The only disappointment associated with Penn State’s 13-6 road victory at Ohio State last Saturday was the reaction back in State College.

A rowdy crowd estimated at 1,500 gathered in the downtown area to celebrate PSU’s first triumph at Ohio Stadium in 30 years. And to nobody’s surprise, things quickly got out of hand. Fires were set, street signs were damaged, cars vandalized and storefront windows were smashed in the ensuing two and half hours.

“I don’t really (want to) call it a riot, but that’s what it turned into,” said Lydell Sargeant, PSU’s senior cornerback.

“We have the best fans in the country. It started out as a celebration, but a couple bad things happened and it turned into more. The majority of the fans who were out there didn’t do anything wrong. Just a couple rotten eggs in the bunch turned it sour.”

By the time the crowd finally dispersed at about 4 p.m. Sunday morning, 20 people had been arrested, 14 police officers were injured and the damage was estimated at $50,000.

“To destroy property and that kind of stuff is really not something that ought to be identified with a celebration,” said Penn State head coach Joe Paterno. “I was young once and probably did something stupid once in a while but you just hate to see them do that kind of thing.”

The unbeaten, third-ranked Nittany Lions need just three more wins to secure sole possession of the program’s second Big Ten Conference championship and a possible berth in the BCS National Championship Game. The next potential trouble date is Nov. 22, when PSU closes out the regular season against Michigan State, which is currently in second place, a full-game behind the Lions. And Paterno is already thinking about trying to head off a repeat of what happened last weekend.

“I think one of these days I’ve got to do something and talk to the kids and say: ‘Hey, look, it’s a big game,” Paterno said. “‘If we win it, everybody have a lot of fun, but don’t go downtown.’” – NEIL GEOGHEGAN.