The Obligatory PSU Podcast

FALL '25 Episode 23: Opting In

31 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Penn State's 2025 football season officially came to a close with the Nittany Lions' 22-10 victory over Clemson in the Pinstripe Bowl. While both rost...

FALL '25 Episode 22: Look Back on Penn State's WILD 2025

23 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As calendar year 2025 approaches its end, the guys pour some egg nog, gather around the yule log, and retell the long and winding tale of a crazy year...

FALL '25 Episode 21: Introducing Matt Campbell

10 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Penn State football has a new head coach! It may have taken Pat Kraft a couple of months, cost us a recruiting class, and ended with a stranger-than-f...

FALL '25 Episode 20: Legally Recorded Audio

05 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Mercifully overshadowed by the real news of the day (Matt Campbell to PSU), the largely innocuous leaked audio of athletic director Pat Kraft's behind...

FALL '25 Episode 19: We Have No Clue

02 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Is it gonna be Kalani Sitake? Jeff Brohm? Some shadowy mystery candidate? And whoever it ends up being, will that guy actually have a roster left to c...

FALL '25 Episode 18-A: Noble x Tengwall

27 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

BONUS CONTENT: As hinted at during this week's show, we couldn't let the Terry Smith momentum pass - along with quite possibly our last (God willing) ...

FALL '25 Episode 18: Higher Terry

25 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

TER-RY!  TER-RY!  TER-RY!The Beaver Stadium crowd chanted for one of their own as he'd just vanquished a fellow Nittany Lion in a battle of Paterno ...

FALL '25 Episode 17: A Tale of Two Coaches

18 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Penn State's former coach, James Franklin, has officially locked down his next gig. Penn State's current coach, Terry Smith, got his first win, brough...

FALL '25 Episode 16: So Close, Yet So Far

11 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From the players to the coaches to the fans, everybody brought their Saturday best against Indiana, but in keeping with the theme of this cursed seaso...

FALL '25 Episode 15: A Disaster of Biblical Proportion

04 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Following the annual dispiriting loss to Ohio State - somehow both more AND less discouraging than usual - the unranked Penn State Nittany Lions retur...

FALL '25 Episode 14: Run for Cover

28 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Bye Week's over now. Back to the real world.Penn State didn't get the win in Terry Smith's debut as interim head coach versus Iowa, but they did cover...

FALL '25 Episode 13: Try, Try Again

23 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Time to refocus on football, concentrate on all that lies ahead, and make an uplifting episode about the future and its boundless possibilities. Or at...

FALL '25 Episode 12: #Unraveled

14 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What began with such promise and hope in the wake of Bill O'Brien's departure has now come to an end in a fashion heretofore unseen at Penn State. Jam...

FALL '25 BONUS: Northwestern Debacle Instant Reaction

12 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From bad to worse to inconceivable (and yes, we know what it means).After another picture-perfect afternoon and wonderful weekend of celebration in Ha...

FALL '25 Episode 11: All Good Things

07 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

FRODO glances at SAM ... he is WEEPING. CLOSE ON: FRODO wrapping an ARM around SAM’S SHOULDER. FRODO  (calm)I'm glad to be with you, Samwise  Gamg...

FALL '25 Episode 10: You Have Died of Dysentery

30 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Welp....Nothing quite like a fresh Obligatory when the guys are (sadly) at their best to cure what ails ya.Uncurl yourself from the fetal position, ta...

FALL '25 Episode 9: Duck Hunt

23 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

PREEMPTIVE THERAPY! For us (some of us at least)? Certainly. For you too? Maybe also yes.Every so often, there comes a crucial inflection point so fra...

FALL '25 Episode 8: Champagne Villanova in the Sky

16 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There's a shortage of folks who can seamlessly code switch between profane tirades over football minutiae and waxing poetic about the magic of the Nit...

FALL '25 Episode 7: Penn State is Still Number Two

09 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Two games into a purported national championship run, the Nittany Lions are playing like their national ranking - number two.Packed with the sort of t...

