Video Breakdown: Penn State Fans Attack West Virginia Fan

Earlier this week I saw this video of a WVU fan harassed at a Penn State game on the esteemed barstoolsports.com site and for some reason it really caught my attention. Maybe it awakened that 13 year old fan inside of me who was sitting in that north end zone back when the Penn State Nittany Lions won their final game in Morgantown in 1992 and is still pissed off about the fumble at the 1 yard line that cost us the game. Maybe it’s the instinctive righteous indignation many of us feel at basically anything having to do with Penn State for the last few years. Maybe I just think the Penn State fan who really instigated all this looks like a massive douche. Whatever the reason, I thought this merited a closer look. With a tip of the cap to Tosh.0, here’s this week’s Video Breakdown.

First off here's the clip (fair warning, this is NSFW):

Here we have a Mountaineer fan rocking his Mountaineer jersey in the stands at a Penn State game. First of all good for him for respecting an old-school rivalry. Guarantee you he’s over 30 years old. Kids who were born after the last time these two teams played each other can legally drink at tailgates now. I’m old. This is depressing. Back to the breakdown.

Was this the best idea? No, of course not. But hey, it comes with the territory and is one of those things that makes college football college football. I’ve been to a million SEC games and have seen Bama fans rocking gear at Tennessee games when Tennessee was playing somebody else, Florida fans wearing Gator gear at Kentucky games when UK was playing somebody else...I’ve seen it all. Except for Vandy fans rocking Vandy gear. Not even at Vandy games. They don’t really exist. We digress. Point is none of those fans I mentioned received anything approaching the treatment we’re seeing in this video. Tell me again about your class Big 10.

It isn’t like the guy is Bruce Willis wearing "That Sign" at the beginning of Die Hard With A Vengeance. It’s just a dude in the jersey of a team in a neighboring state that the host team hasn’t played in over twenty years. To be honest I took it as a compliment that PSU fans got as worked up about it as they did. Back in the day it was enough for PSU fan to hold that 48-9-2 series edge that these kids' daddies wouldn’t give WVU fan the time of day. Not so much now I guess.

Enter PSU Bro. PSU Bro has decided to save us the trouble of getting to know him and used his attire to signify that he is without a doubt a total douchebag. Aside from being a Penn State fan he’s got on silly looking sunglasses and has decided to leave his house sans sleeves. Tank tops are for closers. PSU Bro will have none of WVU fan entering his domain and begins shouting unprovoked obscenities at him. Do not attempt to strut in PSU Bro’s cage. He is the cock of the walk.

PSU Bro has decided it’s difficult to make oneself heard in a noisy stadium and has approached WVU fan to articulate his case. And now PSU Bro has decided to invade WVU fan’s personal space. WVU fan is unmoved. I mean, he answers back a little but is mostly unmoved.

At this point I’m left to wonder as to the chief motivator of WVU fan’s self-possession. As I see it:

1. He’s completely inebriated. Zen drunk is a special state to be in. Everything is black and white and nothing really moves.
2. He’s a lifelong devotee of Roadhouse’s Dalton and is simply ‘being nice.’
3. He’s sleeping. Because Big 10 football does that to you.
4. He’s just a dude who finds himself in an uncomfortable spot and is trying to keep things from escalating.

But it’s gonna be tough for WVU Fan to sit and endure that all game.

Our cinematographer took his eye off the ball a little but that's WVU Fan's arm and if you had audio to this image you'd here "F--K PENN STATE!!"

Heyoooo!!!! There’s a game-changer!

Now all the PSU fans go ballistic that the guy they were just ceaselessly cussing, assaulting and otherwise harassing has cussed them back. PSU Bro is apoplectic. PSU Bro doesn’t know what that word means, but that’s what he is. I like how everybody is so offended that someone would yell ‘f—k Penn State!’ Like to do so is just unthinkable. "How dare you take Penn State’s Name in vain!!!" Nobody is more full of their own crap then Penn State fan.

He’s spitting in WVU fan’s face. He’s bumping WVU fan. He’s coming damn close to the textbook definition of assault. WVU fan remains seated like a sphinx. The sands of time rise and fall around him. He is unmoved. I mean aside from bending over to pick up the hat that was knocked off his head. Penn State has been verbally slandered in an unthinkable way and someone must pay. NOBODY TALKS ABOUT PENN STATE THAT WAY!!!

I was watching A Few Good Men the other night and remember one of my favorite exchanges:

Galloway: Tell your friend not to get cute down there, the Marines at Gitmo are fanatical.

Lt. Weinberg: Fanatical about what?

Galloway: About being Marines.

That’s PSU fan in a nutshell. They’re fanatical about being PSU fans. Once you have the temerity to question that Penn State might not be the shining city on a hill, you are the enemy. Let the assault begin. Damn your facts. Damn your logic. Throw reason and decency out the door, baby! They’re Penn State!!

And now PSU Basketball Jersey Bro is on the case. There seem to be a few decent Nittany Lions trying to restore order, but most of the mob has taken to yelling at WVU fan and chanting "f--k that guy!" Nobody does mobs like PSU fan!

Also worth noting the WVU fan is surrounded by somewhat cute girls. There's a lesson to be gleaned there. Chicks dig blue and gold.

(on that note our cinematographer should have spent more time with White Tanktop Girl talking to WVU fan. I could have used some character development there. Giggity.)

I think we need some adults.

Oh good here comes the fuzz. I’m sure they’ll do their part to control the situation and create an environment for this this young man who has paid good money for his seat and endured harassment and borderline assault to enjoy the game.

THEY KICK OUT THE WVU FAN?

Oh waaaaait! I forgot this is Happy Valley, Pa and as long as you’re wearing Penn State gear you can basically do anything and the cops don’t really get too worked up about it.

PENN STATE WINS!!! PENN STATE WINS!!!!

Now they can get back to getting their ass kicked by Northwestern. YOU ARE!! PENN STATE!!

I don’t know why anyone would be surprised. If we’ve learned anything about Penn State over the past couple years it’s that just because you’re doing something wrong doesn’t mean you can’t get a crowd of people to chant in unison and support you or the cops to look the other way.

So when do we build the Penn State Bro statue?