There’s a good mood permeating its way through the Lasch Building and the rest of the Penn State football program this week.

After the team’s emotional 33-30 win over USC in Los Angeles on Saturday, the Nittany Lions are entering their second and final bye week of the 2024 season on a high note.

On Saturday, though, it looked like the mood would be entirely different as Penn State headed into the locker room at halftime trailing the Trojans 20-6. A second-half comeback that ended with an overtime winner off the foot of Ryan Barker, though, had James Franklin looking forward to the idle week.

“At this point in my career, I want to see the players achieve their dreams and goals, so this is a really good win,” Franklin said after USC. “It’s going to make for a great ride home and a great bye week.”

The bye will also be an opportunity for players and coaches to recover from the hard-fought win. Drew Allar said after USC that the team had to dig deep to complete the come-from-behind victory, and gutsy wins like Saturday’s don’t come easy.

Allar had to make two of the biggest plays of his football career against USC, converting both a 4th-and-7 and 4th-and-10 on the game-tying drive. Even after a 14-point swing, there was still an overtime period to be played.

The outpour of emotion during the celebration that unfolded on the field after the win personified exactly what it meant to the Nittany Lions. Franklin embraced those around him and shed tears as “We Are” chants rang through the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Allar and others were also visibly emotional.

The win was taxing, but the Nittany Lions have a week to recover.

“This is going to be a huge bye week for us,” Allar said postgame. “We can get healthy, recover from any nicks and bruises, but also just continue to get better.”

Franklin used the first bye week to self-scout and address some early concerns in all three phases of the game. This week, there’s bound to be more of the same, starting with performing better in the first half.

The Nittany Lions have struggled with slow starts throughout their last few games, most recently from the defense after giving up 20 points in the first half against USC.

Besides the latest blunder from the defense, the offense and special teams units have had their fair share of slow starts. While each unit has had good and bad first halves, getting everyone ready at the same time will be a point of emphasis during the off week.

“We’ve done it in certain phases of certain games,” Franklin said. “The offense has done it, the defense has done it, and special teams has done it. We just have to put it all together.”

Even though Franklin can walk into his office with a smile on his face this week, he noted earlier in the season that there’s a very fine line between having fun while building relationships and making sure the team is prepared come gameday.

According to Franklin, all three new coordinators did a good job during the offseason building relationships with players and continuing to cultivate them through the regular season.

The line between fun and focus can be a difficult one to toe, and having an idea of weaknesses that need to be addressed can make the task a little easier. To Franklin, it’s the most exciting part.

“We’ve got a chance to learn and teach and grow after a win, which is a really important skill for us all to learn,” Franklin said on Tuesday. “You shouldn’t need a setback to take a step forward.”