FALL '25 Episode 6: Just Do It, One Last Time

03 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to the podcast's Fall 2025 sponsor: Gold Hen  *Use promo code MAILMAN at checkoutTo whatever extent a powerhouse football program grafted onto...

FALL '25 Episode 5: Penn State Roster Breakdown (Defense)

25 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Once again Chris is joined by fellow LION 90.7fm alum Mike Levine, to analyze the Nittany Lions roster, this time turning to the defense. James Frankl...

FALL '25 Episode 4: Penn State Roster Breakdown (Offense)

20 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Per Obligatory tradition, one of our most popular features returns: the Penn State football preview in which Chris enlists the assistance of fellow LI...

FALL '25 Episode 3: Going Number Two

12 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As if the excitement and national hype - and the attendant dread and pressure that accompany them - couldn't get any more intense, Penn State made its...

FALL '25 Episode 2: All Aboard the Hype Train

05 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There's no denying it: Excitement is in the air in Happy Valley. Autumn's arrival always brings the energy of students returning to campus and the ant...

FALL '25 Episode 1: Defining "Success" for Penn State

29 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Welcome the podcast's Fall 2025 sponsor: Gold Hen  *Use promo code MAILMAN at checkout The roster has never been deeper or more talented. The vibes h...

SPRING '25 Episode 2: Spring Roster Rundown

24 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As with our Fall roster breakdowns, Chris enlists the assistance of fellow LION 90.7fm alum, former FIU and Miami Hurricanes broadcaster Mike Levine, ...

SPRING '25 Episode 1: Turning the Page

17 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Grab your pencil and your paper. We take one last, lingering look back at 2024, in all its glory and heartbreak, before turning our attention to a new...

BONUS CONTENT: Penn State Poaches Jim Knowles!

26 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

BREAKING NEWS, BONUS CONTENT!James Franklin and Pat Kraft swung for the fences and made contact. Chris and Brandon give their snap reactions to Penn S...

FALL '24 Episode 18: Free Therapy

14 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A sad fact of sports fandom is that most seasons end in disappointment. The higher you scale the ladder of anticipation, the harder the crash if you f...

FALL '24 Episode 17: Beau Today, Gone Tomorrow

17 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The NIL Era giveth, and it taketh away. On the veritable eve of the first-ever playoff game in Beaver Stadium, Penn State fans were hit with the doubl...

FALL '24 Episode 16: Penn State, Let's Talk.

27 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Obligatory Cinematic Universe expands with a blockbuster crossover event as the gang gets back in the podcasting saddle. Noble, Kevin, and Chris t...

FALL '24 Episode 15: Ohio State Pressure Cooker

31 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A video released by Penn State's Athletic Department after the famous 2016 Ohio State game that kick-started the program's revival from the sanction e...

FALL '24 Episode 14: Badgers Blasted; Buckeyes Next

29 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

They called it a trap game. They said the Nittany Lions were vulnerable. They questioned our offense and dismissed our defense. But when the lights ca...

FALL '24 Episode 13: Trojans Busted; Badgers Next

23 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

James Franklin and the Nittany Lions got the coveted, elusive, statement-making win they so desperately needed by defeating USC... or so it seemed. Th...

FALL '24 Episode 12: Runway to Destiny

09 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

It may take an extra bus trip to Harrisburg to get there, but the road date everybody circled on Penn State's 2024 schedule is finally upon us. Confer...

FALL '24 Episode 11: White Out Energized

03 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Well, "Bert" asked, and Nittany Nation answered. Penn State fans and media may have taken some liberties with the context around Bret Bielema's, "Whit...

FALL '24 Episode 10: Facing Down Illinois (Wear White)

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

One mild upset in Lincoln and suddenly Penn State's Homecoming is set up for clash of nationally-ranked unbeatens under the Beaver Stadium lights that...

FALL '24 Episode 9: Kent Stand Ya

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

During the dull offseason months when football-starved fans obsess over such things, many observers noted a conspicuous flaw in the final version of P...

