It ended quite unlike any other game. And yet it ended what must seemingly feel exactly like every other game for Penn State against a top-10 opponent.
After the Nittany Lions rallied from down 17-3 with 21 unanswered points to briefly lead sixth-ranked Oregon in the first overtime, they saw veteran quarterback Drew Allar picked off by Purdue-transfer-turned-Ducks-hero Dillon Thieneman in the second bonus session to seal an 30-24, double-overtime win for the visitors.
It lifted Oregon coach Dan Lanning further into the top echelon of college coaches -- his Ducks last year knocked off then-No. 1 Ohio State in the regular season, won the Big Ten Conference in their first year in the league and closed the year as the No. 1 seed in the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff.
Lanning credited this Oregon for both cutting Penn State's jugular and hitting the final knockout-blow.
"Unbelievable job, man, of our guys keeping their composure," Lanning told NBC after the win. "We said this game was going to be about a thousand cuts, but every cut matters. Every cut matters. Eventually, hit the jugular. That was it right there."
Redshirt-sophomore quarterback Dante Moore completed 29 of 39 passes for 248 yards and three touchdowns against Penn State; he did not turn over the ball, and Oregon outgained Penn State, 424-276. They possessed the ball for almost eight minutes longer than the Nittany Lions.
"Unbelievable focus. Our quarterback is an absolute all-star. Our team? Special. Special!," Lanning exclaimed. "Never, ever lost their composure one second. Highs and lows in this game. That's a great football team. They threw some punches. We punched more. Right? Hit a haymaker at the end."
Oregon gets an open date next weekend before it readied for another top-10, Big Ten showdown when undefeated, No. 11 Indiana -- certain to climb in Sunday's poll -- visits. The Hoosiers outlasted Iowa, 20-15, Saturday on the road.
"Hey, we're on to the next game," Lanning said. "We've got keep improving, keep growing. We're going to see some great teams in this league. It's an unbelievable league. What an unbelievable atmosphere. Got a ton of respect for Coach Franklin and the job they do."
While Franklin has made Penn State consistently very good, leading the Nittany Lions to the semifinals of last year's CFP, he has struggled mightily and infamously against top-10 opposition. Since taking over at Penn State in 2014, Franklin with Saturday's double-overtime loss is now 4-21 against top-10 foes.
He's lost eight-straight games to heated rival Ohio State, the sport's reigning national champion and current top-ranked team, as well as lost two-straight now to Oregon and suffered a come-from-ahead loss to then-No. 5 Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl last January.