We finally did it, people. We finally beat Iowa. “Relief, not revenge”, as our own Devon Edwards put it. Here’s what I took from the game and the atmosphere at Beaver Stadium yesterday.

• Like I said it would be on Friday, this game was a tough, hard fought, ugly battle. I loved how the crowd stayed in it until the end, and you could really feel the extra edge coming from the fans from start to finish. Kudos to the non-students as well, who were consistently loud and on their feet.

• This is one of the more satisfying wins in my three, going on four, years at Penn State. No, it certainly wasn’t close to the biggest or best game I’ve seen, but finally getting a win against Iowa is a great feeling after the past few years.

• Can we officially retire the BEAT Zone now? And the awkward “Beeeeeat….(insert team name here)” chant should follow it out the door. I like the idea behind it, but it just is not working.

• I love when the cheerleaders toss the Lion in the air with a blanket (?). I was glad to see that return for the first time this season.

• According to @jaypobz, there were a few Urban Meyer chants in his section. Urban called the game for ESPN, which was more than a little interesting given the recent rumblings about him becoming Penn State’s next head coach.

• The awkward gap between the end of “Rock ‘N Roll” and the team’s entrance was, surprisingly, kind of cool. It was obviously not planned, but the organic suspense that built up in the stadium was pretty intense.

• Sunscreen in October? Who are you, and what have you done with the real Happy Valley weather?

• According to my man by the tunnel, @troyweller, the team came out chanting “waaaar tiiiiiime”. Awesome.

• Zombie Nation was played quite a few times throughout the game. I was starting to forget what it sounded like. I’m not sure it was necessary after the fake field goal, but I won’t complain given its absence so far this season.

• Did you see the helicopter circling over Beaver Stadium all day? It was there to film for a documentary called “Aerial America” that will air on the Smithsonian Channel, according to Penn State Live.

• In addition to the former players who are usually on the sidelines, I saw Evan Royster, Derrick Williams, Colin Wagner, and Jared Odrick, among others, also in attendance.

• Has it really been 25 years since Penn State’s last national championship? Yes, I know, we should have won it in ’94, but you know what I’m saying. This thought hit me yesterday as the ’86 team was being honored during halftime, a very cool ceremony.