FALL '24 Episode 8: Falcon L

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In retrospect, perhaps it was inevitable: the season-opening road trip, the convincing win over a team and fanbase that talked a big game and couldn't...

FALL '24 Episode 7: Country Roadkill

04 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

College football is back in all its glory, and for Penn State and many other would-be contenders across America, the rites of Fall have been renewed. ...

FALL '24 Episode 6: Penn State Roster Breakdown (Defense)

27 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Once again Chris is joined by fellow LION 90.7fm alum, former FIU and Miami Hurricanes broadcaster Mike Levine, to analyze the Nittany Lions roster in...

FALL '24 Episode 5: Penn State Roster Breakdown (Offense)

26 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Per Obligatory tradition, one of our most popular features returns: the Penn State football preview in which Chris enlists the assistance of fellow LI...

FALL '24 Episode 4: Penn State Season Preview

23 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On the cusp of another season of Nittany Lions football, the guys get together to discuss their dreams, aspirations, and fears for this year's team. C...

FALL '24 Episode 3: College Football's Facelift

14 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

From the 12-team playoff to the "green dot," the 2024 college football season promises plenty of changes, large and small. As Penn State's opening kic...

FALL '24 Episode 2: Can't Spell "Nihilist" without NIL

06 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Are you frustrated because the Nittany Lions appear to be losing out on recruits, at home in PA and across the country, because Old State can't seem t...

FALL '24 Episode 1: Obligatory Origins

31 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Hey folks. Great news (maybe). If you’re reading this, it’s probably at least good news: The most lovable, least reliable Penn State podcast on ea...

FALL '23 Episode 10: More Like "Episode 10-2," Amirite?

30 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Penn State wrapped up another 10-2 regular season that was, yes, in some respects a failure - a failure to achieve the lofty goals that were set justi...

FALL '23 Episode 9: Big Blues

16 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What more can you say? We try to come up with something. The guys wrap up the Michigan win over Penn State that slammed on the door on the Nittany Lio...

FALL '23 Episode 8: [Connor Stalions Stole The Title]

09 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For the second time in four weeks, James Franklin and the Nittany Lions are facing one of the biggest games in recent program history. This time, they...

FALL '23 Episode 7: Indiana Escape

02 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Penn State narrowly escapes what would have been a devastating loss to a terrible Indiana Hoosiers team and instead travels to College Park to face no...

FALL '23 Episode 6: Same S**t, Different Year

26 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Another meeting of top tens for the Nittany Lions. Another matchup with the Buckeyes. Another trip to the Horseshoe. And yet another predictably miser...

FALL '23 Episode 5: Ohio State Vibes, "There is no 'try'"

19 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A fair reading of James Franklin's decade-long tenure at Penn State is that the entire thing has led up to this Saturday's game in Columbus, a meeting...

FALL '23 Episode 4: UMass Hysteria

12 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Penn State made the rounds of all the national college football news outlets this week and even managed to rile up the famously even-tempered denizens...

FALL '23 Episode 3: Hello, Good Bye Week

05 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Your Penn State Nittany Lions roll into the Bye week 5-0 and ranked #6 in the nation, featuring a dominant defense and an offense that, despite averag...

FALL '23 Episode 2: We're Goin' Streaking

28 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One, on its own, is an isolated incident. Two in a row is the start of a streak. So this podcast is going streaking. The guys are back this week to re...

FALL '23 Episode 1: Like Riding a Bike

21 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A few minor issues. A couple of miscues. Several handfuls of chocolate chips, and all the Utz chips you can eat for the next 32 years. The full cast r...

FALL '22 Episode 1: We're Back. Is Penn State?

16 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Like the phoenix rising from the ashes, or brain-eating zombies rising from the dead, or Notre Dame football underperforming unearned lofty expectatio...

Wrapping Up Blue-White: Obligatory Keystone Crossover

28 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The format wasn't exactly a game, but if you traveled to Happy Valley or tuned to the Big Ten Network for exciting football action, your cause was alr...

