Joe Dexter
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Penn State vs. Ohio State Preview with Nittany Lions Den’s Kevin McGuire
Joe Dexter via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
It’s the biggest game to date for both Ohio State and Penn State on Saturday. The Buckeyes are looking to prove that they belong a top the college football world, while the Nittany Lions are looking to avenge a controversial loss from a year ago.
To get a closer look at what Penn State brings to the table on Saturday, we had to go to the source of PSU football information, and our Bloguin Bros at Nittany Lions Den.
NLD’s Kevin McGuire, who is a true up and comer in sports media, was kind enough give us the answers to some of the questions we’ve been asking this week.
Where do you stand on this meeting of two traditional and historic programs when it comes to being a true rivalry? After last year’s thrilling game, this week seems to have more of a rivalry buzz around it?
Penn State has not had a real no-doubt-about-it rivalry since leaving independence to join the Big Ten. The old rivalry with Pitt was essentially put on the shelf and now a generation of fans from each school struggle to understand the concept of that rivalry. Penn State was paired with Michigan State and given an awful trophy to try and make that a rivalry, but nobody ever truly bought in on that. The only team in the Big Ten that Penn State has played every season since joining the conference in 1993 is Ohio State, and for about as long a sPenn State has been in the conference the true measuring stick of success for Penn State has been what happened against either Ohio State or Michigan. Being bordering states, and given Ohio State’s stature, it makes sense Penn State would target Ohio State as its biggest rival in Big Ten play.
That said, everybody understands Penn State is down the pecking order for Ohio State in terms of rivalries. Is there some good intensity when the two teams play? Absolutely. Have their been signature moments for each? Certainly. Is there potential for the rivalry to continue to grow and be one worth recognizing? Here’s to hoping.
Considering health issues throughout the year, The Nittany Lions have to be pleased being 5-1 at this point of the season. Penn State has not started the same lineup in back to back games this season and have had a different look every game. Last week it was top running backs Saquon Barkley and Akeel Lynch. How important is it for Penn State to have those guys healthy on Saturday in order to compete?
It is extremely important for Penn State to have at least one of those two running backs back, as those two seemed to generate some momentum for the offense a few weeks back. Barkley in particular has provided a nice spark for the team with some of the moves he has shown off with his feet and ability to make some runs picks up a few extra yards. But with Barkley being a freshman it is also important to not rush him back before he is ready to go. Penn State contionuebs to work on padding the depth on the program coming out of the abbreviated sanction phase with recruiting, and it will get there. But right now there is youth all over the roster and James Franklin is hesitant to rely on those young players too much, too early.
Before the year started I thought there was a real chance Penn State could reach this game with a 6-0 record, and felt a 5-1 record was probably a worst-case scenario barring injuries to notable players like Hackenberg. At 5-1 Penn State has reason to feel optimistic and confident, although this will clearly be their biggest challenge of the season and a good measuring stick to determine just how far they have come or how far they still have to go.
When talking about Penn State, most are quick to judge Christian Hackenberg’s ability to put his team in a position to win. What’s your assessment so far this season? It seems like Hack has figured out how to deliver the ball a lot quicker and take care of the football, despite not having the best protection up front.
So far this season we have seen excuses made for Hackenberg ranging from the play of a rebuilding offensive line to inclement weather but I believe Hackenberg has made enough mistakes and bad throws on his own to justify some criticism. The playacting, for the most part, has been thinking too small and not allowed Hackenbereg to try connecting with receivers down field. They did start to do a little of that last week against Indiana, and it was effective. Penn State needs to try that more often. Despite some struggles at times, when Hackenberg is on the mark it seems that good things happen in a beautiful way. Is there room for improvement? Absolutely, if the coaching staff allows for Hackenberg to tap his perceived potential and the offensive line gives him time to make that happen.
The No-Huddle Defense. It tells you a lot about the superior conditioning of the Penn State front 7. We know about the defensive line, but how good have the linebackers and secondary been this season for Penn State?
One thing that has always been pretty consistent at Penn State has been the play of the defensive front, starting on the line. Between Austin Johnson and Carl Nassib and Anthony Zettel, there are some guys that can rush through the line and make plays happen in the backfield or at the line. And that is good, because Penn State is not quite as deep at linebacker as they are accustomed. The linebacking corps may still be a steady force, but it runs thin. Fortunately, the defensive secondary has been a solid unit for Penn State. You can throw on Penn State, but they will not be prone to allowing for too many big plays through the air. The secondary was once the weak spot on the defense, but this year it has some good young talent that is maturing and coming into their own along the way.
The biggest question heading into the season was the offensive line. In week one, they gave up 10 sacks. They’ve improved drastically. How much does that have to do with the offense doing what it can to get the ball out faster compared to improvement up front?
The opening matchup against Temple’s defense was a huge mismatch I tried warning people about, but even I could not have seen the Owls racking up 10 sacks. Since then the offensive line has continued to gel, which I think ultimately has been the biggest reason for some improvement. It still has along way to go and will really be put to the test this weekend, but just by having these guys get a chance to play together I think will allow them to come together and improve as a unit. It is also unknown how much of the improvement we have seen has been a result of the level of competition. Since Temple, Penn State’s offensive line has not really been tested by a real solid defensive line, so this game should give us a better idea of how much work still needs to be done. After last season though, there was nowhere for this o-line to go but up, and there are signs of that being the case with a running game finding some room to make plays and Hackenberg having at least a second to process what is happening on the field more often than not.
