If you have not detected a pattern in Penn State’s four-game losing streak, consider this: Terry Smith’s 3-4 Nittany Lions could not hold a 21-10 second-half lead in PSU’s 25-24 loss to Iowa on Saturday night at Kinnick Stadium.

Penn State fell to 3-4 -- and 0-4 in the Big Ten -- after blowing a late lead against Iowa in interim coach Terry Smith's first game since replacing James Franklin.

Penn State blew a fourth quarter lead. Iowa quarterback Mark Gronowski rushed for a career-high 130 yards and two touchdowns, including a 67-yard burst that set up Kaden Wetjen’s game-winning 8-yard touchdown run with 3:54 remaining.

Even after a change at the top, it was the same result for Penn State. Playing their first game since James Franklin’s firing, the Nittany Lions looked inspired for three quarters under interim coach Terry Smith.

Terry Smith has been named Penn State's interim football coach in the wake of James Franklin's firing. Here's what to know about the Nittany Lions' new leader. Now in his 12th year at Penn State, Smith entered this season for his fifth year as associate head coach of the Nittany Lions.

With Saturday's loss to Iowa, Penn State fell under .500 for the first time since 2021, the same year it last lost four straight games.

Penn State lost another one-possession game, falling to 3-4 on the season. How did the Nittany Lions look against Iowa?

Terry Smith says he's willing to do whatever he can to help Penn State win in his role as the interim head football coach of the Nittany Lions. Smith, who was named interim head coach of the team on Sunday following the firing of James Franklin, addressed the media on Monday at a press conference alongside athletic director Pat Kraft.

Smith, who has served as the team's defensive recruiting coordinator since 2014, said he personally recruited three-fourths of the current roster. Now his job is keeping players from leaving.