Check out The Case for Rob Bolden for the other half of our 2 part series

Go ahead and doubt Matt McGloin. That's what he wants you to do.

And that’s why Jay, Galen, and Joe would be making a giant mistake if they turned their backs on the one man–the one kid–who’s singlehandedly salvaged their season, and maybe their careers.

You see, for Matt McGloin, this whole winning thing isn’t new. Back in Scranton, McGloin was the man–quarterbacking his team to 2 district titles and a league championship. The fact that few big schools were looking at him was a mistake on their part–lurking underneath his 6’1, wiry frame was an accomplished passer–one who threw for 58 touchdowns and nearly 5,500 yards over his high school career. And he was all-everything: first team all-district, all-county, all-region, and all-state.

But most of all, he was a winner and a leader. A team captain on a championship squad. And his innate self-confidence led him to Penn State. No, it wasn’t an easy decision to walk-on, and spurn offers from lower-level schools, but deep down, I’m sure Matt knew he’d get his chance. Some may call it arrogance, or swagger, but for Matt McGloin, it’s much less sinister. It’s an infectious charm, a drive that rubs off on his teammates.

No, Matt McGloin doesn’t have the strongest arm. He’s not the most mobile passer. But when he came off the bench three weeks ago, he turned this team around. When he came off the bench, Penn State was 3-3, having lost back to back games, and having failed miserably, especially offensively, against an Illinois team that we had no business losing 33-13 to. The doubters were out in full force. The critics said it was time for Joe to go. We openly wondered whether this was a team that could scrape together three wins and manage to earn a trip to a  bowl game. The week after that Illinois game–the two weeks, really, through the bye–were the nadir of this Penn State program. The lowest point in five years.

And then Matt McGloin came off the bench.

Against Minnesota, he did what it took to win. It wasn’t pretty, but neither is McGloin, and he’ll be the first to tell you that. But with Rob Bolden out, and Kevin Newsome hampered, Matt McGloin came off the bench and led his team to the win. He was the gunslinger we all thought he’d be–looking deep, trying to force the issue, and succeeding as often as not. But Penn State’s turnaround was about more than just his passing. No, the team rallied around the former walk-on. Suddenly, the offensive line gelled. McGloin had time to pass. They opened up holes. The ground game got going. It was night and day, really. With McGloin in the game, something just clicked.

And given a vote of confidence the next week, McGloin stepped up. With Bolden still suffering the aftereffects of the concussion, McGloin stepped in against Michigan and quarterbacked Penn State to the emotional win–putting up numbers that probably surprised everyone but Matt. He knew he had the ability to go 17-28, and pass for 250 yards. And when he got his chance, he proved the doubters wrong.

You see, Matt McGloin feeds off of the negative energy of everyone who said that Matt McGloin couldn’t do it. Couldn’t play at this level. Couldn’t have any level of success when thrust into the spotlight. Couldn’t lead his team to a win over Michigan. With the team sequestered out in Toftrees, I’m sure he was watching College Gameday that morning. I’m sure he was watching when Kirk Herbstreit said that the Wolverines would win, that McGloin wouldn’t be able to move the ball on offense. And I’m sure that Matt McGloin got angry. Sure, Rob Bolden’s a leader too, but his calm confidence wasn’t getting it done. This team needed the brash outspokenness of a kid who’s been knocked down before. They needed the kind of kid who, when interviewed after the game, said he was gunning for Herbstreit.

And when Rob Bolden got knocked out of the game again last Saturday, and the coaching staff needed someone to rally the troops, well, they had to go to Matt McGloin. And once he was able to settle in, and get his feet underneath him, McGloin was brilliant. But that didn’t happen until Matt McGloin was counted out, like he’s been so many times not just in his football career, but in his life. McGloin didn’t turn it on until Penn State was down 21-0. Until the particularly restless in the crowd started to leave. Until all hope was lost.

And what message did McGloin have to the doubters? Fuck you. And so when we all expected Penn State to run out the clock, what did McGloin do? He led his team on a drive promulgated by pure ballsiness, marching them down the field, taking them 91 yards in just 47 seconds. And it wasn’t with pinpoint accuracy, or with arm strength. It was with guts, and determination. Matt McGloin wasn’t going to let his team go into the break down by three touchdowns. Sure, that second half was powered by a resurgent run game. Evan Royster got going, and Silas Redd broke out in a big way.

But they haven’t had that kind of success with anyone else under center. You see, the rest of the offense needed the confidence that you get when your quarterback believes in you. When he comes into the huddle, and tells you you’re going to come back for the win, and you just know it’s gonna be true.

How else can you explain the offensive turnaround? How else can you account for a team that couldn’t score in the red zone finally converting field goal chances into touchdowns? Remember when this was a 3-3 team that had lost its sense of direction?  Well, now it’s a 6-3 team that’s high on momentum. It’s the fire that burns deep down within Matt McGloin that’s consuming this offense, and in the best of ways.

For a Penn State team that’s been looking for leaders for the past three months: well, they’ve finally got one. In Matt McGloin, Penn State has a quarterback who won’t back down from a fight. Who doesn’t just think his team can win, but deep down knows it. That’s where the real gunslinger mentality is present, even if he’s not throwing the ball down the field–Matt McGloin doesn’t give a shit what you think, he’ll succeed in spite of you. You want to mock him? You want to joke that McGloin’s only mentality is to say “fuck it, I’m going deep?” Well, the joke’s on you. He will go deep, and god damn it, it’s gonna work.

And with the Nittany Lions finding themselves 17-point underdogs, going on the road to take on a menacing Ohio State team, with a defense that’s destroyed quarterbacks this season, you need that swagger. You need someone who can take all that hate, and boil it down into fuel for his team.

You need Matt McGloin.