The Penn State Football Show

FINALLY A NEW COACH HAS BEEN NAMED!

2012-01-10T22:13:00.001-05:00

This blog has been completely silent throughout the entire coaching search, and that was probably for the better. Anything we would have posted would have been pure speculation anyway. I spent a great deal of time every single day reading the latest rumors on the message boards about the coaching search, the rumored candidates, and the direction people believed the search committee was heading in. I’ve never been so obsessed over an impending decision. In the end, this proved to be a colossal waste of time, because it became abundantly clear pretty early on that NOBODY had any clue, what was going on. Somehow, the search committee managed to keep the entire process completely quiet, without many leaks at all. Which, in this day and age, is quite impressive and should be commended, even though it was incredibly frustrating!

Even though I knew nobody knew anything, I still couldn’t help reading. I’m not going to act like I know what went on behind the scenes, because I don’t, and only those involved do. It certainly seems like Petersen and Munchak were two of the top choices, and it appears both turned down the job. Where O’Brien was on the list, we will never know. But he is our coach now, and I’m excited about it. I will admit it was pretty underwhelming after some of the names that were rumored to be interested. But sometimes a young, hungry coach, anxious to prove himself, turns out to be a much better (and more affordable) hire than a big-name coach.

I didn’t love the hire at first, but I didn’t hate it as much as most seemed to initially. First and foremost, if he’s on Bill Belichik’s staff, he has a great football mind. No doubt about it. I know people always bring up the fact that his assistants don’t succeed as head coaches, but that doesn’t scare me at all. Just because the others failed does not mean O’Brien will fail. Everybody’s different. Doesn’t anyone remember the main reason Aaron Rodgers fell so far in the draft? It was because quarterbacks in Jeff Tedford’s system don’t succeed in the NFL: David Carr, Akili Smith, Joey Harrington, Kyle Boller. So 23 teams all bought into that bullshit and passed on Aaron Rodgers. So much for that thought! I’m not saying O’Brien will be the one to end this curse, I’m just saying it’s not a reason to discount all Belichik assistants. That’s just foolishness

I liked O’Brien better than Clements and Roman. He is younger than Clements and I like the fact that he is an Ivy Leaguer and from all accounts, is a man of great integrity and believes strongly in the academic side of being a college football coach. While it sucks he isn’t able to start right now, I respect the hell out of the fact that he is staying with the Patriots and not just bailing on them as many coaches do these days. As a Penn State fan, yes, it’s inconvenient, but it says a lot about his character and his loyalty, which is much more important to me in the long run. I liked the way he stated it in the press conference too, “I couldn’t come up here today and talk about commitment and loyalty, and then turn my back on the Patriots in the middle of a Super Bowl run.”

Along those same lines, after Munchak stated publicly that he had no interest in the PSU job, there were rumors floating around that he was still thinking about it. As much as I wanted him to take the job, I was not comfortable with the thought of Penn State’s coach being a guy that just a few days earlier looked into the camera and said “I am not interested in coaching at Penn State.” All the fans talk about what it means to be a “Penn State guy.” Well I don’t think being a “Penn State guy” means lying to the media, the public, and your players and bailing on them after one year. That’s why he stayed, I respect his decision. You could tell he was tempted, but the timing was not right for him. I hope he succeeds in Tennessee.

Right off the bat, though, I did have two main concerns about O’Brien: 1. Is this guy just going to bolt after a few years when another job, possibly an NFL job, opens up? 2. How is this guy going to assemble a coaching staff?

The answer to number 1 we won’t know until it happens or doesn’t happen. He has spent most of his career in college football. He seems to be big into teaching kids both on and off the field, so he seems like a better fit for college than the NFL. But we will just have to wait and see.

Here are the reasons I was concerned about him putting together a solid staff: He’s currently with New England, and promised to finish out the season with them, which could take a while, knowing how Bill Belichik operates. How much time and energy can he put toward hiring a staff? More importantly, who is he going to get? Certainly not many, if any members of the New England Patriots staff are going to pick up and leave a perennial Super Bowl contender to coach at a college in the middle of the biggest scandal in college football history. Other than that, his coaching experiences have been mainly at Duke, Maryland and Georgia Tech. All solid academic schools, but not exactly football powerhouses. Not to mention, the way things were going, it was looking like Penn State was trying to clean house, despite the fact that they had some of the best assistant coaches in the country.

Well this concern was quickly addressed in his press conference. He stated that he planned to have the entire staff in place in the next few days, which to me, clearly indicated that he had been working on this previously. I imagine part of the interviewing/hiring process consisted of questions about who his staff would be. More importantly though, was his announcement during the press conference that Larry Johnson was remaining on the staff. That was easily the best news of the day. If LJ isn’t the best defensive line coach in the country, I don’t know who is. Not to mention this helps tremendously with recruiting because he will help keep the commitments they already had for next year plus he’s just a great recruiter in general. The next piece of great news is that Ron Vanderlinden is also staying. After names like Mullen, Roman, Petersen, Clements and O’Brien were floating around, it became apparent that the coaching search was focused on bringing in an offensive minded coach (for good reason). I felt I’d be fine with a lesser known offensive minded candidate IF he retains two out of the three of Bradley, LJ and Vanderlinden. That way we could maintain Penn State’s sick defense and add a great offense. And O’Brien managed to do that. (At some point I want to dedicate a post to Tom Bradley because he is the man and deserved much better than what he got.) But back to O’Brien, I was thrilled he was able to keep those two. Even better, is the fact that he was wise enough and strong enough to let everyone else go. Nobody on the staff deserved to stay besides Bradley, LJ and Vandy. But I feared they were going to clean house and get rid of everyone. I was very happy to hear that he kept those two and got rid of the rest, that was the best way to handle it. Plus I loved the fact that people erupted in cheers at the presser when he announced LJ was staying. If O’Brien didn’t know how beloved LJ was before that moment, he certainly does now.

Then he started assembling his staff, which so far, I’m pretty pleased with. Just going off of resumes and prior experiences, my favorite pick up so far is Hixon, the wide receivers coach from the Buffalo Bills. First of all, we all know that wide receivers are the biggest prima donnas on the field. So if there is ever a position where having a former NFL coach will pay dividends in recruiting, it’s at WR. More importantly, look at the wide receivers they have at Buffalo. Stevie Johnson. David Nelson. Who are these guys? A bunch of no-name undrafted nobodies. And they have had a lot of success and scored a lot of points. Plus he coached a lot of great wideouts at LSU. So I think this is a great hire. An enormous step up from McQueary, who never even played WR.

The new o-line coach, McWhorter, has some great experience. He coached at Texas for many years, as well as Georgia and Alabama.

The biggest questions marks hires would be the TE coach and the new defensive coordinator. The TE coach only because his career has mostly been at smaller schools. But you never know. The new DC, Roof, has not had much success as a head coach at Duke or as a defensive coordinator at Auburn. For what it’s worth, Bunda’s buddy Mike, who is a scout for the Arizona Cardinals, said Roof is a great hire and is better than people give him credit for. While Auburn gave up a ton of points this year, Mike says they really only had one NFL caliber player on their defense. I guess we will see how this one plays out, but at this point, I will give O’Brien the benefit of the doubt. He wouldn’t have hired Roof if he didn’t have faith in him. Plus Roof has head coaching experience, which could come in handy.

The fact that these coaches are coming from all over the country will help with recruiting. Never before have we had strong ties to Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, New England, etc. This is completely different and should benefit recruiting. I also the fact that all of these guys decided to leave their jobs to join O’Briens staff says a lot about the respect they each have for him. Hixon left an NFL Wide Receivers coaching position for the same exact role at Penn State. McWhorter came out of retirement to join O’Brien’s staff. Roof just accepted a job A FEW WEEKS AGO at Central Florida to work for his close friend George O’Leary and is already leaving to join O’Brien’s staff. Clearly all of these guys must have a lot of respect for O’Brien. I believe they all realize the difficult position he is in, taking over a program in such turmoil, and they all are anxious to help him succeed and turn things around.

Although it’s extremely early, I’m very pleased with O’Brien so far. How successful he is depends largely upon how good his coaching staff is, and so far I like what I see. I actually have a theory… After the controversy and Erickson’s claim that Penn State would “de-emphasize football,” I don’t think Penn State could have dished out 4+ million for a coach. It would have been more bad PR and that’s the last thing this university needed. So they end up hiring a first time coach for under a million a year, and there are no bad headlines. But I have a theory that they promised O’Brien they would be willing to pay his assistants a shitload of money to help him assemble the best staff he could, which will really help him succeed. And the salaries of assistant coaches never make headlines, so there would be no bad PR there. I don’t know if that’s really what happened, but if it is, I think it was a pretty smart move and will end up paying off big time.

Oh yea...there's a football game

2011-11-18T18:36:00.002-05:00

With this whirlwind of scandals and media frenzy, it's sometimes tough to remember that there's still football games to be played. And a hell of a game at that. At the beginning of the season we all pointed to this stretch (Nebraska, Ohio State, Wisconsin) as the make or break of the season. Well it is...but it has been overshadowed of late by the make or break of the future for Penn State and its football program.

Joe Paterno recently was diagnosed with lung cancer. It's troubling to see this happen so soon after his departure from coaching, and although the doctors reportedly feel confident that this will be treated, Joe's health is a major concern and I fear he does not have much left in the tank. He's one tough guy though, you have to give him that. He has suffered injuries that would end careers of young athletes and done so as an octogenarian. Let's all hope that he can power through this.

With that being said, this football team has a lot to play for on Saturday. As Pete mentioned, winning in Madison will propel the Lions to the Big Ten Championship game regardless of the outcome against Ohio State, but a Wisconsin loss at Illinois coupled with a Penn State win this weekend does the trick as well. Wisconsin (as well all other Big Ten games with the exception of PSU-OSU) will play at noon, so Penn State will know the situation at kickoff. Whatever the outcome, Penn State will come to play. These players showed something last week that was truly remarkable. Heart.

As five of us, tired and sore from a 12 mile jaunt through mud, water, fire and hay (but not enough hay), sat and watched the game off a DVR recording as if it were live, we screamed, shouted, and pulled for the blue and white to gut it out. They fought back from a 17 point deficit to cut it to 3 before their final drive fizzled out. Normally after a loss I am frustrated and immediately think of things they could have, should have done, and sure, there were plenty of those in that game, but that's not what I felt. What I felt was pride. They played hard, they played well, and they never gave up. Wins and losses only mean so much, but it's the character of those young men, and the way that they play that really matters. It must have been an extremely tough week on them, and it's hard to believe they were as focused or prepared as they should have been for that game. But there were no excuses. They had a shot, and just fell short, and sometimes that will happen, but it wasn't due to lack of effort.

The crowd showed the same class as the players. The sold out crowd, that had the stadium filled earlier than I have ever seen before for a noon game, banded together and displayed their pride with spirited chants following the game. It's something I'd love to see at the conclusion of every game, but sometimes it takes a terrible tragedy for you to realize how special something really is. Penn Staters everywhere over the past few weeks have come together as a community, raising money for child abuse awareness, showing support for the school, and most importantly, not shying away from being what they are...Nittany Lions.

For the remainder of the season, and even into the future, this team will be characterized by heart, family, and solidarity. They have seen terrible things happen, but have persevered. This is the toughest team in college football and they will beat Ohio State because they want it more. In a game like this where both teams are very even on paper, it really comes down to passion, and football can be one heck of an emotional game. Devon Still and Gerald Hodges have emerged not only as great players and leaders, but emotional leaders for this team. I expect them to be all over the field. Hopefully Penn State plays some man coverage and loads up against the option attack. I've got a lot of faith in this group, but regardless of the outcome, I know they'll give it everything they've got.

Ohio State

2011-11-18T16:14:00.002-05:00

It's been a long time since the Penn State - Ohio State game featured two unranked teams. I don't think either squad is very good this year. As usual, they are both strong defensively this year, but both teams are limited by their quarterbacks. As such, I'm sure this will be a low scoring game, as it usually is.

I don't see either team being able to put together long scoring drives in this game. I think any touchdowns scored will need to come via a big play. So Penn State will need to either draw up something creative, or hope Redd busts one or Moye can catch a deep pass. The Buckeyes will not allow McGloin to march down the field and into the end zone on them.

I see the final score being something along the lines of 13-6. I can see either team coming out on top, but I'll take Penn State for the hell of it. This game actually doesn't mean a whole lot because, regardless of hte outcome, Penn State will win their division with a win over Wisconsin next week.

Nebraska

2011-11-11T10:41:00.003-05:00

I'd love to see the team come out and play with all the emotion that has surfaced over this past week and put together a win over Nebraska that would never be forgotten. I Jiust can't imagine the team accomplished much this week at practice, and that has to put them at a pretty big disadvantage. If all of us fans were so impacted by this scandal all week, think about how the players and coaches were affected. There is no way Mike McQueary, Joe Paterno and Jay Paterno were thinking about Nebraska this week. Not to mention, the assignments of the coaches were re-shuffled after Paterno's firing only two nights ago. I think all of these distractions really inhibited the team this week, which would make a win over a good opponent that much more impressive. I really hope it happens, I just don't know that it will.

Complete Mismanagement

2011-11-10T19:04:00.005-05:00

Anybody who has taken a mid-level sports management/business management class knows that there’s always an important game plan, sometimes referred to as a crisis management plan, sitting on the back shelves in case of a public relations nightmare. It doesn’t spell out the all the specifics, but it gives a basic strategy to control the damage, publicly defend the organization, and maintain as much of the image and integrity as possible. Well, apparently, the officials at Penn State University must have been absent that day because, to me, this whole situation reeks of utter incompetence of crisis management. Not only was Joe Paterno the media scapegoat, it turns out he was ostracized by his own people…the Penn State board of trustees and “powers-that-be.” Some part of me thinks they let it happen so they could force him out, a feat they could not overcome in the recent previous years. Chronologically cited, these are the lingering questions I have that make me believe this is the case…

1. Was the Sandusky indictment really a shocking surprise to anybody associated with Penn State University? There were serious newspaper reports of these allegations 6 months ago and, as far as I know, Penn State never commented or made any action. Why was there no action plan in place on how the media coverage would be controlled once this disaster broke?

2. Why were a mob of reporters lined up on Joe Paterno’s front lawn Monday afternoon and NOT on Jerry Sandusky’s or even Mike McQueary’s? Why did Penn State let this happen? This was problem area #1. Joe had to be frantically represented by his son Scott, who has nothing to do with the university. Basically, at this point, he was set free to the wolves.

3. Why was Joe Paterno’s Tuesday press conference cancelled? Why wasn’t he allowed to speak and defend himself and provide some answers that everyone wanted/needed?

4. Why is Penn State protecting Tim Curley and not Joe Paterno? After all, Curley WAS indicted in this case…Joe WAS NOT.

5. Furthermore, why was Joe Paterno FIRED while Mike McQueary was not and Tim Curley is placed on “administrative leave?”

6. Why was Joe Paterno fired over the phone? Very disturbing to hear that many of the PSU players heard of Paterno’s firing by watching Sportscenter! What was of so much immediate concern/action that had to be done at 10:45 at night? Couldn’t it have been put off till Thursday or even Friday where all parties could sit down and at least discuss the decision before making it public? Doesn’t this man at least deserve a full explanation of why they are firing him? Or better yet, shouldn't he be afforded the opportunity to publicly announce that he will be stepping down, effectively immediately?

Remember, at this point, everyone involved is afforded their due process. The funny thing is…Jerry Sandusky is allowed to continue living his life until his court arraignment. He will be rightfully judged by 12 people before he gets his punishment. But, Joe Paterno, a guy that is probably 5th or 6th on the list of people to blame here, if he actually is to blame at all, isn’t allowed to continue coaching football games until the investigation becomes final? Instead, his trial has already occurred within the media and public opinion where he was undoubtedly set up for failure and the board of trustees ultimately caved in to the propaganda.

Unfortunately, the way things played out in the last 3 days, Penn State had no choice but to fire Joe. This circus would only have continued and possibly gotten worse in the weeks to come given he remain the head coach and that simply would not be fair to the players and the university. It’s true…at this point in time, Penn State made the right decision. However, a lot of this could have been avoided if Penn State took better actions earlier in the game. Maybe they saw this as a way to force Joe out. Or maybe they are just really that ridiculously incompetent at handling a challenging situation. Either way, Penn State dropped the ball here. Penn State let it get out of control and ultimately had to make a decision that will resonate throughout eternity.

My Thoughts

2011-11-10T12:45:00.000-05:00

I have remained silent with regard to my personal opinion on Paterno and Curley and will continue to do so until I know more about what exactly transpired. But I have no hesitation in commenting on the events of last night.

First, I believe the decision to not allow Paterno to coach this weekend was the right one, and it was a decision that needed to be made. There are many people who are protesting this decision and saying it is unfair to Paterno. But this is not about Joe Paterno. It is about the University and standing up for what is right.

Imagine you are one of the victims that was abused after 2002 (when Joe was made aware of an incident) and your cries have gone unheard all of this time. Finally, after an unnecessarily long period of time, these crimes are finally being taken seriously and justice will be brought upon the man that tortured you. I will be careful not to speculate here, but from the little information that we do have, it certainly appears that Paterno was made aware of one such crime, was in a position to put an end to it, and failed to do so. By his own admittance, he said he wishes he had done more. Had he done more, you never would have been harmed. How would you feel about watching that man be carried off the field this Saturday, cheered and celebrated like a hero by thousands? Once more, you are being told that nobody cares about you or what you have gone through. These victims have suffered enough, why make them suffer once more?

What message would the University be making if they allowed him to coach this team on Saturday? They would basically be saying, “We know he made a mistake and multiple children have been harmed because of it, but his contributions to the University outweigh this one failure, and we believe he has earned the right to coach one last time at Beaver Stadium.” And that is simply the WRONG statement for this University to be making at this time. That would be just one more terrible decision in a long line of terrible decisions by University administrators that got Penn State in this mess to begin with.

By firing Joe Paterno, Penn State took a stand for children around the world. That takes priority over taking a stand for your football coach, no matter how much he has done for the University. It keeps coming back to the same principle, one which Paterno himself preached every day as the head coach: No individual is bigger than the team.

I believe he should have acted in accordance with this very same credence, and resigned as Head Coach on his own yesterday. In his statement released yesterday, Joe said “"I have come to work every day for the last 61 years with one clear goal in mind: To serve the best interests of this university and the young men who have been entrusted to my care. I have the same goal today.” He went on to add, “I will spend the rest of my life doing everything I can to help this university."

The first step he should have taken was to step down, and he failed to do so. I truly believe had this occurred when he was younger, he would have had the sense to step down and do the right thing. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Over the last 30 years, Joe Paterno has grown accustomed to being the most powerful man at Penn State University. Whatever he says, goes. He thought he could get away with that one more time, by flat out challenging the Board of Trustees to fire him. “At this moment the Board of Trustees should not spend a single minute discussing my status. They have far more important matters to address.” Upon reading the statement, I immediately did not like this line. Of course the Board of Trustees is going to discuss Joe’ status, they are going to discuss this long and hard, because, despite what he said, there is no more important matter for them to discuss at that time.