The post Penn State vs. Ohio State Preview with Nittany Lions Den’s Kevin McGuire appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
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Joe Dexter via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
It’s the biggest game to date for both Ohio State and Penn State on Saturday. The Buckeyes are looking to prove that they belong a top the college football world, while the Nittany Lions are looking to avenge a controversial loss from a year ago.
To get a closer look at what Penn State brings to the table on Saturday, we had to go to the source of PSU football information, and our Bloguin Bros at Nittany Lions Den.
NLD’s Kevin McGuire, who is a true up and comer in sports media, was kind enough give us the answers to some of the questions we’ve been asking this week.
Where do you stand on this meeting of two traditional and historic programs when it comes to being a true rivalry? After last year’s thrilling game, this week seems to have more of a rivalry buzz around it?
Penn State has not had a real no-doubt-about-it rivalry since leaving independence to join the Big Ten. The old rivalry with Pitt was essentially put on the shelf and now a generation of fans from each school struggle to understand the concept of that rivalry. Penn State was paired with Michigan State and given an awful trophy to try and make that a rivalry, but nobody ever truly bought in on that. The only team in the Big Ten that Penn State has played every season since joining the conference in 1993 is Ohio State, and for about as long a sPenn State has been in the conference the true measuring stick of success for Penn State has been what happened against either Ohio State or Michigan. Being bordering states, and given Ohio State’s stature, it makes sense Penn State would target Ohio State as its biggest rival in Big Ten play.
That said, everybody understands Penn State is down the pecking order for Ohio State in terms of rivalries. Is there some good intensity when the two teams play? Absolutely. Have their been signature moments for each? Certainly. Is there potential for the rivalry to continue to grow and be one worth recognizing? Here’s to hoping.
Considering health issues throughout the year, The Nittany Lions have to be pleased being 5-1 at this point of the season. Penn State has not started the same lineup in back to back games this season and have had a different look every game. Last week it was top running backs Saquon Barkley and Akeel Lynch. How important is it for Penn State to have those guys healthy on Saturday in order to compete?
It is extremely important for Penn State to have at least one of those two running backs back, as those two seemed to generate some momentum for the offense a few weeks back. Barkley in particular has provided a nice spark for the team with some of the moves he has shown off with his feet and ability to make some runs picks up a few extra yards. But with Barkley being a freshman it is also important to not rush him back before he is ready to go. Penn State contionuebs to work on padding the depth on the program coming out of the abbreviated sanction phase with recruiting, and it will get there. But right now there is youth all over the roster and James Franklin is hesitant to rely on those young players too much, too early.
Before the year started I thought there was a real chance Penn State could reach this game with a 6-0 record, and felt a 5-1 record was probably a worst-case scenario barring injuries to notable players like Hackenberg. At 5-1 Penn State has reason to feel optimistic and confident, although this will clearly be their biggest challenge of the season and a good measuring stick to determine just how far they have come or how far they still have to go.
When talking about Penn State, most are quick to judge Christian Hackenberg’s ability to put his team in a position to win. What’s your assessment so far this season? It seems like Hack has figured out how to deliver the ball a lot quicker and take care of the football, despite not having the best protection up front.
So far this season we have seen excuses made for Hackenberg ranging from the play of a rebuilding offensive line to inclement weather but I believe Hackenberg has made enough mistakes and bad throws on his own to justify some criticism. The playacting, for the most part, has been thinking too small and not allowed Hackenbereg to try connecting with receivers down field. They did start to do a little of that last week against Indiana, and it was effective. Penn State needs to try that more often. Despite some struggles at times, when Hackenberg is on the mark it seems that good things happen in a beautiful way. Is there room for improvement? Absolutely, if the coaching staff allows for Hackenberg to tap his perceived potential and the offensive line gives him time to make that happen.
The No-Huddle Defense. It tells you a lot about the superior conditioning of the Penn State front 7. We know about the defensive line, but how good have the linebackers and secondary been this season for Penn State?
One thing that has always been pretty consistent at Penn State has been the play of the defensive front, starting on the line. Between Austin Johnson and Carl Nassib and Anthony Zettel, there are some guys that can rush through the line and make plays happen in the backfield or at the line. And that is good, because Penn State is not quite as deep at linebacker as they are accustomed. The linebacking corps may still be a steady force, but it runs thin. Fortunately, the defensive secondary has been a solid unit for Penn State. You can throw on Penn State, but they will not be prone to allowing for too many big plays through the air. The secondary was once the weak spot on the defense, but this year it has some good young talent that is maturing and coming into their own along the way.
The biggest question heading into the season was the offensive line. In week one, they gave up 10 sacks. They’ve improved drastically. How much does that have to do with the offense doing what it can to get the ball out faster compared to improvement up front?
The opening matchup against Temple’s defense was a huge mismatch I tried warning people about, but even I could not have seen the Owls racking up 10 sacks. Since then the offensive line has continued to gel, which I think ultimately has been the biggest reason for some improvement. It still has along way to go and will really be put to the test this weekend, but just by having these guys get a chance to play together I think will allow them to come together and improve as a unit. It is also unknown how much of the improvement we have seen has been a result of the level of competition. Since Temple, Penn State’s offensive line has not really been tested by a real solid defensive line, so this game should give us a better idea of how much work still needs to be done. After last season though, there was nowhere for this o-line to go but up, and there are signs of that being the case with a running game finding some room to make plays and Hackenberg having at least a second to process what is happening on the field more often than not.
The post Penn State vs. Ohio State Preview with Nittany Lions Den’s Kevin McGuire appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
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