Unranked Penn State is set to welcome No. 19 USC to Happy Valley for Saturday night’s White Out, hoping to bounce back from consecutive losses to Wisconsin and Northwestern.

The Nittany Lions last faced the Trojans in 2024 and escaped Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum with a 33-30 overtime win.

Fast forward two years and Penn State is in a completely different situation, fighting for its first Power Four win six games into the season. Despite a betting spread favoring the Nittany Lions, a White Out win for Penn State could be the first home “upset” in quite some time.

Two of our staffers debated whether Penn State fans should storm the field after a win over USC on Saturday.

Ryan McInerney: Yes, Fans Should Storm The Field

A little over a year ago, I argued in this very debate that Penn State fans should not storm the field if the Nittany Lions beat Oregon in the White Out. My reasoning was simple. Penn State was the higher-ranked team, and rushing the field would only make it seem like the program didn’t belong among the nation’s best.

Well, a lot can change in a year.

Back then, Penn State was ranked No. 3 in the country and expected to compete with college football’s elite. Now, the Nittany Lions are unranked, sitting at 3-2 and coming off back-to-back embarrassing losses. After blowing a 17-point lead against Wisconsin and getting dominated 34-13 by Northwestern, the standard I defended last September is long gone.

The reality is Penn State is no longer viewed the same way it was a year ago. A program once expected to compete for national championships has become nothing short of a laughingstock in college football. At this point, beating a ranked opponent isn’t something Penn State fans should take for granted; it’s something this team desperately needs to prove it can still do.

That’s why a White Out win over No. 19 USC would mean far more than another win. It would arguably be Penn State’s biggest victory since its 2024 College Football Playoff run, give Matt Campbell his first signature win as head coach, and provide some much-needed momentum before this season spirals further out of control.

Would a win suddenly fix all the problems we’ve seen recently? Absolutely not. The team still has glaring concerns, and one victory won’t erase them all. But it would be a step in the right direction and finally give fans something to celebrate after everything his program has dragged us through.

Penn State fans haven’t stormed the field since the Nittany Lions upset No. 2 Ohio State in 2016. Nearly a decade later, I think it’s time to change that.

Last year, I ended my argument by saying field storms should be reserved for the moments that truly matter. I still stand by that statement.

But after everything that’s happened to Penn State football since then, beating USC on Saturday would be one of those moments.

So if the Nittany Lions pull it off, rush the field.

Collin Ward: No, Fans Shouldn’t Storm The Field

While rushing the field is fun and an experience all sports fans hope for, doing so as the betting favorite against a barely ranked USC team is inappropriate.

Rushing the field should be restricted to true miracles.

Games like Auburn-Alabama in 2013, when the Tigers won on a last-second “Kick Six.” Or Texas A&M-Alabama in 2021, when an unranked Aggies team took down Nick Saban’s super team. Those are acceptable field rushes.

While the Nittany Lions haven’t looked good this season, beating USC shouldn’t be treated as a miracle. Beating USC should be expected.

Penn State hired Campbell to take the Nittany Lions to the next level. To finally get Penn State back over the hump and in contention for a national title.

Part of getting there means everyone involved with the program resets their mindset. Penn State has to get back to the blue-collar, hard-nosed identity it once had, and rushing the field as a favorite does not set that tone.

Much has been said about the Iowa State players and staffers who jumped to Happy Valley this season. They’ve all taken a ton of flak for not understanding what it means to wear the blue and white, to earn the blue and white.

What better way to show them exactly what it means to be a Nittany Lion —and the expectations that come with it—than to help Penn State take home a win in The Greatest Show in College Sports, then put our heads down and get right back to work.

(That being said, I will totally rush the field if everyone else does.)