Joe is about to turn 84 years old. Someone close to him needed to explain to him that his removal prior to Saturday was inevitable, and advise him to properly and courteously step down for the best interest of the University. Perhaps people tried to and he was too stubborn to cave. Perhaps he was still under this delusion of power that he felt nobody could tell him what to do. Whatever the case may be, nobody wanted this to go down the way it did, with Joe being fired over the phone, and it’s terribly unfortunate that it had to happen that way. I do believe, when the dust settles, Joe will look back and realize that his removal from his position was necessary for the good of Penn State University.

It’s hard to watch this sad old man and his wife in their pajamas in front of their modest house and not feel sorry for him. It’s a shame his remarkable career had to end this way, but there are many others involved in this case that deserve your sympathy more than Joe Paterno. Joe will be fine. As you saw last night, the man has plenty of support from both current and former students. While it certainly seems Joe has made a mistake of the gravest proportions, that will not erase his many accomplishments and contributions over the last 61 years. Even the reporters who bashed Joe’s inexplicable negligence on this matter expressed how much respect they still have for him, what he has done, and what he stands for.

I never realized that I could be so shaken, so distraught, essentially so affected by something that didn’t directly involve me or anyone I’m close with. I know I’m not the only person who was this moved by this scandal. I’m sure it’s a hard thing to grasp for anyone that did not attend Penn State and does not feel such a strong connection to both the University and Coach Paterno himself. When people begin to question the integrity of not only a man you have admired all of your life but an institution that has become part of who you are, it hurts to the core. Especially when both Paterno and Penn State specifically pride themselves on just that: Having integrity. Success with honor. Doing things the right way. That’s why so many Penn State fans have taken the defensive and refuse to believe any wrongdoing could have been done by their idol and by their university. I think it’s human nature for a Penn State fan to refuse to believe Joe Paterno may have done something wrong, and that is why so many people are searching for some sort of explanation. But, as always, I have made an attempt to be as unbiased and as rational as possible in this response, and I hope that is evident.

I will close with this: I always make a conscientious effort to learn valuable lessons and take positives out of every momentous event in my life, whether it be the saddest of tragedies or the greatest of successes. I’m not quite sure yet what lessons I will take from this saga. Perhaps it’s a reminder that even the mightiest can fall. But I know there is definitely the opportunity to take a positive away from this, as impossible as that may sound:

With the extensive media coverage and exposure of this horrifying event, hopefully this will serve to bring much needed attention to what is clearly an existing problem in our society. Perhaps people will take child-abuse reports more seriously and give them the attention they deserve, regardless of how well you know and how much you trust the accused. Additionally, perhaps now victims will know how important it is for them to come forward and describe what they have been subjected to – no matter how difficult that may be – in order to prevent others from experiencing the same thing. If it took the firing of four men and the suffering of these 8 victims (possibly more) to ultimately prevent the future suffering of hundreds of others, that’s certainly a step in the right direction.

The year was 1999....

2011-11-07T21:20:00.002-05:00

I remember his last game so vividly. It was December 28^th, 1999 and the Alamo Bowl was being broadcast on ESPN. Even at only 13 years old, I knew Penn State football like it was a multiplication table, and I knew the significance of this game. It was Jerry Sandusky’s last game after 32 years at Penn State, the last 23 as defensive coordinator. This Penn State team was special. LaVar Arrington and Courtney Brown, who would get drafted into the NFL with the first two selections) led a Penn State team to a 9-0 record before they broke the hearts of PSU fans by dropping their last three games to the three M’s (Minnesota, Michigan, and Michigan State).

My family at that time (and even 10 years after that) did not have cable. Our next-door neighbors happened to be out of town for the holidays, and being that we lived in a small friendly town, we had exchanged keys over the years just in case someone got locked out or if someone had left the stove on and realized it later. I was probably screaming at my parents that I wanted to watch the game. “Why can’t we have cable like everyone else!?” Eventually they gave in. They gave me the key and I ran through the short path between our houses and let myself into my neighbors house. I went upstairs, turned on the TV, and watched Penn State shut out Texas A&M 24-0. I was so proud of the team. They had put forth arguably their best defensive effort of the season to send their retiring defensive coordinator our on top.

Now the pillars upon which he once stood in my mind have shattered. The recent news of Jerry Sandusky’s child molestation has sent shockwaves not only though the Penn State family, but the entire country. People are sickened, as they should be, and now the blame game ensues. People are calling for Joe Paterno’s head. They say he should be fired. They say the entire staff should be replaced. Well, here’s what I have to say:

The incident that set all of this in motion occurred in 2002. Jerry Sandusky was retired as a football coach, but was helping out with an organization he created to help children. He was on campus at the football building and was seen by a graduate assistant (Mike McQueary, now the receivers coach) in the shower with a young boy. Mike reported what he saw to his boss, Joe Paterno. He probably said something along the lines of: “Coach, I saw Sandusky doing something inappropriate with a boy in the showers”. Joe immediately reported this to the athletic director, Tim Curley who was Joe’s boss and it was his job to notify the University police who had jurisdiction. This never happened. Should Joe have pursued further? Should that young graduate assistant continue to pester the legendary coach or confront the athletic director? Maybe. But who knows what they were told. It’s possible that Curley told them all that everything was reported and that the police were going to look into it, don’t worry.

Joe banned Sandusky from football buildings after that. He probably had a conversation with Sandusky, informing him that someone saw him doing something. Jerry had worked with Joe for 32 years. Joe probably thought he knew this guy pretty well, and gave him the benefit of the doubt that what someone witnessed was not what it really seemed. Regardless, Joe still told him that he was no longer welcome at football facilities. Joe is not a cop, he is not Jerry Sandusky’s boss anymore, and what he did was perfectly legal. He does not deserve to be tossed out of his position that he has held for over 40 years because of something people think he should have done. People that were not in his position. People that have no clue of what actually happened. Firing him, or having him resign now would taint his legacy. And I know that this is about more than Joe, that it is about young men that were abused. But firing Joe doesn’t fix that. It only makes it worse by destroying the man we associate with honor and integrity. He did what he did, and can you blame him? Would you have done anything different? Like Drew said so eloquently. Fuck you.

Now people are coming out of the woodwork, calling out Penn State for not being as upstanding as we all thought. And you know what, sure, I guess we deserve to be humbled, but this was the heinous act of one man, and the bad judgment of an athletic director that probably didn’t know the extent of this issue. This issue has absolutely nothing to do with the current Penn State team, the current Penn State students, and for the most part, the current Penn State coaching staff.

Friends have texted me asking me if I’m embarrassed. Am I going to change my license plate (JOEPA) now? Am I not going to wear Penn State stuff all the time? Hell no. Penn State has educated my family for three generations. My grandfather was a professor there, and my own father called State College, PA home. I am still proud to be a Penn Stater, and that will never waiver. That school made me a better person, and those 100 kids on the football team will leave Penn State as better men as a result of the coaching and the education they receive. Success with honor. That’s what Penn State is about, and what it will continue to be about. The action of one man will not bring down what hundreds of thousands of us have built together. Sandusky deserves whatever is coming to him, but I will not let him destroy something I have loved my entire life and will forever. We Are Penn State

Joe Paterno Should Not Step Down

2011-11-07T20:30:00.002-05:00

So I'm sure many readers are in the same boat as I was today with work colleagues just tearing at themselves to make a joke at Penn State's expense. All I could do is just sit there and take it because this is just about the worst thing to happen to an athletic program that I can remember. Jerseys for tattoos sort of seems like small potatoes compared to what is going on as Penn State. I have no defense for Sandusky. Since I believe in America so much I'd like to think I could abide by innocent until proven guilty but at my core I truly wish Jerry Sandusky would hang himself and put an end to all this. The truth is if he's guilty he deserves much worse. Where I did stand tall is in my defense of Joe Paterno.

This is where it gets tricky for non-PSU people to follow. Growing up as Penn State fan I absolutely revered Jerry Sandusky. I've heard my father's re-telling of the championship game against Miami so many times I feel like I were there. To listen to him and many others give their recap, all praise was due to Sandusky for the scheme he put out against Testaverde. His stout defenses were the pride of my early years as a Penn State fan. While Fran Ganter consistently put out the worst offense of any major program, Sandusky's side of the ball kept us in the national spotlight. Until a year ago, when I first heard of these allegations, his name rang as holy as Cappiletti, Warner, and Conlon. Now imagine turning that guy over to the cops and the papers based on a second hand account that lacked any detail. Tough to do.

So now everyone is calling for Paterno to step down. To them I say simply, Fuck you. What gives you the right you self-righteous little pricks? Paterno has done so much good for to countless young players, the university, and the sport. And all the Neil Rudells and David Jones'es can't change that for all their efforts. They don't get to win. Not like this. Paterno has done too much to be brought down for the wrong-doings of a former assistant.

The truth of the matter is, who with any sort of power can make Paterno step down? The athletic director has just been indicted himself and the last thing Spanier or the board of directors needs is to force out the one symbol of Penn State more recognizable than Old Main or the logo? So for me the media can make all the noise they want. My coach fucking stays.

This Could Get Really Ugly

2011-11-07T11:42:00.001-05:00

By now, everyone and their mother has heard about the scandal that has erupted in State College regarding former Defensive Coordinator Jerry Sandusky. This is obviously a very troubling and disturbing story for many reasons, and you have to feel terrible for the victims and their families. It is too early to comment on what actions need to be taken by the University. More facts need to come out first.

But I do want to point out two things:

First, I am very concerned about how Joe Paterno’s press conference goes tomorrow. For the last 20 years, Joe has been in control of every press conference he’s attended. I went to almost every press conference between 2004 and 2007. There is not a single member of the local media that covers PSU football that has enough courage to ask Joe any tough questions, even when they obviously need to be asked. Every so often someone would try, or some national media member would come in for a big game and ask a tough question, and inevitably they would always leave with their tail between their legs after getting chewed out by Joe for challenging him. Make no mistake about it, the man has an enormous ego whether you realize it or not. If you have seen him interact with the media in the last 10 years, it’s clear he feels he has earned the right to answer whatever questions he wants and avoid any he’d rather avoid. And he won’t hesitate to let you know if he feels you are out of line for asking a question… Most of the time the questions are perfectly legitimate too.

Anyway, the point I am trying to get to is that Joe will not get away with this tomorrow. This is not something he can shy away from and use his stature to intimidate reporters and get out of. If he tries to boss the media around tomorrow like he’s grown accustomed to, it’s going to be really ugly and make him look very bad to what has turned into an unimaginably large national audience. Hopefully the PR people at Penn State are explaining all of this to Joe and letting him know how to respond tomorrow. The truth is, he probably can get away with not answering a lot of questions tomorrow since there is a legal issue at hand here. But it’s important he goes about it the right way and responds appropriately, instead of lashing out at reporters for asking him questions he feels he’s immune to. I’m sure there are PR people prepping Joe for the press conference. I just hope he’s not too stubborn to listen.

People have been questioning how mentally sharp Joe is this days. I think we will find out in the coming weeks, if not tomorrow.

The second point I want to make seems relatively unimportant compared to everything else that is at stake, but it’s unfortunate nonetheless. And that is that there is a 8-1 Penn State football team in the midst of a great season that is in the driver’s seat to win the Big Ten, and this whole scandal has undoubtedly created an enormous distraction for the team. Probably not for the players as much as the coaches, but there is no way Coach Paterno and Coach McQueary are focused on Nebraska right now. I don’t see how effectively the coaching staff can prepare the team for this game on Saturday with this whole mess hanging over their heads.

Break Time

2011-11-05T11:13:00.007-04:00

Given the bye week and nothing, aside from gaining an extra hour of sleep, really to get excited about, I felt it necessary to reflect on this oddly unfolding 2011 football season. Penn State is off, the college football slate is rather dull, and the only thing that could get me truly jacked about the LSU-Bama game is if somebody could assure me that Chuck Norris will run out of the tunnel at Bryant-Denny Stadium chasing six midgets wearing full football equipment! So here I sit, watching the overblown hype of this game mixed with ridiculous anticipatory interview questions by Erin Andrews, just hoping the next 7 days will pass quickly.

You want a college football playoff system? Well, it starts next Saturday in the B10 and Penn State drew a shitty seed. These next three weeks will show what this team really is made of. If they come out 2-1, they deserve a spot on the turf in Indy. And, if they get there, a B10 championship is very likely because I like our chances against a Michigan or Michigan State over a Nebraska-Ohio State-Wisconsin.

As Penn State teams go, this team is certainly not one the best, even of the last 10 years. It might not even rank in the top 5 (i.e. ’02,’05,’08,’09). Ok, maybe in the top 5, but this team has one of those intangible abilities to just find ways to win. They have won with defense, they have won with offense, and they have won with 57 minutes of pure slop and 3 minutes of brilliance. I do believe that, for what ever reason, Rob Bolden has regressed and maybe you can put that on the coaches. But, you do have to give some credit to the coaching staff and the senior leaders on this team’s ability to get the most out of all of their players.

Some of my observations to this point…

Sure he was missed, but I don’t think anybody really realized how intrigal Derek Moye is to this offense until last week. His route running and his ability to find those seams in the defense often go unnoticed. I think big things are coming from DM6 down this stretch run.

Finally, Gerald Hodges breaks out and does what we have been waiting for for a year now. GH6 is the next real thing at Linebacker U. Now, can Khairi Fortt follow in Hodges lead???

I agree with Pete…I wasn’t sure Silas Redd could handle the workload of a B10 tailback, given his size. But, he put on some weight/jacked-ness over the summer and is now the real deal. Maybe a little premature, but Heisman watchers need to begin to take notice. Certainly, the Student Book Store better start planning a staircase makeover, because Royster’s rushing record WILL be broken…the real question is…will it happen in 2012?

I’m not ruling out Devon Smith…I think he can be a valuable part of the offense and if he can do what he did at Northwestern 2 or 3 times a season, I’ll take it. But…why is he running 5 yard slants on 2nd and 3rd and goal? There are too many other options (taller and wider) to put in the slot in these situations.

It’s funny how we went from Kicking team nightmares to a Kicker/Punter who is nearly a lock on FG’s inside 40 and consistently blasts punts.

I don’t think we will see Rob Bolden take another meaningful snap this season and, as far as I’m concerned, Joe can sign his transfer papers right now. I think McGloin can continue to develop into a serviceable QB and, from what I hear, Paul Jones is getting his act together in the classroom and should be on the field in the spring/next fall with three years of eligibility remaining.

Get pumped for the run!

Browns cut Robiskie, Keep Norwood

2011-11-02T13:14:00.002-04:00

The fact that Jordan Norwood made an NFL roster at his size was impressive. The fact that he's been climbing up their depth chart has been impressive as well. Now, the Browns, needing to make room for a running back after Hardesty's injury, have released former Ohio State Buckeye and former second round pick Brian Robiskie. Norwood is their #3 wide receiver and had 5 receptions this past weekend against the 49ers.

Atta Moye!

2011-11-01T22:22:00.003-04:00

While the first 57 minutes were completely uneventful, those last 3 minutes certainly made up for that! What an exciting finish. It really is impressive how Moye's return sparked the entire offense and made McGloin a much better QB on that last drive. You gotta give him credit for coming in cold, without having practiced in three weeks, and performing in the clutch (despite the one drop that could have cost them the game). Having him back for the next three games is huge. I said before the game, the loss of Moye would be a much bigger problem against Illinois than it was against Purdue and Northwestern, and that proved to be the case. I think everyone would agree, if he didn't come back on that last drive, Penn State would not have won. This team keeps finding ways to win. Nobody is giving them any credit. Not just the media, but even Penn State fans still don't believe this team is really that good. But they keep finding ways to win, and their defense is good enough to keep them in games, so you never know. I can't wait for the remainder of this season.

Two other notes:

Zordich is awesome. Go back and watch him drive the defender back into the end zone on that game winning TD by Redd. Zordich is the reason that play scored a TD.

On a related note, Silas Redd has really turned out to be an excellent running back. His talent was obvious last year. He broke a lot of big runs where he displayed great moves, elite speed and good vision. So everyone was already high on the kid ability-wise. But I had my doubts that he could be a 25 carry per game running back in the Big Ten, mainly because of his size. I thought perhaps he'd be better suited as a change of pace back from Beachum and get like 15 carries per game. But he has more than proven he can be an every down back. He runs was surprisingly great power, often carrying defenders for a few extra yards at the end of plays. He really has learned how to play the position, how to get up field and gain the tough yards that are needed. He's a stud. I'm still waiting for him to break a long TD run though. It has to happen soon!

Illinois

2011-10-29T14:04:00.003-04:00

This should be a great game as I see these two teams as very evenly matched. I think it will be a close game and there are a few key factors: The snow will impact the game just as Rudy already mentioned. Secondly, Illinois is coming off of back to back losses. How will that affect them? Will they come out angry and take it out on PSU? Or has their bubble been burst and the team is now deflated? We will probably find out the answer to that question early.

Last year, Penn State did not have very good team, but playing Illinois at home was a game everyone thought would amount to an easy win. The Illini promptly came in and gave Penn State as sound of a beating as the Lions have seen in recent years. I don't think Penn State has forgotten about this. Maybe it will be the Lions that come into this game angry and take it out on Illinois. Like I said, I think this should be a good game since the teams are evenly match, but, if PSU comes in with the right attitude, and Illinois comes in with the wrong attitude, this game could end up being lopsided in Penn State's favor.

I'm hoping for a good game with both team's best efforts. Not having Moye will hurt in this game more than it did in the last two. Will Penn State still be able to throw the ball effectively? I'm still waiting for Redd to break an 80 yard TD run. Maybe today will be the day. PSU takes this one 20-13

Identity Problems

2011-10-29T12:27:00.006-04:00

Illinois started the season 6-0, the first time they had done that in 60 years. The last two games they have lost because of a poorly functioning offense and a defense that couldn't make the big plays. Penn State has had similar issues with their offense as we all know, but what has been consistent is their phenomenal defense. It is anyone's guess as to which Illinois team shows up this afternoon, and what kind of offense for Penn State comes out to play in the snowy conditions.

The snow will play a huge factor in the game. It will be difficult to throw the ball and big plays will be at a premium. Who does this benefit? Illinois has several big play guys in Nathan Scheelhaase (QB) and A.J. Jenkins (WR) who will be slowed by the snow, but the awful special teams of the Illini should be neutralized with the poor weather (kick and punt returns will be easier to cover with the snow), and for Penn State I think the snow should give them the opportunity to stress running the ball more, something that Ohio State did every single offensive play except for four (they completed only one). If the offensive line shows up to play, Penn State should be able to win this game with the snow on their side.