Blue-White Weekend: Obligatory Keystone Crossover

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The first "normal" Blue-White Weekend in nearly three years is nearly upon us, so Chris and Jim ruminate on the appeal of the overall event weekend, t...

Favorite Penn State Players: Obligatory Keystone Crossover

13 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Every sports fan forms lasting connections with certain players on their favorite teams, whether because of skill, toughness, personality, or all thre...

Best Beaver Stadium Moments: Obligatory Keystone Crossover

06 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What is your favorite memory of Penn State football? Practically every fan of the Nittany Lions has at least one play, moment, or game from which they...

Is Penn State Losing at NIL?: Obligatory Keystone Crossover

30 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Astronomical payouts to star recruits, entire position groups, and even full recruiting classes have headlined the first year of Name, Image, and Like...

Sandy Barbour Special: Obligatory Keystone Crossover

17 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

With Penn State Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sandy Barbour announcing her retirement plans, the search is on for the next person to le...

The Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 19

28 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In a very short time, the transfer portal has become the talk of the college football world, with the sport's de facto free agent market emerging as a...

The Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 16

23 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

While starting quarterback Sean Clifford's decision to return and play one final season for the Nittany Lions may have divided Penn State's online fan...

The Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 14

10 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

All over the college football landscape, loyalties and fortunes (in every sense of the word) are shifting at breakneck speed as head coaches are makin...

The Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 12

24 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

After a brief update on the status of the regular podcast, Chris and Jim take a broader look at the landscape of college football and the mounting cha...

The Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 10

10 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

With all the rumors swirling around James Franklin's future at Penn State and many talking heads insisting that certain jobs are obviously better than...

FALL '21 Episode 17: Ohio State, Maryland & Playoff Rankings

04 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Maybe moral victories are the best we can hope for when it comes to Penn State versus Ohio State. As another year passes without a win over the Buckey...

The Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 8

28 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

One relatively routine hit on QB Sean Clifford during the first quarter of the Iowa game produced a dramatic ripple effect on Penn State's 2021 season...

FALL '21 Episode 16: Post-Illinois, Pre-Ohio State Mega Show

26 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Over four agonizing, rain-soaked quarters and 75 overtime periods only vaguely resembling the sport of football, what had mostly felt like a decidedly...

FALL '21 Episode 15: Penn State, By the Numbers

21 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

As the Nittany Lions prepare to return to action, Chris and Mailman are joined by Nathan Wilmot, the analytics columnist for For The Blogy, who has de...

FALL '21 Episode 14: Will Nittany Lions Become Penn State Employees?

20 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Even as the Nittany Lions chase another Big Ten title, fighting to defend a Top 10 ranking while battling the injury bug, it wouldn't be a season of t...

The Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 6

13 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Hair metal rockers Cinderella perhaps put it best with their 1988 hit: "Don't Know What You Got (Til It's Gone)." Sean Clifford was shredding the va...

FALL '21 Episode 13: Post-Iowa Therapy

11 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A game that began with the promise and excitement of a top 5 matchup for your Penn State Nittany Lions rapidly devolved into a frustrating and dispiri...

FALL '21 Episode 12: Penn State at Iowa

08 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Wrapping a week's worth of Penn State football news into one whirlwind podcast, our full cast of characters share one long, lingering glance back at t...

Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 5

06 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the midst of an exciting season that has seen the Penn State Nittany Lions rise to fourth in the nation after five weeks and on the eve of their bi...

FALL '21 Episode 11: Indiana at Penn State

30 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

No Penn State fan needs to be reminded about what transpired the last time the Nittany Lions faced Indiana's football team. The debacle of sloppy and ...

Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 4

29 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Maybe it's time to go back to "Legends" and "Leaders." After years of the scales tipping in favor of the Big Ten's East division, home to college foot...

FALL '21 Episode 10: So Much for the Afterglow

27 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

No matter how rosy and promising the big picture may appear, no matter how satisfying and cathartic the experience has been, no matter how well your e...

