The Penn State Football Show

First off, that's a huge win. Illinois is a very good team and played a good game and we still managed to hold them off. They may have the most difficult offense to defend out of every team on our schedule, so we can all take a deep breath having gotten past them.

Other thoughts in no particular order:

Not having Jordan Norwood is a big blow to our passing game. He's been our best wide receiver, and is our best route runner. He has been Clark's favorite target all season, so we will need him back soon. Hopefully it's not too serious, although hamstring pulls can linger.

There is no reason for Josh Hull to be on the field. Many of the big runs in the first two Illinois drives were his fault. He is out of place way too often and gets taken out of plays way to easily. He is slow and can't get off blocks. They really need to give someone else a shot at middle linebacker if they want to succeed against Wisconsin and Ohio State.

Drew Astorino is a player. All over the field. He's a ballhawk and he also plays tough. I think he's a better version of Scirotto, because he's not afraid to hit. Great instincts. This kid is going to be good.

I was glad to see AJ Wallace get in at corner. He played well on defense, and is a better corner than Lydell. It seemed like maybe they went with him after Sargeant made a poor play on the Benn touchdown in the first quarter. However, AJ looked terrible on the kick returns. I don't know what has happened with him -- he used to be an incredible return man, and half-way through last year something happened and he hasn't been the same returner since. He looks timid out there and doesn't run full speed anymore. Luckily we have D-Will to make up for it.

Speaking of which - what a game by D-Will. He really stepped up with Norwood out. No more needs to be said here.

Royster is awesome. We should have given him the ball much more tonight. I like Green and his speed and potential, but there was no reason to take Royster out and replace him with Green like they did on a few series tonight. Not to mention the 4th and 1. Running the ball with Green is a bad idea, he's a small fast back, not a short-yardage runner. I know Royster was hurt, but let Clark get the one yard, or even Lawlor. That was a dumb play call that could have cost Penn State.

If Quarless can stay out of trouble he can be a big weapon for this team. Needs to block better though.

Overall a huge win. Great play-calling on offense for the most part. A few missed opportunities, some sloppiness, but overall a big win for this team. Darryl Clark showed good poise and leadership in this game as well. I'm surprised that Purdue lost to Notre Dame today. I thought they would beat ND pretty badly. Still, Purdue could be a tough game, especially on the road, so the team can't look ahead.