Last week the offense seemed to click in the first half with Silas Redd running rampant and setting up some big plays on play-action. The receivers have stepped up and have done a good job of actually catching the ball in Moye's absence. We also all noticed that McGloin went the distance. I clearly expect this to happen again today, but I have a bad feeling that Bolden will get some significant playing time.

All in all things are looking up for the Nittany Lions; something we certainly did not expect only a few weeks ago. Sitting alone atop the Leaders division of the Big Ten, Penn State has a legitimate shot of earning a trip to the first ever Big Ten Championship game. I see them taking care of business against Illinois as they have all season in typical Joe Paterno fashion. No bells and whistles, just getting a lead and holding on with solid defense. PSU 17 Illinois 10

Offensive explosion?

2011-10-21T01:56:00.003-04:00

Pete, I agree with you that Northwestern is incredibly dangerous. Their offense under Persa is very efficient. He's a good player and will create some problems, but he's also coming off of a major injury and isn't quite as mobile as he was last year when his team put up 21 points in the first half. The defense on the other hand is terrible. The fewest points they have given up all year was 17 in week one to a Boston College team that doesn't know their ass from their elbow. Since then they have lost to Army, Illinois, Michigan, and Iowa, where they surrendered 41 points...although one of the TDs was a TAINT (Touchdown-after-interception).

Iowa's offense came into Happy Valley as the best passing attack in the Big Ten. Shut down. Northwestern will be a different type of challenge, but when you look at games like this it's pretty simple: the PSU defense will give up somewhere around 17-21 points. Can the offense score more? That's it. Last year McGloin played hero to Joe's 400th victory en route to a total offensive output of 530 yards and a defensive effort that didn't give up a point in the second half. I think this might finally be the day we see Penn State put some points up against legitimate competition.

Silas Redd has been a godsend. He's 18th in the country in rushing yards and is the only person in the top 50 that doesn't have a rush over 25 yards. What does that mean? It means he's getting good yardage, but not quite breaking one. It tells me that the defenses are playing run, and having their secondary focusing on him. They don't have their backs turned covering a receiver...they are watching Silas, making sure he doesn't get past their last line of defense. Now, with how bad Northwestern's pass defense is, I expect PSU to come out winging it and I expect results. The run defense isn't much better. Army ran for 381 yards against them and completed 1-7 passes on the day for 6 yards. The moral of the story: Penn State could run the ball on every play and still beat this team. Playcalling and execution will win the game, and I think they've had enough time to figure out that reverses are stupid, and they should really just run off tackle and throw in some tosses and misdirection.

Getting to 7-1 would be huge before their final 2 game homestand against Illinois and Nebraska. Every game is winnable with a great defense, and although Penn State has faltered against some pretty inferior competition in Purdue and Indiana, I think they've learned their lessons and should be able to work over those purple-panted-poopball-players. Taking care of business - 31-17 good cats

Northwestern

2011-10-20T23:06:00.002-04:00

I'll be going to the game this weekend in Evanston. Northwestern doesn't have the best record this year, but they are a very scary match up in my opinion. First of all, they have played better than their record indicates. They jumped out to a big lead over Michigan but ended up blowing the game, and they lost a close one to Iowa last weekend. They know they should have a better record and they might take out there frustrations on Penn State this weekend.

Secondly, I just don't think it's a very favorable match-up for Penn State. Northwestern always has very good, scrappy quarterbacks that scramble around and make plays. Penn State's defense has been excellent this year, but that has mostly been against pocket passers that Devon Still and company have been able to get pressure on and bring down. This year, the majority of Penn State's sacks have come from pressure up the middle from the two tackles, Still and Hill. The ends have had a minimal contribution to QB pressure this year, which has been a disappointment. Well, I think Persa is quick enough that he will be able to evade Still and Hill and get outside and possible be dangerous. Which is why it is so vital for a defensive end such as Crawford to step up and contain the QB, but he hasn't stepped up all year, so I'll be surprised if he finally does now.

Northwestern is a scrappy team that never quits and always gives teams a scare. I think they are angry with the way their season has gone, and they will play hard at home under the lights. I think the players like Coach Fitzgerald, who has taken some heat recently. They have his back and want to get this win for him. I see Northwestern taking this one 24-21.

Bolden = Albright

2011-10-16T18:08:00.002-04:00

This whole QB situation is just getting bizarre now. McGloin has proven himself to be head and shoulders above Bolden, and it’s clear the staff recognizes this because in close games, when the game is on the line, it’s McGloin that is on the field. The last two games McGloin has taken over 75% of the snaps, so it’s obvious the staff feels most comfortable with him running the offense. However, Rob Bolden continues to start every single game, and also take the field for the opening drive of the second half in every game. What’s the deal with this?

It really seems like the staff is starting Bolden just so they can say that he “got the start.” They don’t show any intention of letting him lead the offense all game. Rather, they stick him in there for the first series or two of each half, and then get him out of there for the rest of the half, just to get it out of the way. It’s almost seems like Paterno promised Bolden and/or Bolden’s father, that Rob would start every game if he didn’t transfer. And now that he stayed, he’s keeping his promise by giving him the “start” but nothing more. I don’t honestly think this is actually the case, but something fishy is going on here. I mean, what’s the point in playing him for those few series each game? He has been so inaccurate and inconsistent that it’s pretty much throwing away those series each game. Has Bolden ever completed three consecutive passes in his career? I wouldn’t be surprised if the answer is no. When you send him out there, it’s pretty much conceding that you aren’t really trying to score points.

I don’t think this is fair to the team, to McGloin, but most importantly, to Bolden. If you are going to throw him out there just so you can say he got in the game, but you aren’t going to really give him a chance, what good is that doing him? It’s not fair to the team, because it’s not giving the team the best chance to score points. And it’s not fair to McGloin, because he’s won the job fair and square.

But at this point you are probably wondering what the title of this post is referring to. Let me explain… Every so often, I will get a phone call, and my caller ID informs me that it’s Albright calling. Naturally, I press the “ignore” button so I don’t have to actually talk to him. Once I accumulate a few missed calls from Albright, I begin to feel a little bit guilty. So what I do is I will call him back at a time when he is known to be at work and therefore unable to answer his phone. This way he will see my missed call, and I get credit for returning his call, but I don’t have to actually talk to him. So I’m not calling Albright to speak with him, I’m calling him just so I can say that I called him back. Similarly, I think the coaching staff is playing Bolden, not because they want to or they think it’s best for the team, but rather they are starting him just so they can say that he “started.”

More on the game to come.

Purdue

2011-10-15T11:58:00.001-04:00

To be honest I don't know much about Purdue's team this year. I'm just hoping to see Penn State's offensive line continue to improve like they did last week. If PSU can establish a consistent running game, they can have some offense successfully.

Black Hawks Drowned

2011-10-10T19:03:00.003-04:00

Finally...the 2011 PSU team puts it all together! Well...for the most part. I cant really disagree with any of Pete's points and since he touched on nearly all of them, I will keep it brief! Either way, this was the sort of performance we have been waiting for all year. This is the confidence booster that this team needed. Hopefully, they can keep it rolling as we head into the stretch of the B10 season.

Ya can't really agree more about the fact that Rob Bolden's days might be, and should be, limited from here on out. It has become clear that Matt McGloin moves the offense better and seems to find a way to make plays. I guess we will just have to live with the bone-header every now and again. But for now, he's gotta be the guy. And, considering we dont really play a star-studded defense this year, maybe he can make things happen late in the season.

Question...Is Paul Jones academically ineligible by ruling of the NCAA or is he on Joe's "struggling academically" list? There is a big difference. You really have to try to be academically ineligible by NCAA standards. I mean, 1.7 GPA...cummon man! But, if Joe is keeping him out because he is "struggling academically" and needs some time to focus on his studies, I think we might see him on the field in the future. Remember, Brandon Ware was "struggling academically" but played in some games. I think Joe's bar is higher than the NCAA cutoff and if Jones gets his shit together, his career might just be beginning.

I SPY…The Entire Secondary. All week, the talk was about how PSU’s secondary was in for its first real test since Iowa and QB/Dawson’s Creek star James Vanderbeek are such a powerful throwing offense. Despite not having its best corner and its reliable replacement in Stephon Morris, the secondary played flawless. I took special notice to the coverage on Iowa’s final drive. The reason we kept pushing Iowa back was because the secondary had everything covered like a blanket. I am especially impressed with Malcolm Willis. I think he is a better coverage Safety than Astorino. Along with Stephon Morris, it’s nice to know there are some younger players getting some reps for next year when all four starters are gone.

Big Win

2011-10-09T10:50:00.000-04:00

Well clearly I have to eat my words regarding this game, but I will gladly do so after by far Penn State’s best performance of the season. There are still many areas in which Penn State is struggling and needs to improve, but in my opinion, they dominated Iowa in this game much more than the 13-3 score indicates. They were able to run all over Iowa, which is rare against a consistently strong Hawkeye defense that always seems to have Penn State’s number. They dominated time of possession, and Iowa’s offense could not get anything going against the defense of Penn State. In terms of moving the ball, Penn State completely dominated Iowa, they just need to figure out a way to finish drives, which is easier said than done. But more on that below. Overall a great win over an opponent that Penn State has struggled with of late.

Observations from the game:

-I was glad to see Penn State blitz more in this game than usual. They need to do more of that, and the guy who is blitzing needs to be Gerald Hodges. He has the speed, quickness, agility and strength to be an excellent pass rusher if Bradley lets him. On the play where he forced the fumble, you could see he was a man on a mission and there was no stopping him. He should be blitzing like that multiple times per game. Especially with the lack of pass rush PSU is getting from it’s defensive ends.

-Astorino and Willis played well in the secondary. As did the freshman Amos. Powell has been holding his own at corner this year too. Getting Lynn and Morris back will be nice. I still don’t like Sukay at all.

-The most promising thing from this game was the performance of the offensive line. I’ve been hoping to see Penn State be able to run the ball like that all year, and this is the first time since the opening game that they were able to do so. In other words, this is the first time against an actual defense that they were able to do so. It always seems to take Penn State offensive lines about half a season to really come together and play as a unit. It seems like that happened yesterday. Hopefully they keep it up because this offense will be completely dependent on the run and play action pass to succeed against stronger defenses. If the run is working, that will open up the passing game. If the run is not working, neither QB is good enough to carry this team through the air alone.

-Silas Redd had a great game. And Curtis Dukes is running the ball real well too. I’d like to see Dukes put the ball away a little better, he kinda holds it out there asking for trouble. I’d like to see the coaching staff try and do some more things to get Redd the ball in space. Too many of his runs are right up the middle. Let’s get him on the outside in the open field because he is dynamic when he’s in the open field and might be able to break the big one.

-Speaking of breaking the big one, I really think PSU needs to take more shots deep down the field to Derek Moye. He’s tall and fast and has made big plays in the past. The main reason I say this is because I honestly believe Penn State’s best chance of scoring is if it comes from outside the 20 yard line. Their struggles in the red zone are well documented, and I don’t expect them to get any better. There is a reason they struggle there and it’s all about the QB’s. Bolden simply has not been an accurate passer all year, and McGloin doesn’t have the strongest arm. He gets by with his arm in the middle of the field, but in the red zone, where everything gets a little tighter and you have less room to work with, his arm really limits what PSU can do through the air. Obviously I’d like to see PSU fix the red zone problems, but I’m not sure it’s really a fixable problem. I think its more of a result of the personnel they have on the field. So I think the best solution is to try and score on big plays. If they are moving the ball well, mix in a play action bomb to Moye and hope for the best. I think that gives them a better chance at scoring six than by driving all the way.

-I think Penn State’s two best offensive players all season have been their two fullbacks, Suhey and Zordich. These guys are awesome. Every time Zordich goes in he blows somebody up. Both of them have been very effective running the ball this year, and Suhey has been very effective as a receiver out of the backfield. I really think PSU needs to stick with more formations that leave the fullback on the field. I like the fullback in there rather than Devon Smith. It seems like every running play up the middle behind a fullback is good for at least 3 or 4 yards. The same can not beside for runs up the middle out of single-back sets. Stick with the fullbacks!!!

-This is a big one that needs to be addressed and fixed: Ferra had some nice punts yesterday to try to pin the opponent within their own 10, but each time, there was not a PSU player in site to catch the ball and keep it from going into the end zone. The punts had more than enough hang time to allow Penn State players to spring down to the goal line, turn around, find the ball, and prevent it from being a touchback. But each time they were still running and trying to find the ball when it came down and inevitably rolled in the end zone. There is no reason for that. This is why Penn State needs a special teams coach. They looked clueless out there yesterday on punts. The truth is, Penn State will be involved in many more games just like yesterday where field position is key. They need to take advantage of any chance they can get to pin the opponent inside the 10.

-I briefly mentioned this earlier, but the one criticism I have about the defense is they need to do a better job of getting to the QB. Still is a monster and has to be one of the best DT’s in the country right now. He is very disruptive and reminds me a lot of Odrick. But he’s the only one of the 4 linemen getting through, and it’s easy for a QB to run a way from a big 300 pound tackle coming right through the middle, they just bounce it outside and Vandenburgh did many times yesterday. That’s where they need Crawford to step up and formulate a pass rush on the outside as well, giving the QB nowhere to go. Up until that last drive, I think PSU only had one sack. They got some pressure, but were not able to get to him and bring him down. They need to do a better job of getting sacks.

-With that being said, how awesome was it to watch Iowa’s final drive where Penn State got three consecutive sacks to force a 4th and 30. What a dominant, almost comical performance. That was really impressive. Similarly, how great was Penn State’s scoring drive where they ran it 15 times in a row right down Iowa’s throat. Those were some dominant performances that were a lot of fun to watch.

-Lastly, I don’t think much needs to be said on this matter other than Bolden clearly is not the guy and QB and should not see the field any more. Chris Spielman is a pretty obnoxious outspoken commentator, and I don’t really like him, but he was completely correct when he said that putting Bolden out there in the second half was just wasting a series. Just throwing it away. He shouldn’t have started the game in the first place. After that pathetic opening drive, where he was throwing the ball nowhere near his targets, and telegraphing every throw, he should not have been put back on the field. Penn State scored three points on that drive in spite of Bolden, not because of him. I was actually kind of pissed they made that great fake FG call on that drive just because I knew it was a complete waste of a good call. There was no way Bolden was going to lead the offense to a TD on that drive. No chance. So what good is the fake field goal conversion? Listen, I like the kid, I think he has a strong arm and shows poise at times, and I think he’d probably be successful in a program where he actually received some decent coaching, but anyone out there who still thinks Bolden should be playing over McGloin needs to open their eyes because it’s not even a race any more at this point. Not even close. Like it or not, Matt McGloin is the QB of this team and probably will be next year two. Any first rep snaps that don’t go to him in practices or in games are just a waste. Hand him the keys and see what he can do with them. So far he’s done an admirable job of moving the offense, and he’s without question the best option at QB for this team.

Favorites?

2011-10-08T15:37:00.001-04:00

How in the world is Penn State favored to win this game? Has anyone been paying attention the last 10 years? Iowa owns Penn State, even when Penn State is good. So how can PSU be favored this year, when Penn State isn't even good? That's pretty much all I have to say about this game. PSU's only chance is if McGloin starts and plays the whole game at QB. Bolden won't put up any points against Iowa. Iowa wins with ease as they usually do against PSU 17-3.

The Season Begins Today

2011-10-01T11:09:00.002-04:00

Sitting in the stands before the Alabama game, I made the comment, "What does this game really mean?" The rhetorical answer to that question, really, is NOTHING! Sure, we all want to compete for a National Championship but I think it is clear that Penn State is not a 12-0 caliber team. However, a Big Ten Leaders division championship and a spot on the turf in Indy in December is a very realistic goal which begins today. I think the old philosophy of rooting for your future opponents to win games is over and we will begin to have a more NFL-like ideology where we want divisional opponents to lose (i.e. Nebraska beating Wisconsin or Northwestern over Illinois).

Things I am looking for against Indiana:

I, too, am excited to see the replacement corners, Thomas and Amos. I think this is the game where one of them makes a name for himself and becomes part of the first team.

I am not a big Devon Smith fan, but I don't think they are using him properly. Sending him on deep routes just isn't gonna work. Everyone knows about his speed now and they will prepare for it. However, if you give him the ball in the short crossing routes or on WR screens where he has some green space, things might happen. I think he is more useful in this phase than any other receiver we have.

How much will the injury of Michael Mauti really hurt? I dont think we will find out today but if there is one position on this team that can afford a major loss, it is at Linebacker. Again, time for young guys to step up. I want to see what Mike Hull can do. Also, can Gerald Hodges start playing up to capabilities?

PS...The intra-state smack talk has been rather quite of late so I will get the ball rolling again. I still cant believe that Pitt advertises "9 Time National Champions" at Heniz Field. If PSU took the same approach, they would have to build another stadium addition to fill the space. Talk about false advertising...

And here we go...

2011-09-30T21:32:00.004-04:00

The Big Ten opener this year is, in all intensive purposes, another powderpuff. Indiana (who has NEVER beaten Penn State) is 1-3 coming out of their non-conference slate with loses to Virginia, Ball State and North Texas. Yea...North Texas. Good job. Penn State's barometer will be tested next week when it plays Iowa, but for this week they should have a grocery list of things that they want to accomplish.

1) Run the ball. OH.MY.GOD. You're Penn State...this is what you do. But the coaches think the only way to run is to try it on the first 3 series of the game when the opponent knows exactly what's coming. Then by the time McGloin comes in the game they have figured out they need to start airing it out, and it makes him look like the better quaterback.

This is why those playaction passes to open the game have been open...so that's like one good play...why not do something "crazy" and start the game from the gun. Maybe a little no huddle? Just mix it up. Take control of the tempo. I would love to just see a nice opening drive that results in a touchdown. Is that too much to ask? With the way the defense is playing, this puts a ton of pressure of the other team to score.

So, back to my point of running the ball....throw the ball....then run the ball. Don't just run into a brick wall 10 times and call it quits. Mess with their minds, man!

2) Get Derrick Thomas on the field right now. This guy is apparently a shutdown corner and I think he's done enough time in the doghouse. Let him outside to play. With Lynn out, I would love to see a lot of Thomas and Amos. I think these two are much better corners than Powell and Morris despite their inexperience.

3) Get the screen game going. I don't think I have ever seen a Penn State team so incapable of throwing a screen pass. Bolden really needs to work on getting a little more air under his throws and continuing to move backwards to draw the defenders away. He seems cemented in the ground and always does that thing where he throws the ball when he's getting planted. Stop it. Anticipate. Get rid of it with a little touch.

4) Don't run a reverse of third down ever again. Stop that.

5) Justin Brown looked pretty good last week. I'd like to see some more of him over the middle. This will open things up on the edge for Moye who has really improved his play as well after a mediocre at best opening two games.

