IU vs. Penn State lives up to hype ... again

I reflected on my next day's adventure, thinking that I was dedicated Thursday night. Then, after some clearer thinking, I decided it looked much more like insanity. Why the hell was I going to travel 20 hours from Bloomington to Pennsylvania and back in one day to watch a soccer game? \nWith the help of some much-needed sleep and a family-size dose of DayQuil, I reflected back on the trip after its conclusion and decided it was well worth the sleep deprivation, two speeding tickets and the fast food. IU and Penn State have played some great matches in the past, but Friday's match might have been the most exciting of them all.\nGoing in, the marquee match-up might have been dimmed by the absence of two Hermann Trophy candidates: Penn State's Ricardo Villar and IU senior T.J. Hannig. But the game was almost better because of their omission from their respective line-ups, because it gave others a chance to rise to the occasion.\nWith the loss of Hannig, IU had a legitimate reason to be concerned. The off-season transfer of Doug Warren meant junior Colin Rogers would get his first collegiate start as goalkeeper -- against the second-ranked team in the country in a game that would all but decide the regular season conference title.\nThe task seemed daunting for the Hoosiers -- the biggest conference game of the year, on the road in front of a crowd of 3,263 (Penn State averages about 500 a game), playing to keep a 34-game conference unbeaten streak in tact. And all this with a keeper getting his first meaningful game action. Although Penn State coach Barry Gorman denied that revenge was a factor, it had to be in the back of the Nittany Lions' heads. IU was the only team they couldn't conquer last season as they lost to the Hoosiers three times, including a 3-0 loss in the College Cup quarterfinals that sent Penn State packing for good. \nWith the stage set, all that was left to do was to play the game. Now, I don't like to over dramatize these things, but, much like the UCLA College Cup semifinal match last December, this was the type of game that could turn people into soccer fans. It had end-to-end action, but it wasn't sloppy. It was physical, but not dirty. It featured great individual efforts, but not selfish plays that overshadowed the play of the team. All in all, it was damn-near-perfect soccer.\nAs I mentioned before, with the absence of two of the Big Ten's biggest players, someone would have to step up for each team. Not one person for the Hoosiers stepped up and took control. Rather, the entire team did. \nThe offense clicked into high gear for the first time this season, scoring three goals and creating opportunities by beating the Nittany Lions's offside trap repeatedly, which could have resulted in a few more tallies. The defense became a brick wall after allowing Penn State's second goal, squashing the Penn State attack for the last 30 minutes. \nAnd then there was Rogers who, after getting rid of some early butterflies, looked as if he had been playing all season, making aggressive plays and smart decisions. Rogers ended up with eight saves, the most for an IU keeper since 1996, and his first collegiate win in IU's most important game of the season.\nWith the win the Hoosiers are now in a familiar place -- they sit in the driver's seat for the Big Ten Conference regular season title. With only one bye in the conference tournament this season, Friday's win not only gives the Hoosiers added confidence in this up and down season, but it might also give them an extra day of rest. The effort the Hoosiers gave Friday will pay off when they get to rest Nov. 10, the first day of the Big Ten tournament. \nAnd although it resulted in temporary insanity and possible trouble with the law, I'm glad I didn't rest and decided to make the trip to Happy Valley Friday. Hopefully my effort this weekend will somehow pay off just like it did for the Hoosiers. At the very least I got to watch possibly the best game in college soccer this season.