PASADENA, Calif. -- The Nittany Lions arrived at Rose Bowl Stadium with intensity. The players came knowing they have an important job to do.
Fans came knowing they have a role, too: to cheer on these Lions.
It is "Happy Valley West."
Penn Staters are known for their tailgating, and they carried on that tradition more than 2,000 miles away.
"It's like Pennsylvania transplanted. Gotta love it," said one fan.
"There's a lot of Penn State people out here. I really like the feeling of it all. It's nice," said Will Ziegler of Mountain Top.
Everywhere we went, we ran into fans from our area, like the Hiltons from Berwick.
"The fans here have been great. We've been to other venues for other games and it hasn't been so nice. This has been totally wonderful," Wayne Hilton said.
There are plenty of USC fans mixed in as well. This is, after all, only miles from that campus. But the Penn State presence is just as big.
The spirit is the same and the tailgating may be the same. It's the setting that's a little different in the canyons near the Rose Bowl.
"Oh, it's really good to be back in Pasadena. I was here two times before for the Rose Bowl, so I was looking forward to this for a while," said Chet Williams of Shavertown.
This team has surprised fans all season and gave the blue and white faithful a gift, a trip here.
"We didn't really expect to be here. This was a season that wasn't to be. We're just proud of the team, the school, proud of everything and just to be here and enjoy the moment is just surreal," said Patrick Slowey of Dalton.