6) From what I have heard, Amos and Belton will be back returning kicks. Thank you. Powell looks like he's on one of those airport moving walkways when he's retuning....run dude! And Devon Smith...what hasn't been said about a Devon Smith that hasn't already been said about a Raggedy Ann doll. My high school coach used to scream one thing at me constantly and eventually I got it...."GET UP FIELD!"

7) Devon Still has looked absolutely amazing so far this year and I think teams are very focused on double teaming him like they did with Odrick in 2009. Remember when Jack Crawford was good? What was that...2009? Yea, Odrick was there. Well, look for more out of the defensive ends this week....they may have the luxury of going against some tight ends. Let's get some sack lunches for this noon game.

I expect Penn State to handle Indiana very easily. They really are a terrible team; there's no two ways about it. Plus, Penn State actually looked decent last week, albeit against an inferior opponent. I am very curious as to how all this quarterback controversy is going to play out, but I'd bet my lederhosen on JoePa still going with two QB's for the Iowa game. I think Bolden and McGloin's performance in that game will be the deciding factor. A game within a game. Whatever. I'm just excited to be able to watch the entirety of a Penn State game live and not having to DVR it. Let's come back home to State College with some momentum! We Are

Bailout in Iladelph

2011-09-18T19:56:00.005-04:00

Mike Mauti and the PSU defense put together an impressive bailout plan that left most Democrats across the country scratching their heads. This game was downright sloppy and looked more like a mid-level High School contest. In all intents and purposes, the Penn State offense and special teams did everything they could to throw this game down the drain. But, the defense, which will keep this team afloat this season, came through with several big plays down the stretch.

Honestly, I don't know what to make of this team. Not since 2004 have we seen such a discrepancy between the offense and the defense of a Joe Paterno team. The defense is on the verge of becoming great. I really don't think there are too many, if any, weaknesses on defense. I have been impressed with the tackling and hitting in the secondary and the defensive line, although it lacks depth, is creating havoc on opposing offensive linemen.

No mincing words here but...the offense stinks! Neither QB can really put together a substantial drive where they show signs of greatness. I think we have some offensive weapons but if the QB play continues to be lackluster, none of them will have the opportunity to make plays and we will see offensive series much like '04. I still don't like the two QB system...

Also, what happened to the whole Spread HD stuff? Are these QB's not mentally equipped to handle that type of offense? I mean, doesnt it seem like we run the same 5-6 plays all game?

I SPY...Chaz Powell (CB #2) - Has CP2 finally realized his potential? He has impressed me with his tackling in the open field and, in addition to the INT, he has made some plays in pass defense. I noticed that they had Powell matched up with Bama's Marquis Maze. I would have figured Danton Lynn would be put on Maze. Either way, the coaches must like his play as well because I don't see much of Stephon Morris who often spells Powell at corner. A productive Powell will tighten up the secondary even more.

Slashed Tires

2011-09-17T09:58:00.001-04:00

I don't know what it is about people and slashing tires, but tonight I decided that since my baseball game was in Cambridge that I would ride my bike to it. After the victory we went to a bar to have a few drinks. As I make my way out to my bike to ride the 3.5 miles home, I discover that a tire was flat. Then I discovered that both tires were flat. One had an evident key/knife hole, the other....I saw no evidence of a stabbing. Why did you do that? I ended up having to walk my bike home. Took over an hour. Dick move. What does this have to do with Penn State football?

Alabama essentially came into town and stabbed Penn State's tires. They had no choice but to walk their bike home. Accept defeat, alter their gameplan and just pack it in and hoof it. Everyone is freaking out though....why? So you had to walk home, it's still good exercise. You still made it, and your legs are stronger even though you didn't get home the way you planned. Bolden went up against the best defense he has ever seen. The best defense anyone on that team has ever seen....and he didn't do all that bad. He had some very nice throws that were dropped, and made a few bone-head plays, but that's to be expected. In all honesty, Alabama's defensive backs are absolutely the best I have ever seen on a college football team. People complain about his always throwing to his first read, but that's not true. Many of the times it is, but those are the playaction passes where it's a certainty that Moye is single covered. Do you think that Szczerba was the hot read on that third down conversion that he fumbled away? I thought Bolden showed a lot of poise and made his decisions very quickly, which is a HUGE improvement from last year. Last year he did not have a single effective run, and he scrambled well against 'Bama.

You guys are all talking about how he's gotten worse....but that's completely false! Remember last year's Illinois game where Bolden got pressured and just threw the ball into an oncoming defender's hands? Not only did Bolden not get sacked a single time against Alabama, but he also displayed good touch, a cannon of an arm, and better overall leadership abilities. You have to admit that all of this controversy must be weighing on both quarterbacks and it can't be easy to establish any kind of rhythm out there. Supposedly this week, we will see more of the "hot" guy staying in. Let's hope that after this game, a starter can be established.

On to the Temple game. This is an intriguing game, and I expect Temple to win the MAC and possibly end the regular season ranked or at least receiving votes in the polls. Having said that, Penn State is probably pissed. This team has too much talent to just limp away with their tail between their legs. The defense is very very good, and Temple, who relies on their running game, will have tough sledding. Creating turnovers has always been tough for Penn State, and that's largely because they don't take many risks. I was actually happy to see Sukay go for that pick. Why not try and make the big play? I do agree with all of you that Devon Smith needs to take a seat. He's just a gimmick and whenever Curtis Drake is healthy, he should supplant him. I was pleased with what I saw out of Shawney Kersey and Allen Robinson. Both young guys showed some decent hands and should push the veterans to step up or the young bucks might take some of their playing time.

I will actually get to see all of this Temple game, so I am excited about that. I also need to fix my bike, but I'll leave that for another day. Let's go state.

2011-09-16T13:24:00.002-04:00

Please excuse my absence so far this year. I really have no excuse. The Alabama loss is still sticking with me, particularly after reading Pete's post. I actually went back through and read everyone's notes on the Alabama game last year and it was all the same complaints. Predictable play calling, giving up field position, and having no stones to throw the ball. One particular point of contention was Penn State kicking a field goal from inside the 10 to put the game at 27-3 as opposed to going for it, then had the audacity to try and onside kick. Sound familiar?

Put simply I think McGloin and Boulden are terrible. The Stevie Wonder could have jumped those routes. Moye to the short side of the field and Devon Smith to the wide side on every pass play. Every pass play. Playing defense against Penn State these days almost reminds me of playing Blitz on N64 or something when you know what play the computer is going to run every time. It has just gotten to the point where its laughable.

PSU players regressing is a fact. If we could watch Boulden's first game against whatever sisters of the poor team they played last year I think we would all be physically sick at how much worse he has gotten. I remember for fact marveling at how a freshman was so good at checking down and looking off safeties. Now he has tunnel vision on Moye who has taken over as this year's Brett Bracket. I don't even think you can blame Joe Paterno now because he is clearly not at the helm. So you have to wonder who truly is. Whoever it may be it is clear that our next coach cannot come from within. If its Jay Paterno leading all this then god help us all.

For this week's game I am worried. You are foolish if you aren't. Temple is a program on the rise that has had close games with Penn State and now the Lions walk in to the home stadium of a team with a tremendous chip on their shoulder. I think Penn State wins but in ugly fashion.

PSU Wins Big

2011-09-15T20:54:00.001-04:00

I think the team is pissed about the way they played last week but they know that losing to the #3 team in week 2 doesn't mean the season is over. I say PSU wins big. 34-6

A few more thoughts

2011-09-13T23:46:00.003-04:00

Well I just went back and watched my recording of the game, and it actually wasn't as bad as I had thought after initially watching it live. Here are a few of the observations I made:

The defense played very well. They held their own and were not overmatched at all like they were against Bama last year. They just didn't make the key plays they needed. Mike Hull had a chance for a pick and didn't come up with it in the end zone. Also, on a key third and long conversion on Bama's first TD drive, Nick Sukay went for the pick and missed, when he really should have just swatted the ball away and forced a punt. You have to know the down and distance on that play and know not to go for the pick. I've never been a fan of Sukay. He's always a step too late to the play. But the defense didn't have any sacks or force any turnovers, and that's what was missing from their effort. The defense was tired and looked terrible on Bama's last TD drive. There wasn't any effort by them on that drive and it was embarassing. But the game was already out of hand by that point.

There were a lot of big-time defensive linemen on the field on Saturday, but none were better than Devon Still. The dude is a beast and was a force all game long. He has a bright future in the NFL.

This is perhaps the biggest point I want to make. And I'm not trying to be mean, or be funny, but the fact of the matter is Devon Smith sucks. I don't care how fast the guy is, he is not a good football player. Similar to Stephon Green. He may be able to run fast in a straight line, but that doesn't translate to much on the football field. He completely lacks the instincts needed to be a football player, and he should NEVER be on the field for an offensive play. First of all, he is already a tough target for a QB to throw to because he's so small. But secondly, he always seems to lose track of where he is in relation to the ball and makes every catch so much harder than it has to be. He seems to lack coordination or something. But he gets turned around and doesn't take the right angle to the ball and misses it, and it ends up not really looking like a drop because it looks like a tough catch, but that's his fault to begin with! He dropped the first pass of the game which was a perfectly thrown ball by Boldin. He ended up diving for it but he didn't really need to. That would have been a huge play and a great start to the game. Then he dropped a perfect throw from McGloin on third down that would have been a first down. Then the coaches came up with a perfect play-cal on a reverse to Smith and he had a lot of room to run and he coudln't even make the first man miss, but not only that, he ended up fumbling the ball. He basically screwed up every single play he was a part of. And I'm not just saying he isn't good because of one bad game against Bama... He's never made any big plays for the team. Ever. You always hear about how fast he is, but he has yet to contribute in any way. If they want to keep him in on kick returns thats one thing, but he should not be a receiver for this team. They need to stop trying force him the ball.

I still don't know how Bama's first TD pass got by both Hodges and Carson without at least getting deflected.

Jack Crawford looks like he's back to full strength.

I think Bolden had a pretty good start and I don't think brining in McGloin on the third series of the game was the right move. In the end, neither QB had a good game. But they didn't play as poorly as I initially thought. There were WAY too many drops by the wide receivers and that didn't help out either QB. Moye dropped at least two, Brown dropped at least two, Smith at least one. You can't do that. I was impressed with how poised Bolden was, he was just way too erratic with his passes. If he can learn to be more consistently accurate with his passes, and learn to go through his progressions and not always force it to the first read, he can be very good. I just don't know who will be the one to teach him these things. I agree with Jason that Bolden appears to be the guy and I don't really see McGloin putting together 4 good quarters against a top defense. But, again, he didn't play as awful as his 1-10 stats would indicate.

Ferra is by far the better punter and has a much stronger leg. Not sure why he wasn't punting from the start, but that cost PSU in the first half.

It definitely looked like PSU came up with the stop on the fake punt and the spot was incorrect. That was a huge momentum swing in the game. Unfortunately, PSU had burned all 3 time outs on the first drive and couldn't challenege. In the end PSU got a few calls though, and I don't think this would have changed the outcome. Still a big shift in the momentum of the game.

I think the loss of Chima Okoli in the first half had a bigger impact on the offensive line than people relize. That forced Pannel to move to tackle, where he hadn't practiced, and the Urshel came in at guard. I think Redd would have continued to have the success he had ont he first drive if Okoli hadn't gotten hurt.

The coaches really must love Adrian Amos. He was in on kick returns when they needed a big play. He looks fast. I thikn he has a bright future.

Joe mentioned this at his press conference today: The team just needs to play with more confidence. It seemed like as soon as things didn't go perfectly, the air came out of their balloons. I know they came into the game with the philosophy that they can't afford to turn the ball over or make any mistakes, but that doesn't mean that when you do turnt he ball over, you have to get all down about it. You need to play through it. The team needs to play with more confidence, but that can only come when they makes some big plays.

Immediately after the game I said I don't see any way PSU will beat Nebraska, OSU or Wisconsin. But after watcihng the game, I'm going to retract that statement. If Bolden can develop, I think this team can win one or more of those games. But that's a big if.

Re: The Decision 2011

2011-09-13T19:00:00.004-04:00

Since Pete touched on many of the areas of concern from the Alabama game, I will simply refute my previous post regarding the Quarterback situation...

As evidenced by Saturday's game, it has become apparent that Matt McGloin is simply not a major college football QB. He has showed signs of greatness at times, but all against middle-of-the-pack teams (i.e. Northwestern, 2010 Michigan, Minnesota, etc.). He has also showed he cannot handle the pressure and does not have the athletic decision making ability necessary when facing top notch college defenses (i.e. Alabama, Florida, Michigan State, Ohio State). He has many desirable qualities for a Penn State QB, but, plain and simple, he is most likely a Division II QB. He will never play 4 solid quarters against a respectable team. I hate to say it and this is the old "hater" cliche but...there is a reason he was not offered a scholarship!

Rob Bolden, on the other hand, is a QB that really seems to be headed in no certain direction. I agree with Pete in that he really has not gotten any better in the last 12-13 months. Clearly, he is athletic, throws the ball well, and evidently doesn't mind running the ball and sizing up a linebacker in the open field. However, he just doesn't seem to be fitting into the offense like anticipated. Is that because of coaching? Is that because he has the proverbial chip on his shoulder? Or is he just not that good? (Remember, Paul Jones was the higher touted recruit in the 2010 class.)

The 2011 season is certainly not lost because a non conference loss to an Alabama team that played a flawless game against Penn State. But, the QB situation is the glaring weakness and a valid reason for concern. So, what is the answer at QB? At this point I really don't know. There is a part of me that thinks that the coaches are just killing time until Paul Jones gets his act together. But if Jones never reaches his potential as a collegiate, i think it is time to let Bolden get some experience and roll with the punches. Remember...he is only a Sophomore. Daryll Clark was washing jock straps as a Soph. and Michael Robinson was still trying to find his role in his second season. Both of whom eventually led the Lions to Big Ten 'ships.

For the future that we wait...

I SPY...WR Drops - I really cannot believe this did not get more attention in post game media analysis. Regardless of who was throwing them, the dropped passes (I will put Sczerba's fumble in this category as well) just cannot happen in a big game. I would have to go back and look at the tape, but I believe 2, maybe 3, of the drops came on 3rd down.

RANT

2011-09-13T15:05:00.003-04:00

It’s games like the one we saw on Saturday that make me thankful we have this blog. A place I can vent and get all my frustrations out. And trust me, I have plenty.

I don’t know where to begin, so I will just start with the coaching. Penn State’s coaching staff has been a huge liability for years now, and it gets exposed whenever Penn State plays a top ranked opponent. There are a handful of specific areas where they struggle consistently (offensive line, quarterback development, pass defense). But perhaps the biggest one is making in-game adjustments. They simply don’t make any. They have a game plan and they stick to it, regardless of what happens on the field, and they lose games because of it. The most obvious example was the Rose Bowl against USC where Mark Sanchez picked Penn State apart all game long with 10-15 yard passes that Penn State’s defense continued to give them. At no point did they make an adjustment and try to stop it, and USC continued to take advantage of it.

Well the Alabama game was another example of a lack of in-game adjustments when one needed to be made. It’s obvious the coaches came in to this game with a very conservative offensive game-plan. They were expecting/hoping that the defense could hold Alabama and perhaps even force a few turnovers that could lead to points. In turn, they wouldn’t need a whole lot of points out of the offense. So the offensive game-plan stressed not turning the ball over rather than scoring points.

In other words, they were hoping that the game would play out exactly like the Ohio State game in 2005 did, where PSU won 17-10 by shutting down OSU’s offense, and coming up with a key interception that led to an easy 7 points. In that game, once the Lions took a 7 point lead, they were perfectly content with three-and-outs on offense for the rest of the game, just punting it away to OSU and allowing the defense to hold them and win the game. And in the end, that’s exactly what happened. PSU barely moved the football at all on offense for the rest of the game, repeatedly punted to OSU, and the defense did not allow another score, leading PSU to a huge 17-10 upset victory. This is a game many Penn State fans view as a huge victory in the history of the program.

The more I think about it though, the more I think this win was somewhat detrimental to the program, and here is why: Ever since that game, Penn State has approached EVERY big game against a top defense with that same exact game-plan. And it has not worked since. At some point the coaching staff needs to realize that they need to open up the offense, and actually aggressively attempt to score points on offense in order to win these games. Although it worked once in 2005 against Ohio State, this philosophy is not going to work every time.

But anyway, back to the original point I was making about in-game adjustments. Look, the game-plan was a conservative one. And that’s fine. In fact, given this match-up, with two strong defensive teams, and the fact that Alabama had a young, inexperienced quarterback playing in a hostile environment, I would actually go as far as saying it was absolutely the right game-plan to enter the game with. But, with that being said, once you get down by 14 points, you need to abandon the offensive game-plan, and start trying to score points. And they did not do this. Why stick to the runs up the middle that are not getting you anywhere? Alabama was lining up 8 men in the box all day long daring Penn State to throw it, and they still wouldn’t/couldn’t. And that’s unacceptable. Just take some deep shots to Moye! The guy is 6’5”. He has a better chance of coming down with a jump ball on a 40 yard pass than Penn State does of actually putting methodically driving down the field for 40 yards.

Think about this: When was the last time Penn State completed a pass to a wide receiver OVER THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELD? Actually, when was the last time they even attempted a pass over the middle of the field? The simply don’t even try it any more because they are so afraid of throwing interceptions. First off, the fact that they still don’t have confidence in their quarterbacks to make these throws is pathetic (more on this later), but second of all, when you get down big and need to score points in order to win the game, you have to start opening up and taking these chances. If you just sit back and do the same stuff that hasn’t been working, how do you expect to come back and win the game? I’ve said this before, if I was a defensive coordinator for another team, I’m certain I could shut out Penn State every time, because I know exactly what is coming, what I need to defend, and what I don’t have to even worry about defending because they are too scared to even try it. (Similarly if I’m an OC at another school, I would put up 50 on PSU every time by pretty much doing what USC did in the Rose Bowl… Assuming I have Mark Sanchez on my team.)

Here is what pisses me off the most about the coaching staff. They would rather lose by a respectable amount and not even try for the win, than get blown out. And I don’t understand why. A loss is a loss, whether you lose by 60 or whether you lose by 1 in quadruple overtime. So when it’s fourth and six on the opponents 45 with over 12 minutes to play and you are down by 14, YOU GO FOR IT. YOU DO NOT PUNT. Why would you punt? What is that saying? To me, it’s saying, even though the scoreboard and the clock suggest this game is still within reach, the coaches don’t have any confidence in the team and don’t believe they can legitimately win the game. So since they have already determined they are going to lose the game, why not at least make the loss as respectable as possible rather than getting blown out. And that’s about the most insulting thing a coach can say to a team. Just pathetic. And this isn’t the first time Penn State has done this. They do it all the time, and it’s infuriating.

Now, on to the QB situation…Is there a major college football program out there that is worse than Penn State at developing quarterbacks? I really don’t think so. The last QB to go pro from Penn State is Kerry Collins. That’s pretty bad.

