IF CROWD NOISE is the criteria for establishing a college football game's importance, then the nationally televised matchup of No. 1 Ohio State and No. 25 Penn State in Beaver Stadium almost certainly will be the biggest in the country on Saturday.
It's not that the ESPN GameDay crew will be in State College to report throughout the day leading up to the 8 p.m. kickoff. It's not even the "White Out" that will give the packed stands the look of a wintry Siberian landscape.
But it's that wall of noise, with a decibel level as high as that of a fleet of jet aircraft taking off, that makes as much or more of a sensory impression as any visual.
"It's not a shock Penn State is good," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said as he readied his team to ride into the Happy Valley of Deaf. "They're always good. They're even better when you go in there when they get that energy from that tremendous crowd and that excitement around campus all week long.
"Playing in that environment is a fun thing. It's loud, no question. If you are expecting to hear, forget it."
A combined total of perhaps 50 players from both teams were in Beaver Stadium the night of Oct. 8, 2005, when the 16th-ranked Nittany Lions upset the sixth-ranked Buckeyes, 17-10, in a game so unrelentingly raucous that it registered on seismographic needles.
Now, with Ohio State again unbeaten and ranked No. 1, another strong performance by the home team could blow the roof off the joint again, provided there was a roof.
"I hope the crowd really gets into it," said Penn State coach Joe Paterno, who probably will have his wish fulfilled. "You go to Ohio State, their crowd is a great crowd. I hope we can have a crowd that's really into it every play and they come with the idea they can help us win the football game, because I think they can."
It's amazing the impact a turnout of 109,000-plus can have on a game when it's in full cry.
Junior linebacker Sean Lee was a true freshman appearing in his first game for the Lions that memorable night in 2005, when the sound cascaded down upon the field like crashing waves.
"I was on kickoff coverage," Lee recalled. "It was unbelievable. I've never played in a game like that. We'd just come off of two big wins against Northwestern and Minnesota, and it was a chance for us to get back in the spotlight nationally, where we hadn't been in a few years.
