Penn State football interim head coach Terry Smith came out in Week 8 sporting a new slogan with the rest of his team.
For his first game taking over head coach responsibilities, he was focused on getting the Nittany Lions (3-4, 0-4 Big Ten) back to their regular routines and keeping the locker room in good spirits. Helping that out, he and his team wore shirts with 'IF' in big letters on the front.
On Thursday, Smith explained the meaning of the shirts.
"We wore jerseys at Iowa with the word 'IF.' It's those infinite possibilities that we have to make come true. We have to believe that we're going to make the play," Smith said. "All four of those losses, there were plays to be made in the fourth quarter."
Despite the loss to the Hawkeyes, Smith's determination remains high. He said that there's no quitting if you're wearing a Penn State jersey. No matter what the score is, no matter what the result of the game is, no matter who is or isn't part of the team anymore, he expects the most out of his players. The outside noise doesn't matter. What happens on the field does.
The idea of the Nittany Lions capitalizing on "infinite possibilities" isn't disappearing. However, against No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday, Smith is adding a new saying to Penn State's book.
"We have a saying this week. We're going to 'chop wood,'" Smith said on Thursday. "We've got to be able to chop a redwood tree until it's done. And that's a hard task, and it's one chop at a time, and we have to believe in those chops that it'll eventually break through for us, and that's what our belief is for Saturday."
The Buckeyes are a huge tree to chop down. No team they faced has been able to do so. They're currently ranked second in the Big Ten and first overall in the country. The only reason No. 2 Indiana has an edge on Ohio State is due to a bye week. Both teams are undefeated. The Buckeyes have a 7-0 overall and 4-0 Big Ten record. Penn State must chop away at an undefeated team's game as well as nearly a 20-point underdog position.
Ohio State is also coming off a shutout win over Wisconsin while Penn State was in Iowa. The Nittany Lions and Buckeyes had a bye in Week 9, meaning both teams will be refreshed for Saturday's contest.