The conservative offensive game plan obviously says that the coaches do not rust the quarterbacks enough to let them air it out. But there is no reason for the QB’s to be such a liability at this point. They each have had multiple starts and enough playing time that the coaches should not have these concerns. But this is the crap that seems to happen all the time at Penn State. But other schools don’t seem to have this problem.

Think about how rare it is to see a Penn State quarterback make a play on his own. When I say make a play, I mean, scramble around, avoid a sack, buy some time to allow a receiver to break open, and complete a pass to him. It seems like no matter who is playing QB for Northwestern or Wisconsin, they always find guys that can make plays like this. Penn State hasn’t really had one since Zach Mills. (Those of you scratching your heads at this go back and watch film of Mills in his freshman and sophomore years, he was great.)

Right now, the way Bolden is playing, he throws the ball to the first option every single time, regardless of whether he is covered or not. He isn’t even going through any progressions. I seem to recall the first touchdown pass of his career, in the opening game last year, he looked off the first man and then found I think it was Brackett over the middle as the second option for a nice touchdown. I’m not sure he’s thrown to the second read since that pass. In other words, he may have actually regressed since last year. And that wouldn’t be the first time. It happened with Mills, it happened with Derrick Williams, it happened with Maurice Evans, it happened with Jimmy Kennedy, Justin King: Too many Penn State players actually get worse later in their careers instead of getting better. Not a good reflection on the coaching.

But it happens most often with quarterbacks. Penn State quarterbacks are just not where they need to be. And you have to put the blame on Jay Paterno. After all, he is the quarterbacks coach. If he’s doing such a lousy job coaching our quarterbacks that our offensive game-plan is to try to not turn the ball over and avoid any potentially dangerous throws, then I think Penn State needs a new quarterbacks coach. I really think Bolden could be a very successful quarterback if he had better coaching.

Oh, here’s another great example of Penn State coaches not getting the most out of the talent that they have: Derek “Cameron” Wake. Out of all of the Penn State alumni in the NFL right now, this guy might very well be the best. I think he finished 2nd or 3rd (right in front of Tamba) in the NFL in sacks last year. He is a very feared pass rusher within the league.

This guy SUCKED at Penn State. But his athletic ability was undeniable. I think he actually still holds the record for highest vertical leap in NFL combine history. But the coaches insisted on making him a linebacker where he was out of position and never had a feel for the position. He was always lost and didn’t have the instincts needed to play linebacker. The coaches never made this realization, left him there, and by his senior year, Dan Connor was starting over him as a freshman.

In the end Wake, was never drafted, and had to prove himself in the CFL, where he finally found the right position, led the league in sacks, and won the defensive player of the year award, before signing with the Dolphins and tearing up the NFL. I’m pretty sure Wake would have been a defensive end, and would have been a top draft pick, had he gone to pretty much any other DI college.

I will try to end on a positive note: Sean Lee had a monster game on Sunday night, and Penn State has more key contributors on NFL rosters now than they have had in a very long time. Posluszny, Bowman, Lee, Connor, Gould, Wake, Hali, Butler, Quarless, Collins, Adams, King, even Jordan Norwood! For a while there was a pretty bad drought of significant Penn Staters making an impact in the NFL. Hopefully that is over for good now.

Water for Elephants

2011-09-09T21:49:00.002-04:00

The rain continues to pelt the ground, swelling rivers, and tearing down bridges. Soon the damp Earth in the center of Beaver Stadium will be ripped apart by two of the best defenses in the country. The Alabama Crimson Tide come to town boasting a #3 ranking, and the backing of what most would argue is the best conference in college football. For the past 5 years, the SEC has held up a crystal ball at the end of the season and have put a curse upon their Big Ten foes. The mighty underdog Nittany Lions could not only reconcile the nation's perspective of the Big Ten, but they could also put themselves in a position they have not been in since 1999...on the winning end against at top-5 opponent. I was there when Paul Posluzsny and Michael Robinson took down Ohio State in a matchup not unlike this, but Saturday's game has a different feel to it.

Penn State has nothing to lose in this game. No one is giving them a chance. And rightfully so. This Alabama team is fundamentally sound. They have the best running back in the country. They have the best defense in the country. Penn State doesn't know who their quarterback is, and they got sacked three times by an FCS opponent. The wild card here is Beaver Stadium. Alabama in their own right is starting a green quarterback. AJ McCarron will make the start for the Tide after throwing two of the team's four interceptions last week against Kent State. The only way Penn State wins this game is if McCarron makes mistakes, and that will happen if Penn State's defense comes to play and if the stadium has an OSU 2005 or Nebraska 2002 feel to it.

What impressed me about the defense last week was the tackling. It was solid. D'Anton Lynn, Chaz Powell, and Adrian Amos are all very physical corners. There's nothing I love seeing more than aggressive, hard hitting corners....well other than a few Michael Mauti's. Tackling, we all remember, was a major issue last year. Trent Richardson is a horse in a human skin, but if you have enough people form tackling a horse, he's going to go down. The Bama offense lost some very skilled players and will not be as potent as last year, meanwhile the Penn State defense has vastly improved. So you're saying there's a chance!

Like Pete, I was awestruck with Redd's ability. He looked like a cannonball. Beachum looked very good as well, but Redd really ran well between the tackles and the speed he has coming out of his first cut is reminiscent of Ki-Jana Carter. He's going to be something very special. My praise for the offense stops there (and with Suhey and Zordich who exemplify what I love about PSU football). The pass blocking was god awful, the receivers didn't help out their quarterback, and the QB's did not look sharp at all. To be fair, the play calling was very very very conservative and I feel a lot of that had to do with who is coming to town this weekend.

Last year's offensive gameplan actually wasn't all that bad. The Lions moved the ball effectively and really utilized Devon Smith to perfection. Send him in motion and right to a flat pattern. Expect to see that again. It's an easy read and a fast one for the quarterback....whoever that may be. As bad as the coaches have been at times, I expect big things out of them. They've had all offseason to prepare for this game.

I will again be DVRing this game due to my own semi-professional obligations, but I could not be more excited. Not just to watch the game, but for the opportunity the University and all of those players have. Even still....If I was a betting man, I'd have to go with Alabama. Stranger things have happened though. Fight on

Alabama

2011-09-08T22:25:00.002-04:00

You can never take much away from these early season cupcake games, but there were a few things that caught my attention:

The most promising thing I saw on Saturday was Drew Astorino finally back to playing like he did freshman year. As a true freshman the kid was like a heat seaking missile, flying to the ball making big plays whenever he got on the field. Naturally I had high expectations for him after that, and he has been a tremendous let down in each of the last two seasons. After his sophomore year people said it was because he was hurt all year, but then he wasn't very good last year either. Some people insist he was still hurt. Whatever the case may be, Saturday was the first time he looked like he did freshman year. If he continues to play that way all year, that will be great news for this defense.

Running backs were impressive, especially Redd who is a bona fide stud.

Bolden has yet to get into a nice rhythm with the offense, and that concerns me. He clearly has a great arm, and seems relatively poised, but he has yet to put it all together into a methodical drive. Until he does, I won't be sold on him. But the potential is certainly there. As much as I want to him to be the guy and win the job, I can't help but agree with Jason that it seems like McGloin gives the team the best chance to win. Both will play, but if Bolden struggles, they need to get McGloin in the game to move the offense.

The offensive line looked great in the run-blocking (against a weak opponent), but terrible in pass-blocking (against the same weak opponent). We will get a better idea how the o-line is after this week.

Amos the freshman looked impressive. Surprised to see a true freshman get action in the first game of the year at a position with so much depth. Keep in mind it took Posluszny about half the season before they decided to burn his redshirt because he was too good to keep off the field. And that was on a team that went 3-9...

I loved the use of the fullbacks, both Suhey and Zordich. I hope that keeps up all year. Zordich is a player.

This team needs Anthony Fera back badly.

Now on to the big game this weekend against #2 Alabama.

I do think Penn State has a chance in this one, but they need a lot of things to go their way if they want a chance to win. I don't see the PSU offense putting up a lot of points against the Bama defense. So I really think the Lions will need to score either on special teams or on defense in order to win this game.

As with most people, I'm not very confident about Penn State's QB situation going into this game. However, what some people don't realize is that Alabama is in a similar position. McElroy is gone, and they aren't settled at QB either. They played two different quarterbacks last week, and each threw a pair of interceptions. If Penn State is able to stop Trent Richardson and the Tide running game, and force the inexpeirenced QB's to throw the ball, Alabama could be in trouble. So that will be the key, can PSU stop the Bama running game? They couldn't do it last year. We will see if that changes this year.

Like I said, I don't really like the match up of the PSU offense against the Alabama defense. Out of Penn State's 11 offensive starters, I think only two guys would start for Alabama: Silas Redd and Derek Moye. It is rare that Penn State is outclassed in talent on the field, but against this team, I think that's the case. But Redd could be a perfect weapon... He is electrifying and is one of those backs that doesn't need that big of a hole to turn a run into a nice gain. The way he hits the whole with such speed and explosiveness he reminds me of a smaller Adrian Peterson. If Penn State is going to win this game, they need Redd to carry the offense.

Penn State has home field advantage in this one, which could help out tremendously when Alabama's untested QB's take the field. If the Lions come out and play with confidence, and catch a few breaks, they can win this game. But if I have to make a prediction, I'm taking Alabama in a low scoring game, 17-13.

The Decision 2011

2011-09-05T16:51:00.004-04:00

Rudy, great season kick-off post...I too, stand at half mast just thinking about PUS football again!

As far as the 2011 Penn State team goes, you really cant take much away from the Indiana State game. It was essentially a scrimmage or pre-season game, whichever way you want to look at it. However, there were a few players that I was looking forward to seeing how they looked.

Obviously, the QB situation is the #1 question/problem/area of concern. Two years ago, I devoted the 2010 season solely to establishing and developing a starting QB, setting up 2011 as the year PSU's makes national noise again. As we all know, that did not happen and I feel we are back at the same point we were a year ago with the QB's. However, I was excited to see how both QB's fared and how they handled the offense in their season debut. After having a few days to gather my thoughts and opinions, I have concluded that McGloin is the better answer for the time being. Clearly, Bolden is the more physicall talented player, but, to me, it looks like McGloin has better control of the offense and plays the role of "game manager" better than Bolden. If you look back on several recent National Championship teams (Ohio State '02, LSU '07, Alabama '09), they did not have a stud Heisman Trophy/1st Round Draft Pick Quarterback...they had a guy who managed the game and did not make the big mistake. Now, I know McGloin is very prone to the bone-headed throw now and then, as we saw on Saturday. But, it seems like he moves the offense better, he commands the huddle, he has the confidence, and he actually shows excitement about the fact that he is playing football at Penn State! I really dont like seeing Bolden on the sidelines with that blank stare on his face, looking like he just got news of his dog dying. I think it is a reflection of his lack of self-confidence and leadership ability. My opinions may change in the weeks to come, but for now, my vote goes to McGloin.

As for Alabama, I think this is the game PSU can show people what this team is all about. They aren't getting much respect at this point in the season and that is fine with me. I like being the underdog...in our house! I envision a game similar to Ohio State in 2005. Two good defenses, a battle for field position, with one of the defenses or special teams making a big play to set up a game-deciding score. Either way, it should be more exciting than last year.

I SPY...Adrian Amos (CB #4). As far as I can remeber, he was the only true frosh who got non mop-up time on Saturday. Dude looks big, fast, and athletic for an 18 year old kid. With the absence of Derrick Thomas ??? and a dismal Chaz Powell at corner, will Amos eventually get some first team reps?

Opening Day

2011-09-03T10:36:00.002-04:00

I share in Rudy's excitement over a new Penn State season. I also share in his sentiments that Penn State is loaded with talent this year, and could suprise some people since they seem to be overlooked by most. The last time they had this much talent but did not come into the season highly ranked was 2005, and we all know what happened that year.

My two biggest question marks are the QB position and coaching. QB is an obvious one. The fact that Bolden didn't come out and win the job right away was upsetting to me, and I don't think that's a good sign. I was hoping for a lights-out pre-season from him to make the QB decision an easy one, and that didn't happen. So we will see what happens at QB. Again, going back to 2005, although MRob is now considered a PSU legend, if your recall correctly, there were a lot of question marks about him heading into that season. I was one of many people who had doubts about his ability to be a Big Ten quarterback. He silenced any doubters that season, however. But the point is, even though the QB situation looks like it will be a question mark this season, that doesn't necessarily mean it will be.

In regards to the coaching, I just think the team has not gotten the most out of it's talent in the last 10 years, and I'm worried that will continue this season. I could probably elaborate a little further with specific examples, but that would take a little too long. I hope the coaching staff proves me wrong this year, but I will believe it when I see it.

For me, the thing I will be watching this game is Brandon Beachum. I think he's going to be a great running back this year. Most people are excited for Redd, and rightfully so, because he's a stud. But he's also not the biggest guy in the world and I'm not sure he is a 25 carry per game back in the Big Ten. Therefore, I think Beachum, who has a little more meat on him, will be play a key role int he offense this year. I think he will receive more carries than most people are expecting. He's my player to watch for this game.

Penn State rolls.

And So We Begin

2011-09-03T08:13:00.000-04:00

As we flip our calendars from August to September, familiar feelings comes over us...hope, excitement, and maybe even a little bit aroused. Penn State football is back. After spending the past eight months basically living a meaningless, empty life, I once again have purpose. Like a homeless man, picking through dumpsters in search of the fruitful Bud Light cans, I have come across a fat wallet amidst the banana peels, soiled paper towels and rotten cheese; the next four months will be figuratively showered with whiskey and Olde English. I am a happy man.

This matchup between Penn State and the lowly Indiana State Sycamores presents little in the way of a challenge, and certainly the outcome of the game is not in doubt. However, a much more important battle is fought within the ranks of the Nittany Lions. Unlike we have seen in recent years, the team enters the season with several positions lacking a true starter. Obviously the elephant in the room is the quarterback situation, but also along the offensive line and to a lesser extent at linebacker players to this day continue to compete for starting positions. This offseason has been an extremely good one with more intensity and competition than I can remember. Coming off of a 7-6 season, the team is playing with a chip on their shoulder. They know that they could have been better, and they are eager to prove that point this season. The depth at linebacker and defensive back brings me back to the days of Team VJ Pepicelli. The running backs and receivers are probably the most talented in the entire Big Ten, but questions still linger about the lines and about the whole Bolden/McGloin reality show. Paterno has decided that this year, he will not name a starter for the opening game, but will use the powderpuff as another scrimmage for the quarterbacks to separate themselves. To me this is meaningless. If these two are that close that you can't name a starter....just make Bolden the quarterback. I don't think that anyone would argue that Bolden is the more gifted player, and has a much higher ceiling, so just give him the rock. Let him improve and develop. It's a no brainer. The only logical excuse I can see, is Paterno wants to be fair and so he's jumping through all of these hoops to make it look like McGloin actually has a shot. My prediction: Both QBs perform well against ISU, but Bolden is named starter for Alabama.

The offensive line is something that seems to be an issue every year and has been since the Rose Bowl run in 2008. I think this unit might surprise people. There are no real stars on the line, especially with the loss of Wisniewski, but what they lack in individual strength, they make up for as a unit. They've worked together for a very long time and I feel that they should be competent enough to be successful. With all of the potential offensive fire-power that Penn State has, this group just needs to be good enough and things could get crazy. I'm looking forward to it.

On the defensive side of the ball, I seriously just peed my pants I'm so excited. With the exception being defensive end (where Penn State has about 25 young studs ready to explode), every position boasts veteran leadership and a sexy mayor. Michael Mauti is going to turn heads this year. I love his attitude and intensity. He's like a meaner Posluszny. Devon Still on the defensive line I personally think will earn Big Ten honors. This man is an absolute giant and even though he looks like a refrigerator, he's actually not fat at all. Hide your children. If Jack Crawford can get back to his old form and some of this young speed rushers can fill in for the injured Pete Massaro, this defense could be something special.

The biggest difference this year is that Penn State is flying under the radar. But I see them. My radar sees them. I guess that's kind of my job, but regardless...everyone looks at this team and sees a few question marks and dismisses them as mediocre. But what about Alabama? They lost their starting quarterback, and their best receiver (although they have probably the best running back in the world), and they're sitting pretty at #2. I'm fine with it though. This team will surprise people. There's so much talent. As for this game that's being played this week...I don't expect it to be too tough and Silas Redd will probably run for close to 200 yards. It will be nice to see Beachum back on the field and will be a huge contributor.

What can I say? It's the most exciting time of year and I just wrote a small book. A pamphlet. Let's get this thing started. Lions roll 49-3. Get some

Florida

2010-12-31T14:25:00.003-05:00

Bowl games are always tough to predict. Neither team has played in a month. Often one of the teams is disappointed with their season and in turn the bowl game they are in, and as a result, a win in some crappy bowl doesn't make much difference to them because it doesn't save their season. While the other team may be very pleased with the bowl game they are in, and look at it is an opportunity to cap off a tremendous year with a big win. Depending on the situation, you don't always get equal efforts out of both teams. Additionally, out of all of these bowl games, only one of them is for the national championship. So what, exactly, are all the other teams playing for? All of these factors contribute to making college bowl games so unpredictable, that professional gamblers avoid them like the plague. You just have no clue what you're going to get out of the two teams playing.

This particular bowl game, has a few extra factors thrown into the mix that make it a whole lot more confusing.

UF

1. Florida's Head Coach Urban Meyer is retiring and this bowl game will be his last. Does this mean he will work extra hard to go out with a victory, or does it mean he's already thinking about his retirement and hasn't really been preparing for this game as he usually would? Does this mean the players will work extra hard to make sure to send their coach out with a win? Or are they too disappointed/distracted to focus on this game.

2. Florida's Offensive Coordinator is leaving next year to take over as the Head Coach at Temple. How focused on this game can he be? Is he already looking ahead to his next gig at Temple? It's never to early to start recruiting... How much effort is he putting into this game?

3. Florida's starting QB is rumored to be considering transferring schools for next year. Again, how will that affect his focus/preparation for this game?

PSU

1. Rumors have been flying around about Coach Paterno's health declining and the possibility that this is his last game. Every indication from Paterno insists none of this is true and he will be back next year. If the rumors are true, the repurcussions on this game are obvious... The heach coach hasn't been around to coach the team, the players/assistant coaches may be distracted/worried about Paterno or wondering who will be taking over, etc. But even if it's not true, you have to wonder how much of this stuff is heard and believed by the players, and how distracted they are.

2. Tom Bradley interviewed for the Temple job and most reports indicate he would have brought Vanderlinden and McQueary with him there. That means three of the coaches were very close to leaving PSU. If they thought such a big life change was imminent, that had to have taken away from their focus and preparation for this game.

Anyway, as you can see, there are a lot going on behind the scenes leadinig up to this game. HBO could have done a 24/7 series for this specific bowl game and would have had plenty to talk about.

