For the most part, Illinois coach Bret Bielema was complimentary of Penn State during his Monday presser before his team’s game in Happy Valley Saturday.
He complimented James Franklin and Drew Allar and told a heartwarming story about Franco Harris and Sue Paterno.
But none of that was what got played on the Beaver Stadium Jumbotron minutes before Saturday night’s game.
It was this line: “They’re calling for ‘White Out Energy. Whatever the hell that means.”
Penn State ran the clip of Illinois HC Bret Bielema’s “White Out energy” quip.
Kickoff less than 10 minutes away. pic.twitter.com/Zqz6jTsBLA
— Joe Smeltzer (@joesmeltzer775) September 28, 2024
This was in reference to Franklin pushing for his fan base to bring “White Out energy” to the Illinois game after the team beat Kent State 56-0 the previous Saturday.
Penn State didn’t beat Illinois as badly, but still got the job done in a 21-7 win that wasn’t decided until the final two minutes.
PSU’s crowd— announced at 109,911– played a big part, with Franklin estimating that it had an impact on seven of Illinois’ offensive plays.
After the game, one of Penn State’s stars took what seems to be a clear dig at Bielema.
“How was that “white out energy”?” defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton, who has a sack, posted to X (formerly Twitter). “Do we know what that is now?”
How was that “white out energy”? Do we know what that is now?
— Dani Dennis-Sutton (@thedanidennis) September 29, 2024
Although Webster has yet to set a definition, it seemed to be pretty clear what “White Out Energy” was to everybody in Beaver Stadium Saturday night.
As Franklin pointed out in his postgame presser, this was not Penn State’s official White Out Game. That’s scheduled for Nov. 9 against Washington. The plan was for the Illinois game to be a Stripe Out, but that kinda got torpedoed.
