's devastating 20-12 loss at Ohio ...
Oct 26, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 145