After giving you my list of reasons why this game is impossible to predict, I will go ahead and make my prediction:

In recent bowl games, Penn State has had success pulling out surprise victories in bowls I don't expect them to win against SEC teams I felt were superior (Tennessee in 2006 and LSU last year). So it's possible they could do the same against Florida this year. However, I think Urban Meyer is a great coach that is well liked by most of his players and assistant coaches, and I think, despite all of the potential distractions, the entire team is determined to send Meyer out with a win. As a result, I see Florida winning this game in a dominant fashion.

Just One Wish

2010-12-29T10:28:00.002-05:00

It is now post-Christmas and some of the coaching names that were being tossed around are now moot. I must first address the absolute shenanigans surrounding this whole coaching shake up. WTF? How in the world does Sue Paterno have to justify knowing her husband is not in the hospital? Is this what media in this country has become? A chain e-mail started by some mook with a subscription to Blue-White Illustrated? I mean good gravy. I actually lost it on my Dad pretty hard for spreading these rumors around at Christmas dinner, not because I knew they were false or anything but I automatically knew the source of them was totally bogus. I blame ESPN for coining the phrase "A source close to the program." Typing those words or saying them during an official broadcast should be punishable by death henceforth. Also let me say that I've been hearing for close to 15 years now that "This will definitely be Joe's last season/game." Also now punishable by death.

So amidst all these coaching rumors what is my one wish? No Tony Dungy. Not that I believe he was ever a real candidate for one second, let me still be clear I want him no where near our program. That self-righteous motivational speaker can take his clean language and proper behavior somewhere else. I need real people in my life. I need fire, I need passion. It is in that regard that I feel Bill Cowher is the greatest type of coach there is. Screw up on a play and he will grab you by the scrotum 10 yards before the sideline. Redeem yourself on the next play and he will greet you with a bear hug 15 yards before the sideline. Let me also be clear, Bill Cowher will not coach at Penn State either.

I would welcome all the names Pete and Rudy mentioned save for Dungy. All of the candidates have strong points and weak ones. If I had to give my vote for someone, it would be Pat Fitzgerald. Although he is probably not the best football mind among those mentioned, I think he would hold true to Penn State football. Strong defense with a bruising running attack. My other main selling point is that this guy is still young. I don't like coaching changes on my team so when Joe goes I would like to go another 30 or so years before I have to do this again.

Rudolf's wishlist

2010-12-22T21:09:00.003-05:00

I not only have a Christmasy name, but I've got a Christmasy list of coaches as well. When I heard the rumors of Tony Dungy, I was very surprised. He has ties to the Big Ten having played at Minnesota, but why Penn State? Why college football? It doesn't really sound accurate and I for one am not buying into it just yet. If it is true, I think that he would be a good coach, and he's a big name that will bring in recruits and is also African-American, which could be a tie-breaker for some recruits. Cowher is the other name thrown out there, but I just don't know if these guys that coached in the NFL would want to coach college, and would they be any good? The leagues are pretty different animals and some coaches just have a knack for one. Pete Carroll for example is a college coach. He has that demeanor...he can connect with kids, but probably isn't stoic enough to handle grown men. How would Cowher react to some of the nonsense that goes on with college kids? I think that he could be great, but might be a little too NFL for the NCAA.

As for Ferentz, I think he is a good coach as well, but he's never been great. He has pulled in some great recuiting classes in a state where there isn't much going on, but his teams always end up with good to pretty good years. They have always had our number, and I think that this sways a lot of our opinions of him. If you were a Northwestern fan and were asked about hiring Ferentz, you might respond with a laugh and reply, "Nah, I'm all set".

Bradley is a great guy and he's been so loyal to the team, but I don't know what benefit there is in making him head coach. He basically is the head coach right now, and keeping him would essentially keep things the way they are. A coaching change is something that could really jumpstart recruiting for a couple years before it settles back down to a normal level. Bradley just wouldn't get this sort of response.

So now...my list

1. Chris Petersen - Boise State. As much as I personally hate Boise State, this guy is good at what he does. He has only lost 5 games in 5 years. He is one of the most creative offensive minds in college football and has been able to consistently coach up quarterbacks. He has a lot of ties to California, where he was born and played, and has been able to bring in great players to a middle of nowhere school. He has performed well in big games, most notably against Oklahoma in 2007, and he is the kind of big change that I think Penn State is looking for. Surprisingly his defenses have played well, but I think that keeping Larry Johnson around as DC might be a good option. I believe that Bradley will be the next head coach at Temple. Other advantages are that he is relatively young, and PSU likely wouldn't have to shell out as much money compared to a Cowher or Dungy (right now Petersen makes ~800k a year).

2. Al Golden - Miami (formerly Temple). Yes, I know...he just took a job this month at UMiami, but Penn State IS this guy's dream job. It's always nice to get someone that wants to be where they are, and Al has made it no secret that he ultimately wants to one day be the HC at PSU. The trouble here lies in the contract he just signed for the Hurricanes, and if the Outback Bowl is in fact the last game for Joe Paterno, then it will be nigh impossible to get him. On the other hand, if Joe coaches one more year, Golden can coach a year at Miami, we can get an idea of how he does with a BCS program, and he may be able to get out of his contract with a buyout in 2012.

3. Pat Fitzgerald - Northwestern. Pete, I agree with you here. This guys is tough as nails, and was an outstanding linebacker in college and would have no trouble bringing in the best LB's in the country to play for LBU. Getting him away from N'Western would be tough, especially in conference, but the facilities and support for Northwestern just don't measure up with Penn State and he may be tempted to coach a National Championship caliber team.

4. Paul Chryst - Wisconsin (OC/QB). Like Fitzgerald, Chryst is serving at his alma mater, but unlike Fitzgerald, he has left his alma mater before. Chryst was the tight ends coach at Wisconsin before leaving for Oregon State to be their offensive coordinator. He later returned to Wisconsin as their offensive coordinator. What this tells me is that he may not be afraid to leave UW for a promotion. He has continually put together a powerful offense that I find myself dreaming about at night. Enormous offensive linemen, bruising running backs, great tight ends, and smart quarterbacks. The Wisconsin offense to me is the definition of Big Ten football, and even though his style and my #1 Chris Petersen are completely different, I would be glad to take either. Great offensive minds that are well connected and could bring in talent that PSU has had trouble getting (nation-wide recruiting, and offensive linemen).

This is something that we just aren't used to, but the ride will certainly be exciting. Regardless, I think that Penn State will get a quality coach. In the meantime, let's find a new basketball coach!

Merry Christmas! Or will it be a Merry Chrystmas????

Wishlist

2010-12-22T10:46:00.002-05:00

With Christmas fast approaching, and Penn State coaching rumors flying around like crazy, I figured this would be a good time to post my Penn State Coaching Wishlist to the blog.

Although it's been the hottest topic of discussion surrounding Penn State Football for probably the past 15 years, the issue of Joe's successor has not really been touched on a whole lot on this blog. Every year you get someone saying "You heard it here first, this bowl game will be Joe's last game." But every year he returns the following season. This year has been no different. In fact, within the last 45 minutes, I've heard from two different people that this is it for Joe, and that Tony Dungy is the top candidate to take over. I'm at the point now where I take any rumors I hear with a grain of salt. I don't believe anybody has any real inside information and we won't know what's going on until it actually goes on.

So by making this post, I'm not at all suggesting I think this will be Joe's last game. I'm simply acknowledging that it very well could be, and if it is, these are my personal top four candidates I would like to see considered for the job:

1. Bill Cowher - Having a big-name guy like Cowher would do wonders for recruiting and would draw a ton of national attention to the program. His physical style of coaching fits perfectly in the Big Ten. He's a Pittsburgh guy so it fits, as long as he has a desire to get into collegiate coaching.

2. Kirk Ferentz - He's on my short list of best coaches in the game right now, but what makes him so appealing is that he does it with more class than most of the other guys on that list. His coaching style is very similar to Joe's, with a focus on runninig the football and playing strong defense. Plus he's also a Pittsburgh guy, so it would be a good fit for him, if he's willing to leave Iowa.

3. Pat Fitzgerald - One of the better young, up and coming coaches in the game. He's had a lot of success so far at Northwestern, and could be much more successful with better talent. He's a Big Ten guy with a lot of respect for Joe and Penn State, so he might be interested in the job, as long as he's willing to leave his alma mater. Being a younger guy, I think he'd do well with recruiting also.

4. Tom Bradley - First of all, there is no denying he's been a great defensive coordinator for Penn State. And I like the idea of a defensive minded head coach. He's paid his dues, he's been loyal to the program, and I think he deserves a shot. I know he doesn't have head coaching experience, but I definitely think he has what it takes to be a great head coach. I think the players all like and respect him, and he would do a great job. The only thing going against him is that they may want to go outside the program to bring some much needed change, and sticking with Bradley would probably result in more of the same stuff we've been seeing.

What does your wish-list look like?

Spartans

2010-11-27T11:40:00.003-05:00

The Penn State Michigan State game always seems to be a fun one to watch. It's usually high scoring with a lot of excitement, and I expect today's game to be no different. I see both teams putting up 25+ points, and I'll take Penn State in a close one.

Also, I know there was a lot of news going around about Joe returning next year. People need to realize the context in which that came out. It was not a prepared announcement or anything along those lines. It was just a casual statement at his weekly press release. They asked him if this was going to be his last game at Beaver Stadium, and he said no because he'd be back next year. That question gets asked all the time, and he always responds by saying he has no plans on retiring any time soon. What else is he going to say? Of course he's going to say he plans on being back next year. He's not going to announce his retirement at his weekly press conference before the michigan state game. I'm not saying to completely disregard it, but the media made way too much of something I don't think they should have.

I support Joe Paterno, but it's clear his health is not what it used to be. I think it's time. But as we all know, it only matters what he thinks. That remains to be seen, but I don't think we can completely ignore the possibility that this is Joe's last game at Beaver Stadium.

Winner Gets to Keep the Land Grant Trophy!

2010-11-27T01:16:00.002-05:00

The kindergarten art project that is the Land Grant Trophy is at stake for the last time on Saturday as Penn State looks to crush any hope for Michigan State to get to their first BCS bowl game. Since joining the Big Ten, Penn State has never lost to Michigan State at home, but this may be the finest MSU team since the league added its eleventh team. A balanced offense with a steady quarterback, superb receivers, and an array of talented running backs will face a banged up Penn State defense. Penn State looked pretty unimpressive for much of the game against Indiana, but showed some very bright spots. Clearly McGloin is the guy for this game and the bowl game. He has really come out of nowhere after laying an egg in the Blue White game (he really played like dog shit) and has not only made big plays with his arm, but also recognized blitzes and generally made good decisions. This is why Bolden will need another 8 or so months before he starts a football game. Take nothing away from Robert Bolden, but for someone coming out of a wing-T high school offense (i.e. Groton School) and then practicing for a couple months with PSU, it's hard to imagine that he would be able to do the most complex aspects of the job.

It was good to see Silas Redd penalized minimally for taking a leak in public. I still don't know how you get caught (dumpster behind Taco Bell, bushes outside of Schreyer's...take notes) but come on, we've all done it. Plus he's really good at football. I expect Redd to be a huge factor in this game. Royster took on a bigger role his freshman year as the season went on (even though Rodney Kinlaw was fantastic) and it looks like Redd will do the same.

MSU is a very pro-style team. Nothing too fancy, but they are very effective. Penn State is going to need to tackle well and cover well in the secondary to have a shot at this upset. With a win, Penn State will end the season at 8-4 and head to a decent bowl game likely ranked in the top 25...not too bad. This game goes a long way in determining what kind of team will be playing in the bowl game and in 2011. I long predicted that 2011 would be Penn State's National Championship contending team and I believe they can still do that.

So time out...Boise State just lost, no big deal(suckaaaaaaas!). I think Kellen Moore looks like a beaver. Also, the Miami Heat kind of aren't that good and no one goes to their games. Awesome!

Back to football...I'm tired, it's Thanksgiving...it's just tough knowing that very few students are going to be at tomorrow's game, and it's a HUGE game! A very winnable game against the 10th ranked team! Let's go! I'm going to bed! I have to wake up early and take a train into Philly to watch this guy! Boise State lost! HAHAHAHA! Anyway, Michigan State let's us open up a lead...they come back in the 4th quarter, but finally the cardiac Spartans don't make it back all the way and in typical fashion, completely ruin what could have been a great season. They'll probably lose their bowl game by 30 points too. You can beat us in basketball, but this one is ours.

There's the Flavor!

2010-11-13T10:16:00.002-05:00

Finally we saw what this team is capable of. It took a little while, and Drew Merritts almost killed a guy. Matt McGloin took the team 91 yards in 50 seconds to score a touchdown and undoubtedly save the lives of some fans that probably need to catch up on their PSFB show before opening their mouths and imparting the wisdom of a drunk pigeon. The offense has been potent, not necessarily because of the quarterback play, but the playcalling. McGloin has more poise, he makes good decisions and has made some damn good throws, but I agree with Pete...Bolden is the future. But we aren't there yet. Playaction on first down is so money every time. Silas Redd is a complete stud, and the receivers have stepped up to make some big plays. And how about Joe Suhey!? What a guy.

The team is playing with fire. They are flying to the ball. Michael Mauti makes me tingle inside, and Evan Royster is showing some pizazz. The team has gelled. It is so much fun to watch McGloin, and the kid truly loves being out there and competing. It makes you realize that a lot of these guys play the game for the right reason...to get a free education and to play a sport they love.

Now can McGloin lead PSU to victories over Michigan AND Ohio State? Why not? PSU has all kinds of momentum and they have absolutely nothing to lose. I believe that they are 18 point underdogs or something completely crazy. The thing is that Ohio State is going to play conservatively and if Penn State can contain Pryor, they should be able to keep the score low. They have some great athletes on defense and there has been a marked improvement lately (Malcolm Willis I love you). I really see this being a great game, but Ohio State's defensive line will give us some problems. The O-line has done a great job all year in pass protection, but it will be imperative to get some lanes for Royster and Redd. As long as McGloin can stay away from throwing pop-ups when he has about to get sacked or hurried, I think PSU can get some things done.

Last year this game was tough to watch. I broke my phone that day, and put a few holes in the wall of my apartment. Here's to wishing that happens to some Ohio State fan later today.

On a side note I will be attending my first Groton School football game this afternoon as they take on rival St. Mark's for the season finale. A big day of football and the Sunday night matchup is ok too. Fight on, on, on

Nutcrackers

2010-11-12T20:34:00.002-05:00

Let me start off by saying I was never happier to be so wrong as I was after Michigan. I honestly don't know if a lousy Michigan defense or PSU finally putting the offense together had more to do with the Lions output. After watching Penn State-Northwestern I'm inclined to think the Lions have some things figured out.

The third quarter of last week's game was maybe the most dominant I've ever seen Penn State play over a Big Ten opponent. Everything seemed to be working. I've been very impressed with the execution on the screens, particularly with Joe Suhey who has great feet and hands for a fullback and is the first Suhey to earn his scholarship since the 60's. I thought the linebacker play improved and almost solely due to Michael Mauti, who is an extremely athletic and intense guy. He breaks the mold of the usually dominant yet stoic linebackers in Penn State's past.

On the offensive side I am not sold on McGloin. He went to Moye on about 12 straight plays. A lot of them in traffic. It seems the roll out to the right with Moye deep and Brackett short is his favorite play, and you best believe Ohio State is waiting on it. He's going to have to mix it up a lot more against a superior Buckeye defense. And for all those who are completely blind, Evan Royster will only be the career leading in rushing yards for about two more seasons. Silas Redd is the truth.

As for the Fighting Sweater Vests, I'm not sold on them. They've squeaked by too many times and quite frankly I'm still not sold on Prior as a viable big game quarterback. In my opinion their most credible win is Illinois. They have not beaten a team that is currently ranked in the top 25. For the first time in my life I think our opponent has a simpler and more predictable offense than our own. What does Ohio State have? Talent. And they have it by the truckload. And although the sight of Tressel makes me gag like Dee Reynolds doing stand-up, the guy is a good coach.

Can Penn State go in to Columbus and grab a win? Absolutely. I really think that no one has any idea how good either of these teams really are. I think it will be one hell of a game to watch. And the Lions under the lights in the road whites will send me from six to midnight every time.

-Bani Gbadyu still sucks

Ohio State

2010-11-12T14:52:00.001-05:00

This is the most excited I’ve been for a Penn State football game all year. I really didn’t think Penn State had much of a shot against Alabama or Iowa, but it seems they have recently figured a lot of things out and are starting to come together on both offense and defense, so I think they have a shot in this one. The second half against Northwestern was by far their best half of football all year. If they can continue to play like that on both sides of the ball, they can beat Ohio State.

On paper, I think PSU does not match up very well in this game. Having a former walk-on QB making just his second career start on the road against a tough OSU defense is not an ideal situation. I’m sure Ohio State is going to bring a lot of heat to put pressure on McGloin. So far he has done very well, but he has yet to face a defense like Ohio State’s. If he can pull out a third straight victory against a strong defensive opponent, McGloin’s status will be thrust to a whole new level among Penn State fans. He has certainly provided a spark for this time in the last two games, but a lot of fans still have their doubts. A win over the Buckeyes would go a long way to silence any doubters.

For the record, I do believe that Rob Bolden will be the man at QB for Penn State in the long term. He has really impressed me so far and I think he has a very promising future ahead. But I fully support the decision to start McGloin here. He has the hot hand, and they might as well see how far he can take this team. As long as he continues to perform and put up points, there is no reason to take him out.

The offensive line has really come around lately and Penn State has ran the ball with great success the last few games. That will be much tougher against Ohio State, but the O-line must continue to open up holes for Royster and Redd in order for the offense to succeed. By the way, I’m so glad the coaching staff has FINALLY realized that Stephfon Green is not a good running back. I love the kid’s effort and attitude, and I have no problem with us trying to take advantage of his speed on screen passes, but he lacks the lateral mobility and vision to be a running back, and there is no reason for him to take another hand-off this season with the talent PSU has at the running back position. On a related note, Silas Redd is ELECTRIC. The kid is so shifty, I’ve never seen one guy make so many defenders just completely whiff! His side-step move has worked every time. They need to continue to give this kid the ball!

The most promising sign from the Northwestern game was the play of the defense in the second half. It was the first time all season that the unit looked like a typical Penn State defense. They were finally playing with some enthusiasm too. A lot of people have been wondering why Penn State’s defense has been struggling this year. I’ve thought it was the result of two things: 1. This was the first year in a long time that the Lions did not have a proven All-American stud linebacker such as Poz, Connor and Lee. It is starting to appear that Mauti is getting closer to 100% and he is starting to play at that level. As he has come along, so has the entire defense. Hopefully he continues to progress. I think he was still recovering from his knee surgery early in the season, but he’s starting to look much better now. They say ACL’s usually require two years before you are fully 100% back. Secondly, I think the defensive line has not been performing at the level Penn State fans are used to. Losing Odrick was big, and then not having Lattimore and Crawford for much of this season hasn’t helped. The team has really struggled putting pressure on the quarterback all year. But they were able to get through last week, with Devon Still in particular having a big game. I’m hoping they feed off of that performance and continue to apply some pressure on the quarterback. Otherwise it could be a long day.

