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Game Thread tOSU vs. Penn St. (Dark Night in the 'Shoe) Sat 10/17 @ 8p ET, ABC/ESPN/ESPN2

TO CONTAIN PENN STATE'S CHRISTIAN HACKENBERG, OHIO STATE MUST GET A COLLECTIVE DEFENSIVE EFFORT

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Penn State quarterback Christian Hackenberg hasn't had much success in his two career games played against Ohio State, throwing for just 336 yards and two touchdowns versus four interceptions in a pair of losses thus far.

But despite Hackenberg's marginal-at-best performances against the Buckeyes in the past, to think Ohio State isn't well aware of his potential and overall talent level would be a bit naive.

"Obvious NFL abilities," head coach Urban Meyer said. "We've got a lot of respect for Christian."

That seems to be the story of Hackenberg's career in Happy Valley thus far, though. The numbers don't seem to match up to the talent level.

Hackenberg is widely projected as a first-round NFL Draft pick; he has everything NFL teams are looking for from a physical standpoint: the size, strong arm, ability to make every throw. Through his first 2.5 seasons at Penn State, the junior signal caller has completed 56 percent of his passes and thrown 39 touchdowns with 27 interceptions.

Good numbers, but certainly not great.

That's of course due to a bevy of factors starting with the play of the Nittany Lions' offensive line throughout Hackenberg's tenure. It's been marginal at best. Penn State's wide receivers have also had a significant number of drops, some of the Buckeyes' coaches said as they've watched film.

"He’s making some really good throws, he’s making the deep throws, short throws," Ohio State co-defensive coordinator Chris Ash said. "For whatever reason, every now and then, the ball may be dropped by a receiver or tight end, something like that, and that’s not necessarily the quarterback’s fault because he’s throwing some pretty good balls.”

Entire article: http://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...rg-ohio-state-must-get-a-collective-defensive
 
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