FALL '21 Episode 9: Villanova at Penn State feat. Ben Jones, StateCollege.com

24 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

With nearly all of Penn State's divisional opponents in the Big Ten East showing substantial improvement early in the 2021 season and a number of diff...

Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 3

22 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We have been hearing from James Franklin and many others about the immense talent Penn State has at tight end this season and waiting to see how new o...

FALL '21 Episode 8: Auburn Afterglow

21 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

There are but a precious few places where the forces of the college football universe can all align to create a special and resonant moment that touch...

FALL '21 Episode 7: Auburn at Penn State

16 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A big weekend in Happy Valley looms. In under two decades, the Beaver Stadium White Out has cemented its status among the most distinctive traditions ...

Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 2

15 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When you run the company, you can't get fired. When you're publishing your own podcast, you can't get canceled. And so, the Obligatory Keystone Crosso...

FALL '21 Episode 6: Ball Busted

13 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

After 651 days of barren tailgate fields, empty bleachers, and often-uninspiring football played in eerie silence, Happy Valley's home game drought is...

FALL '21 Episode 5: Ball State at Penn State

09 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Happy Valley is ready for a family reunion. After an impossibly long layover nobody could have foreseen when the 2019 Nittany Lions closed out their h...

Obligatory Keystone Crossover: Episode 1

08 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Introducing the Obligatory Keystone Crossover, an "alliance" (if you will) between two teams of content creators who share a mutual love for Penn Stat...

FALL '21 Episode 4: The Joy of 1-0

07 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The wait, long and miserable though it may have been - through global turmoil and an on-again, off-again season that maybe would have been better left...

FALL '21 Episode 3: Penn State at Wisconsin

02 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The long wait - in many respects, far longer than is usual for this time of year - is finally almost over. Penn State travels to Madison, Wisconsin th...

FALL '21 Episode 2: Penn State Roster Breakdown (Defense)

30 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Per Obligatory tradition, one of our most popular features returns: the Penn State football preview in which Chris enlists the assistance of fellow LI...

FALL '21 Episode 1: Penn State Roster Breakdown (Offense)

28 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Per Obligatory tradition, one of our most popular features returns: the Penn State football preview in which Chris enlists the assistance of fellow LI...

SUMMER '21 Episode 5: The Real Hiking Viking

26 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We wrap up our 2021 Summer semester with this extended conversation with returning guest Tom Gathman, better known to outdoor and adventure enthusiast...

SUMMER '21 Episode 4: Unlicensed

09 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

On July 1, 2021, the epoch of college football that began in 1869 with Rutgers and Princeton playing a bizarre combination of soccer and rugby came to...

SUMMER '21 Episode 3: College Football Playoff Expansion Pt. 2

29 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Once upon a time, Joe Paterno's Penn State Nittany Lions were the new kid on the college football block, struggling to earn respect among the establis...

SUMMER '21 Episode 2: SCOTUS stiff arms the NCAA

22 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When is losing 9-0 more embarrassing than losing 6-4? When you're the governing body of one of the nation's most venerable and popular sports leagues ...

SUMMER '21 Episode 1: College Football Playoff Expansion Pt. 1

15 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Few teams have been more consistently cheated of the chance to prove their worthiness as title contenders on the field than the Penn State Nittany Lio...

SPRING '21 Episode 24: Two White Outs Twice As Nice?

25 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

With the announcement that Penn State's highly-anticipated non-conference matchup with Auburn will kick off under the lights at Beaver Stadium, antici...

SPRING '21 Episode 23: Penn State Letterman Lydell Sargeant

14 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The guys interview Penn State Football Letterman Lydell Sargeant, a Pittsburgh native who committed to PSU as part of Joe Paterno's legendary 2005 rec...

SPRING '21 Episode 22: The Award Winner & The Hiking Viking

11 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Listen to guest Miriam Colvin's award-winning podcast: https://soundcloud.com/miriam-colvin/competition-with-the-bestWith Spring football and the NFL ...