Final note: I think that Gerald Hodges would be the perfect candidate to be assigned to shadow Pryor if he’s 100% healthy. Who knows if they would do that though. I see this game either being a blowout in Ohio State’s favor or a close game that Penn State pulls out. Let’s hope it’s the latter.

Making History

2010-11-07T10:20:00.006-05:00

It was good to see JoePa finally get his 400th victory, but I feel the same way about it that Joe does...its just something to fill sportswriters' columns and ESPN highlight reels. Don't get me wrong, it is a great honor and I'm glad it is our guy doing it, but coming into the game, Joe was the only major college football coach with 399 wins so why is 400 so publicized? No retort needed on that last question but, at the end of the day, the most important game on the schedule is the next one.

I think the Michigan game was about as good as this team can play for 60 minutes. On the contrary, the Northwestern game was a microcosm of what this team is capable of...in both halves. The anemic offense and sloppy defense in the first half is an example of how ugly this team can look if they play with no inspiration and no desire. They are simply not good enough to just show up and beat the middle-of-the-pack teams. On the other hand, the second half is an example of how exciting this team can be if they put things together and play fundamental Penn State football. Again, like we often see with PSU games, credit the coaching staff for the physical and emotional halftime adjustments.

As for the last 3 games...I think you have to begin to give some credit to the coaching staff for all of the adjustments they have made with this team from week to week. It is a lot easier to draw up plays and shuffle around X's and O's when your personnel is established and quite polished (i.e. 2008, 2009). But with this team, there were a lot of personnel questions heading into the season. And to couple the fact that there is a laundry list of injuries, it makes the recent success of this team rather impressive. I can imagine a lot of late hours were spent trying to figure out which combinations will work best. I mean, we have a former walk-on playing QB, a recently converted WR starting at corner, a freshman playing strong safety, DT's playing DE, and to top it off, we have Offensive Tackles catching Touchdown passes! Credit the coaches for this transformation into a respectable football team.

Granted, Minnesota-Michigan-Northwestern are not nearly the cream of the College Football crop, but for this team to be where it's at after that horrific Illinois loss is encouraging. The season is not lost and next week at Ohio State could be interesting. Ohio State is good and we need to put it all together for 60 minutes and be nearly flawless to have a chance.

As for the QB situation...I think this is a good problem to have. I still don't believe in the 2-QB system but it's nice to know if one guy is ineffective, we might have a shot with the other. I think they need to open up the competition again this week at practice and see who has the best week. The winner starts at Ohio State but has a short leash because 3 or 4 sluggish series in Columbus could be the difference between a close game and a blowout.

Finally, you gotta love the production from Silas Redd lately. This kid really gives the running game a jolt of energy. At one point I thought that Stephfon Green was a good compliment to Royster but with this team and with this O-Line, it looks like Redd is more effective in that he creates his own holes and makes big runs out of almost nothing. Royster's record might be short lived!

Season Saver?

2010-11-05T14:41:00.002-04:00

Like most people, I really didn't see that win over Michigan coming. I knew their defense was weak, but with Bolden out, I figured Penn State would struggle on offense. There was no doubt the Lions would have a hard time containing the Michigan offense, and I figured it would be a blowout in Michigan's favor. Clearly I was wrong.

It will be interesting to see what happens from here. Does that win give the team some much needed confidence and turn the whole season around? Or will the Lions go back to playing like crap and prove it was just a fluke. I really have no inclination of which side to believe because I could see it going either way. But to be honest, if I had to take a guess, I'd say Penn State reverts back to the way they played before the Michigan game and continues to struggle all season.

I was really impressed with McGloin given the situation. He did everything he was asked and led Penn State to scoring drive after scoring drive on their way to a huge win. All of that after only receiving one week's worth of first-team practice reps. It was clear to anyone who watched the game that the playbook was very limited for the game. But it worked brilliantly as Michigan couldn't stop it. How many times did they run the bootleg rollout for a first down to either Bracket over the middle or Zug along the sideline? As Albright kept reminding me though, all of the points may be a bigger indication of how terribile Michigan's defense is than how good Penn State's offense is. Nevertheless, that's two straight games with 30+ points, so the offense has been performing well, and I was very impressed with the offensive line in particular, which is a great sign. The defense still has a long way to go, which is very uncharacteristic. However, Michigan's offense is very tough to defend, so it's not the end of the world.

In regards to the upcoming game, I think as long as Bolden is healthy, you have to go with him. Yes, McGloin played well last week, but Bolden is the guy, and he was playing his best football against Minnesota before he got hurt. I'm eager to see him continue to make progress. I could see this game going either way. I think it will be close and high scoring. I will say Northwestern ends up coming out on top just because I'm still not convinced Penn State is a good football team. However, if they do manage to win this one, I think it's clear they are a team on the rise that could close out the season on a high note with some big upsets.

Hugh Jackman Sucks

2010-10-30T13:48:00.002-04:00

Please excuse my absence last week, it was Minnesota. I had to work last Saturday so I missed the game. But from what I can surmise, Penn State still played pretty lousy. We had 21 hung on us by a 1 win team. That's not good. Obviously I can't comment on much else from last week so I'll just skip on to this week.

These type of Penn State teams can never beat Michigan. And when I say these type of I am referring to how this team is so similar to down years in the past. Ineffective offense, turnovers, and physically weak. Those teams have never upset a Michigan team. I don't think they will this year either. We have too many dropped passes, poor use of personnel, and are generally undersized where it counts. Denard Robinson is pretty good, and given our zone coverage philosophy, I think he will be able to run as he pleases most of the day given that we just don't have an athletic enough front 7 to contain him. High powered offenses give Penn State fits and I think this day will be no different. All Michigan must do is stop us a few times to win the game. Given our ability to shoot ourselves in the foot I don't think this will be hard. Plus with Fera giving away field position like school free lunch, Michigan will be in our territory with ease.

I know this all sounds incredibly pessimistic, and it is. This reverts back to seeing an Illinois offense slice through us like a hot knife through butter. Some serious changes will have to be made before my faith is restored in the defense. As for the start of Matt McGloin, it confirms what we all have known for a long time, Kevin Newsome is a lousy quarterback. I say we go old school and try to make him a linebacker. I think this one will be an ugly one to watch if you're a Penn State fan.

As for the coaching change rumors, let me be blunt: Joe Paterno should dictate when and how he leaves the program. No ifs ands or buts about it. That man is that university. Are we so callous to throw away a man who built the most honorable program in college football due to one bad season? The talks of firing him honestly make me sick. I sadly think the death of Declan Sullivan (which is completely despicable by the way) will help remind people that this is just a sport and there are more important things in life than winning a lousy football game.

/End Rant

Rip His Head Off

2010-10-27T22:39:00.002-04:00

Michigan comes to town in what many are calling a must win for Rich Rodriquez. He has yet to produce a valuable win for his program and with the struggling Nittany Lions, he may be able to silence his nay-sayers temporarily. The Wolverines play football like I would imagine the Denver Nuggets would play...all offense, no defense, a few terrible passes, turnovers, sloppy play, but in the end they win most of their games. From the little that I have seen of the Maize and Blue this year, I have been impressed with the ability of Denard Robinson as a runner, but his decisions throwing the ball can occasionally be worse than the Mets' front office. The team as a whole is mistake prone, they drop passes, and this is what Penn State needs to take advantage of in order to come away with a victory Saturday night.

PSU cannot get into a shoot out. They only put up 33 points against the worst defense in the Big Ten, so the defense will probably have to hold Michigan under 28 points to have a shot. Michigan's defense is nothing to brag about, and they almost gave away a game to Div. 1-AA UMass. We saw Rob Bolden come out on fire last game, but since then he's been questionable to play due to a concussion. Rumors have it that he passed his medical exam Wednesday and could play. Whether he does, we shall see.

Despite all of Michigan's woes, they are still a very athletic team that Penn State will have a hard time stopping. The linebacker play to this point in the season has been disappointing to say that least, but the return of Gerald Hodges last game was huge. He has tremendous speed and will most likely be used as a spy on Robinson. Michael Mauti has been playing fairly well recently as well and he really looks to be another great at LinebackerU.

Offensively for Penn State, they got things rolling a bit against Minnesota which was encouraging. There was more passing on first down, more play action, and the pass protection was, again, pretty decent. The running game got going a little, but it was due more to the hard running of Royster and vision and shiftiness of Silas Redd. Moye continues to play well, and the WR's overall played well. Points will be scored on Saturday...Penn State just needs to limit mistakes, but stay aggressive.

My current prediction is a Michigan win, but part of this is due to the uncertainty surrounding Bolden's status. If he is good to go, and if he can play without any adverse effects, I say Penn State wins by a field goal. God, I hate Michigan.

Fight on

Smells Like 2004

2010-10-16T11:33:00.004-04:00

Sitting in the stands at Beaver Stadium last Saturday, watching the crowd filter out before the end of the 3rd quarter, I started questioning the last time I saw a Penn State team play this bad. The answer I came up with was a few of the games in 2004. These two teams (2004 & 2010) have very similar features. They are young, inexperienced and lacking a leader/playmaker on both sides of the ball. The only problem is, I think this 2010 team has more talent. So to see a performance like the Illinois game, AT HOME, is extremely frustrating.

The attrition on defense is certainly a problem. Clearly, the defense looked uninspired and extremely lackluster, but I think you have to look at the personnel. For most of the second half, true freshman DT DaQuann Jones was playing DE and two freshman, Malcolm Willis and Stephon Ogben-Agyapong, who really have not seen much time, were shuffling in at Strong Safety and looked lost out there. The LB corp has bent to the point of a complete break so I'm wondering...where is the other stud LB recruit Mike Hull? The problem with all the injuries is the guys who are injured need to play for this team to get better. Sitting on the sidelines for the next 2 months is a wash and we are back at square one in the spring.

I was not aware of the rumors of dissension among the coaching staff, but I think there are some areas of concern. As Pete stated, I also noticed a few players celebrating big hits/tackles after significant Illinois gains. I too cannot stand this. Its like pimping a solo Home Run in the bottom of the 9th when you are losing 7-1. I saw Khairi Fortt make a nice tackle for about a 1-2 yard gain late in the 4th quarter and then come up and make a celebratory gesture. This looks bad and indicates we have a bunch of individual players rather than a cohesive unit. I expect these kind of things from the Florida States and Miamis...not Joe Paterno's Penn State.

Furthermore, what is going on with Derrick Thomas and Sean Stanley? Why are their absences going undisclosed? I mean, Joe is quick to tell us that true freshman Paul Jones is having academic inadequacies; Brandon Ware is in the doghouse for physical, mental and academic instabilities; and we all know about the documented legal issues of the recent past that Joe did not hesitate to comment on. So, why keep it quite with these guys?

Lastly, the problems with the run game are clearly a result of an offensive line who does not like to be physical and play trench-warfare football. And, there have been a few times this year when we fail to pick up 1 yard on 3rd and 4th down. I still think running Stephon Green up the middle on 3rd-and-short is a senseless play. So, my question is, where is Curtis Dukes? I thought this guy was supposed to be a stud? And he is the biggest, strongest back we have. Why not give him some touches?

Feel free to shed some insight and provide some answers to these questions. Hopefully the bye-week patches up some of the holes because this ship is taking on some serious water and heading under fast.

Pathetic

2010-10-15T12:47:00.002-04:00

The loss last weekend to Illinois was one of the worst games I've ever seen Penn State play. They played four quarters of completely uninspired football. The team just did not come to play at all. I really can't think of any bright spots from the game. All facets of the team played lousy.

The thing that annoyed me most was there were a few instances where Illinois ran for a big gain, but then a PSU defender made a vicious hit to get him down, and the guy who made the tackle celebrated his big hit. The most glaring case of this was Drew Astorino after a run of about 40 yards. If the other team gains 40 yards on you in one play, you don't get up and celebrate. I don't care how hard you hit him. Especially when they are dominating the game! This happened a few times and this indicates to me that the mindset of the players is not in the right spot. That is the crap that Penn State usually does not do, but I saw it a few times on Saturday and it really bothered me. The coaches need to get this team on track or they may not win another game this season.

I've heard a lot of bad rumors regarding dissension among the coaching staff. I won't repeat them because at this time they are nothing more than rumors. But I think it is clear that Joe does not have control of this football team, and nobody else seems to either. Something needs to be done.

Wisconsin will beat #1 Ohio State this weekend.

Just... Wow

2010-10-14T15:21:00.002-04:00

I honestly was at a loss for words during most of the Illinois game. I'm used to seeing Penn State offenses play terrible, which they did. But I haven't seen a defense that bad since the Iraqi Royal Army in 2003. We made Nathan Scheelhaase look like Joe Montana. Our usually solid linebacking corps was easier to get through than panties on prom night. The lone bright spot was Nick Sukay getting yanked and never seeing the field again. That kid sucks at defense. He's a good athlete with great hands, and the way Zug is dropping passes like they're going to give him cooties I think we can work this kid in.

Rob Bolden looked more like a freshman against Illinois than he did against Alabama. He stared down one target and seemed completely unaware of where first down yardage actually was. The only thing that saved the day were the ballin meatballs I made that were later devoured at tailgate. All I can say is, thank god its a bye week.

Turning Point

2010-10-08T17:50:00.002-04:00

Last year this was the game where Penn State finally got their running game going behind a huge burst from Stephfon Green. Who will it be this year? Someone. Like Pete said, Penn State finally plays a game with someone on roughly equal footing. Both are starting freshman quarterbacks, both have decent defenses and both really haven't played too well so far this season. Penn State has more talent, but they really haven't put that talent to very good use thus far whereas Illinois gave Ohio State a run for their money.

Going back to the Iowa game for a minute, I want to solely look at a few things that I was happy with. Ollie Ogbu is getting off the line very fast and disrupting the backfield. He really turned it on last game. If he keeps this up, he will probably see more double teams opening up the linebackers. This is what Odrick did, and what earned him such accolades. D'Anton Lynn has become a very solid player. I can't think of a play where he got beat in the air (unlike Morris) and he came up and made a few nice tackles. Sukay continues to get better after that horrible Alabama game. He had a nice pick and took some great angles to the running back to make a few good plays. Fortt came in to play quite a bit, which I was pleased to see. The guy is a monster. He had one play where he shed a block and made a big tackle. With all the injuries plaguing the linebacking corps, he can really make a an impact this weekend. On the other side of the ball, Justin Brown is beginning to emerge. With the drops that Zug has had, I expect Brown to overtake him. He made some great catches and he's a big target. I am just waiting for him to explode, I think he's going to be amazing. Lastly, Royster had some very tough runs. He didn't get too many carries, and there obviously wasn't much room to run against the best defensive line in the country, but I liked what I saw.

Hopefully the team can fix their mistakes and keep the good things going. The defense overall played very well after the first quarter, and this will be a big home game for these guys. Illinois doesn't have much firepower, but they are a decent team. Penn State really is the much more athletic, and I expect them to impose their will. Ohio State last weekend was more conservative than Ted Nugent, and they kept Illinois in the game. Penn State needs to go out, have fun, and play up to their potential.

Everyone keeps yapping about opening up the playbook, do this do that...but Paterno is right...it's all about execution. Their play selection hasn't been that bad (the QB keep on 4th and goal was the right call) but they just aren't doing some things correctly. I expect them to have that corrected this week and the Lions will make like a bunch of homecoming floats and roll.

Greatest Bar for the game. Who's coming?

Homecoming

2010-10-08T11:10:00.002-04:00

I could see this game going either way. Illinois looked pretty good last weekend. It all depends on how the offensive line holds up. If they are able to control the line of scrimmage and generate a running game, Penn State will win. If they are unable to run the ball, it could be yet another Lion loss. This is probably the closest match-up PSU has had so far this year, and will be the best indicator of where they are at.

Growing Pains

2010-10-04T18:10:00.003-04:00

We all knew coming into this season that it was going to be a rebuilding year and that's exactly what I saw in Iowa City Saturday night...a team that is rebuilding and trying to find an identity. I think they will begin to figure this thing out but I dont know how long it will take. This team just needs to play some football and take some of its learning bumps and bruises as they go and I think they will be fine come 2011 and even 2012 and be the force we are all expecting.

As for the Iowa game...Iowa was and is a better team. They play solid football. Nothing flashy, nothing fancy, just good ol fashioned Big Ten football. Their defense is very good and I think their front four outshadows a secondary that is pretty good as well. I would like to see this Iowa team finally dethrone Ohio State and win the Big Ten so we can stop hearing about Ohio State's "5 straight Big Ten Titles."

That being said, I think our offense moved the ball well (301 total yards) and the play calling, for the most part, was good. Love the call on the goaline. I dont really know why they cant get into the endzone...maybe it is just a funk. Again, we put together a few solid drives and looked good offensively at times. But again, we put too much pressure on the shoulders of a young QB to constantly make big plays in a tough situation late in the game.

Regardless, I'm actually glad that Bolden and this team is getting this road experience against stout defenses in some of the toughest venues in the country. Heading into 2011 and 2012, this will only make him better and immune to it all the surrounding hype.

I dont want to use this as an excuse but the Sunday Patriot-News had this listed in the notes column. The PSU injury list...

T Lou Eliades out (knee)
RB Brandon Beachum out (knee)
LB Gerald Hodges out (leg)
TE Andrew Sczerba out (back)
WR Curtis Drake out (leg)
WR Christian Kuntz out (knee)
TE Gary Gilliam left the game in 2nd quarter with an apparant ACL tear
Not to mention...Derrick Thomas and Sean Stanley did not make the trip due to undisclosed disciplinary reasons

Imagine what this team will be capable of in the upcoming years when they get some experience and fortunate health?

Role Reversal?

2010-10-02T11:49:00.003-04:00

Iowa has been a thorn in our sides for years, destroying dreams of national championships and knocking our basketball team out of the NCAA tournament. Unfortunately they have already lost a game so a loss here wouldn't be quite as devastating, but a Penn State win here would make this season a success. I don't remember a season when I have picked against PSU this many times, but Iowa is just a better team in so many aspects of the game. They have more experience, they don't turn the ball over, they have a terrific defense, star players that can take over a game, and we saw what they could do on special teams last year.

