One of the most raw, real and genuine moments in recent memory in sports happened in Smith’s press conference on Monday. When asked about the support that he’s been given throughout the Penn State community after Saturday’s win, Smith was emotional when discussing the first win of his career, one that was highly coveted after the tumultuous six weeks prior to the win over Michigan State.

Smith said he has two phones, and both had about 500 text messages on it. In addition, there were about another 500 direct messages on social media.

“I’ve been reached out to by basically every person I’ve known in my entire life,” Smith said.

And that’s when the outpouring of emotion came out for Smith.

“People are very proud of me, and it’s very humbling for me,” Smith said while choking up. “It’s just humbling sitting in this seat.”

To the average fan, the past several games haven’t meant a whole lot with the College Football Playoffs well out of reach. It’s clear that it’s not that way for Smith, who has bled blue and white since he first stepped on campus as a player in 1987.

He was rewarded by being carried off the field after beating the Spartans on Saturday. Smith said he couldn’t describe how that moment felt.

“I’m just so blessed,” Smith said. “God has been so good to me through everything in my life. To have the opportunity to be the head coach at Penn State … I don’t think anything has made me and my family happier than this opportunity.”

RECOGNIZING SENIORS

It will be a surprise night game to end the home slate on Saturday with Nebraska, and it will be senior night.

Obviously this season hasn’t turned out to be what a sizable portion of the senior class envisioned when they chose to come back for a final year of eligibility. But Smith was quick to point out that the class also had the most wins in program history during a three-year stretch.

“These guys have really transformed the expectation for Penn State football,” Smith said. As we move forward, they’ve set the standard.”

Drew Allar will be among the seniors recognized, and Smith said Allar ‘means everything to us.’ Allar has been around the team for everything since his season-ending injury against Northwestern.

“He could have easily detached from this team,” Smith said. “He’s at every meeting. He’s at every practice. He travels with us on the road. That’s true leadership.”

POSSIBLE NEW RUSHING KING

One of the silver linings in the lost season for the Lions is the career rushing record for Kaytron Allen. Allen had a career-high 181 rushing yards on Saturday, pushing his career total to 3,794 yards. He is only 138 yards shy of Evan Royster’s record, set from 2007-10.

“The most important goal is to win the game, but we do know our keys to victory every week is for Kaytron and Nick (Singleton) to touch the ball,” Smith said. “If they’re touching the ball, that means we’re going to get closer to that goal. I want nothing more than for him to have the opportunity to break the (record).”

INTERVIEW FOR THE JOB

Smith said he has not had any discussions with athletic director Pat Kraft about dropping the interim tag and being the permanent head coach.

The more time has passed in being the head man since James Franklin’s dismissal, it’s becoming more universally agreed upon that Smith should be a part of the staff next season.

“The way I see it, my interview is every day that I’m operating in this seat,” Smith said.

NOTABLE

• Next week’s regular season finale at Rutgers was announced for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff in Piscataway on the Big Ten Network.

• Should Penn State finish the season at 6-6 and choose to play in a bowl game, some possible destinations include Detroit (GameAbove Sports Bowl, Dec. 26), Phoenix (Rate Bowl, Dec. 26), New York City (Pinstripe Bowl, Dec. 27), Nashville (Music City Bowl, Dec. 30), and Las Vegas (Las Vegas Bowl, Dec. 31).