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Drawing from his experience in the Pac-10, Washington transfer and current Indiana State quarterback Ronnie Fouch wasn't awe-struck by the 96,000 fans packed into Beaver Stadium.
The Penn State defense, though, never made Fouch feel comfortable in Happy Valley.
Chaz Powell set the tone by returning the game's opening kickoff 95 yards for a Penn State score and Silas Redd led an overwhelming ground game with two rushing touchdowns in a 41-7 win Saturday over the Sycamores.
Fouch finished 11 of 23 passing for 102 yards with two interceptions and a 20-yard touchdown pass to Justin Hilton to break the shutout with 2:16 left.
Otherwise, it was all Penn State.
''The opportunity to allow guys to come and play at this level in their career - it's wonderful,'' Sycamores coach Trent Miles said. ''They got a chance to play in front of a huge crowd against one of the all time greatest programs in the history of college football.''
Counterpart Joe Paterno coached from the press box more than three weeks after suffering shoulder and pelvis injuries from an accidental collision in practice, though the Nittany Lions didn't miss a beat against the Sycamores - an FCS team.
Redd ran for 94 of his 104 yards by the second quarter, including a 4-yard score for a 28-0 lead. Rob Bolden started at quarterback, splitting time with Matt McGloin.
Indiana State managed 170 yards of total offense and got pushed around by a Penn State team anxious to rebound from last year's 7-6 campaign.
On a warm, muggy day with temperatures in the low 80s, the Happy Valley party got started 13 seconds in after Powell sidestepped his way around defenders before sprinting down the field for his 95-yard return on the opening kickoff.
On the ensuring series, Fouch was sacked by Gerald Hodges on the first play. His second drive ended with a pick by safety Drew Astorino.
''I wasn't really affected by the crowd today, I've been in a lot of situations like that,'' Fouch said. ''Coach Miles did a good job all week playing loud music during practice and crowd noise just to prepare us.''
It wasn't the kind of start Miles was looking for, though it was hardly unexpected against the more talented Nittany Lions. The Sycamores are coming off a 6-5 season in 2010, which ended a staggering streak of 60 losses in 62 games.
At least Indiana State does get to return home with an estimated $450,000-$475,000, Miles said earlier in the week, which will help pay bills for the entire athletic department. And his Sycamores get to say they played in Beaver Stadium.
''They'll have that for the rest of their lives,'' Miles said. ''And (the school got) paid to do it too. That makes everyone happy. That's a win-win.''
Michael Zordich displayed the Nittany Lions' early physical superiority on back-to-back plays in the first quarter, throwing a devastating block up the middle to spring Redd loose for the tailback's first score, from 9 yards.
On the ensuing kickoff, Zordich leveled Sycamore return man Leonard Riston near the sideline for a violent end to a 21-yard return.
Paterno, who made ''toughness'' the keyword for preseason camp, surely relished what he witnessed from the press box. He had pronounced himself ''50-50'' this week to coach from the sideline.
It wasn't entirely all smiles for Penn State. Indiana State managed three sacks and got to the quarterback more than expected for an FCS team against and upper-division mainstay.
''We just had little lapses here and there in terms of different looks,'' Penn State left tackle Quinn Barham said. ''Indiana State did a good job of running different stunts and different defenses. Sometimes we just had bad calls into the wrong defense. You can't really help that.''
