The season came apart in grand fashion for Penn State on Saturday afternoon against Wisconsin.
The Badgers clobbered the Nittany Lions, 45-7 in the de facto Big Ten Leaders Division championship game and will take on Michigan State in the inagural Big Ten championship game on Dec. 3.
Penn State struck first on a long pass from Matthew McGloin to Curtis Drake in the first quarter, but it was all Wisconsin after that. Badgers' running back Montee Ball rushed for 156 yards and four touchdowns on 25 carries while quarterback Russell Wilson 19/29 for 186 yards and a pair of scores to lead the passing game.
McGloin finished 9/17 for 97 yards, a touchdown and an interception to lead Penn State's passing game. Silas Redd keyed the Lions' ground attack with 66 yards on 12 carries.
The defeat was Penn State's worst in regulation since a 45-6 loss against Ohio State on Sept. 23, 2000.
The Lions will now await their uncertain bowl fate. Their 9-3 record is good enough to be slotted as high as the Capital One Bowl, however, the specter of scandal could drop them to some of the Big Ten's lower-tier tie-ins or out of a bowl game altogether.
Stay tuned to SB Nation Pittsburgh for more on the fallout of Saturday's game.