To keep this quick, Penn State needs to get solid play out of their offensive line. They played well last week despite giving up just their first sack of the season, but the loss of Eliades is crushing. My take on the conservative play-calling inside the red zone last week is that Penn State knew that eventually they would take over and they just wanted to get some points. Whatever. Not concerned about it. They moved the ball pretty well, but definitely need to be more consistent. This week Penn State will need all the points they can get and I expect them to open up the playbook a little more. The offensive calls against Alabama were actually pretty good so I feel confident in the coaching staff, but execution will be critical. Their redzone production has had about as much success as Drew in a dance contest against yours truly (OH!). I agree that tight ends need to be used, but Gilliam is young and I think a better option is Brackett out of his flex spot. I was excited to see Justin Brown have a big game, and I hope to see him on the field more and maybe Zug a little less. All said and done, Iowa should win this game, but Penn State certainly has the talent to win this, but they need to win the turnover battle and get pressure on Stanzi.

Got a wedding to go to tonight so I will once again be DVRing and watching later. Very excited for this one. This would be a huge win, and a great confidence booster for a young team that is still looking for an identity.

Big Ten Opener

2010-10-01T16:45:00.002-04:00

The magical time is now upon us with games that actually matter, leaving behind the jabronies that occupy the cannon fodder schools of Temple, Kent State, and Youngstown. Bring on the good stuff.

There are a lot of interesting match ups in the Big Ten this week. Particularly Michigan State - Wisconsin, and I'll be keeping my eye on an undefeated Indiana team hosting Michigan. But obviously my mind is fixed on the perennial thorn in Penn State's side, Iowa.

Iowa seems to be the team that we can never beat when we're supposed to and can never yank an upset from when we aren't. I think the root of this can be traced to coaching. Kirk Ferentz is a great coach. An outstanding coach. I think most people "in the know" would tell you the same but your casual fan would probably know who Lane Kiffin is before Ferentz. Iowa is one of these teams I joke about because no matter who graduates they seem to always have the same team: lots of beef up front, a decent and mobile quarterback, a good running back, and one receiver that's fast as lighting. This years squad pretty much fits that mold. The loss to Arizona told us what we already knew, Iowa is not a team that's going to be able to score at will, especially against the tougher defenses of the Big Ten. But have no doubt, this will not be a 6-4 game.

I was obviously concerned at the score of last week's game versus Temple. For the second time this year I think PSU has fallen victim to playing better than the score showed. Five trips to the red zone ending in field goals is not a way to beat Iowa. I haven't seen a red zone attack that bad since Rudy put on all that Old Spice body spray and went cruising for high school girls. The offense becomes very predictable inside the 20 and they need to trust Bolden more. I'm a firm believer that the red zone is where tight ends earn their stripes. Quarless and Shuler were great red zone threats and I'd like to get back to that. It was also nice to see Royster have a good day. However I would personally rather see Silas Redd get more action than Stephon Green.

Last year's Iowa game was a perfect example of how we always lose to Iowa. Giving up big special teams plays, failing to convert on big third downs, and turning over the ball on their half of the field. These are all things that this Penn State team has already proven they love to do. You can't give Ferentz chances, he will make you pay. I just don't see the Lions pulling this one out on the road. But as the old saying goes, "that's why they play the game." If we can limit the turnovers and keep up the amazing job of not committing penalties, this could launch PSU in to a great spot in the Big Ten standings.

Temple Preview

2010-09-24T17:54:00.005-04:00

After the Bama game, I feel like these "tweener" games are mostly irrelevant and simply preparation for the Big Ten schedule. However, this team needs these games to work out some kinks and get things rolling for next weekend, and that's why I watch! Here are a few things I am looking for in tomorrows game...

True, the offensive line has not allowed a sack thus far. I think that is mostly due to the fact that Bolden does not hold onto the ball as long as guys like Clark and Morrelli did. Still, it's a feather in their caps. I do, however, want to see better run blocking from this group. They still struggle getting to the second level at times.
Less of Chaz Powell at WR and more of Justin Brown. I thought they move Powell to defense anyway?
Bolden looks good so far in most areas, but I think he needs to learn how to scramble out of the pocket and buy some time for the receivers. He has quick feet and throws well on the run. This will only make him more dangerous as his throwing time will begin to decrease in the Big Ten.
More quick slant plays to Moye-Zug-Brackett. The thing that makes this work is Bolden's quick release. Cant be stopped in man coverage.
Was last week a coming out party for DE Pete Massarro? Look for him to be on the field more this week.

I dont think Temple is good enough to beat Penn State but its good to see them progressing and becomming more of a force at the D-1A level.

No Sacks

2010-09-24T14:12:00.002-04:00

Impressive stat: Penn State is the only team in the entire country that has not allowed a sack this year.

Its Temple... I got nothin'

2010-09-24T12:40:00.002-04:00

I'm hoping this is the game Royster breaks out of whatever physical, mental, and emotional slump he's in and returns to form. Otherwise I think we have a situation on our hands. Hammering out our running game and run blocking would give me a lot of confidence heading in to Iowa for the Big Ten opener. As an aside, one of the project managers for a subcontractor on our job went to Nebraska. My hatred for Nebraska has now been refreshed.

Temple

2010-09-24T10:05:00.003-04:00

I think Temple is coming into this game confident they have a good shot to win it. Temple is MUCH better than they have been. That's because they have always been lousy. Now they are finally decent. While I do think they have a shot to win this game, I just don't think they match up very well against Penn State.

Temple's strength is their running back. And traditionally, as long as your name is not Trent Richardson, Penn State is pretty stout at defending the run. So I think Temple will have a hard time putting points on the board.

But I do think Temple will come in with a lot of energy and a lot of confidence. If the ball bounces their way a few times, you never know what could happen. Their head coach, offensive and defensive coordinators all played for Joe. Let's face it, Joe can be very predictable, so that is something to worry about. Although this year so far, Penn State has not been its old predictable self (Starting a true frosh QB, playcalling against Alabama). So you never know.

I'm excited to see a good test for the team. We should learn a lot about them tomorrow. Penn State needs to establish a ground game in this one. I say they win, but not a blowout.

A look back, a look forward

2010-09-17T17:09:00.003-04:00

As Pete stated, the loss wasn't a huge surprise. The surprise was the terrible defensive play. Penn State was clearly outmatched in almost every area on defense. The receivers were too fast and big, the running back was too powerful, the offensive line too stout. Where is the pass rush? Everyone says that Crawford is going to be a great pro prospect, but he's got nothing. Sure he's fast and strong and big, but he isn't a football player. He doesn't have the instincts and moves that we are accustomed to out of the defensive end position. Sean Stanley has really impressed me in this area. He's got great quickness, chases plays down, tackles well....he's just a little small, but in a year or two he is going to be some kind of player. Stephon Morris and Lynn played relatively well, and I thought Lynn was the best tackler on the defense. He wouldn't be a bad solution to the safety problem (Sukay...ugh). If Derrick Thomas can progress as a corner, I think this can happen. Thomas is another physical guy that I like (had a great tackle on kickoff against YSU) and expect will get more playing time as he gets more experience (he's a RS FR).

I also agree that the playcalling was actually pretty good and that the offense executed well. They just shot themselves in the foot every time they had a chance. They really utilized their speed well by getting Devon Smith the ball in space. I hope they continue to do that since it will create openings for Bolden to throw some deep balls off of that motion. Justin Brown and Shawney Kersey need to play more. We saw Kersey's speed, and Brown looks like he could be a Bryant Johnson type of guy. For all the ripping that has been done on Royster, he has shown more power this year and actually ran over Hightower, Alabama's best linebacker. My only beef with him is that he seems very selfish and refuses to take a leadership stance. I still like what I see out of Green, not only as a running back but as a leader. Redd is a freak. We knew he was fast, but he has shown that he can be a physical runner against one of the best defenses in the country. All in all it was painful to watch (I actually pulled off the record-the-game-watch-it-later-without-knowing-what-happened thing) but we saw flashes of what this team can do, and I still believe that next year Penn State will turn the tables on an Alabama team that will be in a similar situation to where Penn State is right now.

Kent State supposedly leads the FBS in run defense thanks to a -65 yard Oscar nominated performance by Murray State. What horse-hockey. There is no motivation quite as powerful as getting humiliated on national television. I expect Penn State to come out and murder Kent State. They have a lot to prove with their run game, and they won't be able to compete in the Big Ten if they do not improve. What the hell is going on with this anyway? Why is it so hard for a team like Penn State to recruit some monster offensive linemen? Are they all just going to Wisconsin or something? Ugh. I'll never take a solid line for granted again. Khairi Fortt will probably see some legit playing time tomorrow. Let's see what the other Connecticut stud can do.

Hey buddy, I'll give you a Golden Flash

Further Alabama Analysis

2010-09-16T14:57:00.003-04:00

I think Drew hit most of the big issues. The tackling was by far the worst of the issues, with the red zone turnovers not far behind, and yes, Fera really struggled punting the ball. Some other thoughts:

-Offensive Line needs to do a better job. There was minimal room to run, and the first interception was completely on the OL. Blitzers went straight through to Bolden untouched, hitting him just when he was releasing the ball.

-Pass rush is non-existent. They need to pressure the quarterback but have not been able to. Crawford has done nothing this year, and the linebackers haven't done much either in terms of rushing the passer. This is the main reason PSU has yet to force a turnover this season.

- I was surprised at how upset a lot of PSU fans were after this game. Like I said before, I would have been absolutely shocked if Penn State won. It was a real longshot, but there were some positives to take away from the game for sure. I was very impressed/surprised with how well Penn State moved the ball on Alabama. I was really encouraged with the playcalling. I thought Galen Hall did a great job of mixing things up. They weren't nearly as conservative and predictable as I had expected, and they had a lot of success moving the ball. They just always turned it over in the red zone. Bolden is going to be very good.

-Silas Red has been the Lion's most impressive running back so far this season. He needs to be on the field more.

-Nick Sukay looks like he has no idea what he's doing out there. He started all last year and both games this year and has yet to do a single thing to show me why he deserves to be on the field. They have to have someone better than this kid. To tell you the truth, I can't figure out what it is that Penn State is trying to get out of the safety position for the past 10 years. Guys like Guman, Sukay, Mayer, Scirotto... These guys are not very fast or athletic. I think Hodges should have been left at safety, but they never seem to put top athletes at safety. They just throw them all at linebacker and have them sit the bench. Doesn't make sense to me.

-Now that Penn State's poor tackling was exposed, I expect them to fix that problem at practice this week, and I think they will improve in that area.

-Graham Zug has got to make that catch. Period.

-Linebackers are too tentative and need to play more aggressive. On Richardson's TD run, Colasanti had a clear shot at him. Instead of going after him and blowing him up, he sat back and let Richardson carry him into the end zone. Hopefully the coaches fix this as well.

- The loss of Hodges hurts, but at least it's at a potition that Penn State has some depth... even though you couldn't really tell that on Saturday.

Ranty Rant

2010-09-15T20:44:00.002-04:00

I thought a few days would calm me down about the game but after re-hashing the game with Travis "T-Bone" Merritts, my anger is renewed. I can't be mad at the boys, most of them anyways. They played hard and despite what the scoreboard showed, really hung with a high-caliber team. So here, in no particular order are things that pissed me off about the game.

1) The Punter. Who is this kid? He has no business playing for Penn State. He gave Alabama great field position several times when the game was still possibly in reach for PSU.

2) The tackling was horrendous. Some of this I will accredit to PSU because tackles were missed on several players. Not just Trent Richardson, who is a freakin beast and would break the attempted tackles of Ray Nitcshke.

3) Turnovers in the red zone. Nuff said.

4) The field goal call in the fourth quarter. Excuse my language but what kind of vagina bullshit call is that? A shutout still counts the same in the loss column as a loss where you scored 3. And that's not me saying this now, four days later. A time stamped text message can prove I instantly hated this decision. Further proving my point, why kick the field goal then try the onside kick? Terrible.

5) The SEC will remain the conference of choice even though they are soft this year and the Big Ten, having some its strongest teams in years, will not garner respect because in the only regular season marquee match up, Penn State gets whipped by Alabama. No one can challenge Alabama in the SEC this year since it looks like the normal powerhouses of Florida, Georgia, and LSU are soft. They will most likely stay number 1 all year and a one loss team out of the Big Ten will get shafted again.

One thing I am not mad about, the hustle on the fumble play by Derek Moye, Brett Bracket, and Robert Bolden. Not sure how I feel about the ref's call but if they punch that in the game is out of our hands a lot earlier.

Such a thing as a moral victory?

2010-09-11T11:06:00.002-04:00

Penn State had so many question marks heading into this season, and unfortunately after playing Youngstown State, it's hard to have a lot of those questions answered. This week will prove different. Alabama is a solid team all around with no glaring weaknesses, and unlike Hannibal, Saban and the Tide aren't overlooking anything. Their offense is loaded with talent at WR and RB, they have a physical line that has three new starters, and a quarterback that doesn't turn the ball over. Their defense has talent, but there are a lot of new starters and they are without their best player in Marcell Dareus. Can Penn State's offensive line give Bolden time to throw and create holes for the Penn State backs?

Penn State has some firepower of their own on offense. Bolden didn't look like a freshman. He checked down, made accurate throws, didn't get happy feet, and really didn't make any bad decisions. If he is given some protection, I think he can succeed tonight. The offensive line is the huge question. They looked terrible in run blocking last week, but didn't give up a sack and really didn't even have any penetration on passing downs. For Penn State to have a chance they need a running game. The backs looked good against Youngstown and rumors have it that we will see two tailbacks in the same backfield tonight. Kevin Newsome will get in the game as well, possibly in the game at the same time as Bolden. Go for it. Penn State can do a lot of offense, and if the line can play well they have a great shot to win this game.

Penn State's defense is the best 'Bama will play all year and not a lot of people know that. The linebackers are fast, physical, and not in short supply. The secondary is better than we have seen in years. Great speed, excellent tacklers, and some swagger. The only question will be the pass rush which was non-existent last weekend, but look to see more blitzes with guys like Hodges and Stupar to make McElroy throw the ball early.

I have to go with Alabama in this game, but if the offensive line shows up, Penn State could shock the world. If I see another clip of the 1979 Sugar Bowl I'm going to murder someone.

Let's go

Scipio and the Elephants

2010-09-10T19:14:00.002-04:00

Gentlemen let me go Beano Cooke on you for a minute: A long time ago, as the Roman empire was starting to slide, a great Carthaginian general by the name of Hannibal got a little uppity and figured he could unseat the great nation of Rome. A superior tactician of warfare, he used all the resources of his homeland of Africa to defeat the Romans on their home turf. Knowing he didn't have the naval power to sail directly to Italy, he sailed north to modern day France, and led a long march through the winter months over the treacherous alps with his most prized instrument of warfare, elephants. From there, his stampeding calvary made short work of all the Northern Armies of Rome. Many people don't know this but Hannibal occupied much of Italy for several years. All the while avoiding major conflict with his tactical equal, Scipio. Scipio knew he could not defeat Hannibal's elephants, so mostly he ran and hid. These elephants were unstoppable. They crushed the mighty Romans to dust. Until one day, Scipio realized how foolish he had been to stand in front of them, because the elephants only ran straight ahead. With the simple notion of giving the mighty pachyderms an alley to run through, he had neutralized Hannibal's greatest threat. Victory for the Romans soon followed. The moral of the story, sometimes one simple adjustment can topple elephants.

The task is large for our boys in blue. There is no doubt this Alabama team has far more experience, superior firepower, maybe the smartest, albeit sleaziest, coach in college football, and a raucous home crowd behind them. But the South lost the war for a reason. If you've ever sat down with me for more than ten seconds you know my hatred for the SEC. Their new found sponsored home at ESPN does little to calm this hatred. Its the same story from the media every time Penn State takes on an SEC foe: "The SEC has too much speed, too much talent, and Penn State is playing dinosaur football." The story ends with the opposing coach and players regretting underestimating the speed and physicality from the team with plain uniforms and black cleats. So to quote the great Lou Holtz: "[Pete], You couldn't pick this game right if you predicted it on Sunday." Penn State wins and shocks the world.

The Big One

2010-09-10T15:57:00.001-04:00

I can’t remember the last time I’ve gone into a game thinking Penn State’s chances are as slim as they are tomorrow night against Alabama. Even during the 3-9 seasons, they went into every game with a decent shot. But I don’t see them pulling this one out.
It’s not because Alabama is all that great. Nor is it because Penn State is all that bad. It’s just that Penn State is too inexperienced. As I said in a previous post, I think this would be a much better game if it were played at the end of the season when Penn State’s offensive line, linebackers and quarterback had some games under their belts. Unfortunately, it’s being played during Week 2, and I just don’t think the Lions have much of a shot. I don’t necessarily think it will be a blowout, but I would be absolutely shocked if Penn State won the game.
It’s become clear to me that the team put a lot of time and focus on improving their special teams during the preseason. It showed in game one. I like their logic behind this approach…. The coaches knew they would have an inexperienced QB this season, regardless of who won the battle. As a result, they want to try to avoid being in a position where they have to ask their quarterback to do a whole lot. They don’t want to ask too much of him. So they are hoping the defense can keep opponents down, and they can maybe sneak in a score on defense or special teams. That way there is not as much pressure on the offense to put up points.
I think that Penn State’s only shot this weekend is if they do indeed get a non-offensive touchdown at some point in the game. If they can hold Alabama to field goals instead of touchdowns, and throw in a special teams or defensive score, they might be able to pull it out. But I really don’t see Bolden leading the offense on long sustained drives down the field. I absolutely agree with Jason, they NEED TO USE THEIR WEAPONS. Throw in some trick plays. Utilize speedsters like Silas Redd and Devon Smith. Run a double reverse or something like that. It’s their best chance to score offensively. If the offensive line couldn’t run block against Youngstown State, they won’t be able to against Alabama.
I don’t expect the coaches to allow Bolden to do a whole lot. In just his second game, on the road, in a hostile environment, I think they will try to keep things pretty simple and limited for him. I’m sure they are telling him his main job is to not turn the ball over. Unfortunately, I think he will need to do more than not turn the ball over in order for Penn State to win. But I could be wrong, I didn’t think the coaching staff would start a true freshman in the first place, and they did. So maybe they will let the kid air it out. Why not? They’ve got nothing to lose.

Stomping the Elephant

2010-09-09T17:33:00.004-04:00

You cant take much from the Youngstown State game other than it was good to see the blue and white back on the field again. However, there are a few things I’m burning on from week 1…

Devon Smith as the slot receiver? I know the dude can fly but he is a small target and he weights as much as my golf bag. Let’s use our height advantage at WR.
Gerald Hodges needs to be on the field more. When in the game, #6 was all over the ball.
Only one touch for Curtis Dukes?
Robert Bolden is legit! Yes, it was only one game and, yes, it was Youngstown State. But you gotta give it to the kid…he doesn’t play like an 18-year-old rook. He has poise in the pocket, throws a strong ball with some touch when needed (8-9 on 3rd down), and it looks like he sees the field well (checked off and hit Brackett for a TD pass?). I’m not anointing him with a golden crown just yet, but you have to admit, it’s exciting to finally see a QB who might eventually bring some hardware to State College.

As for the elephant in the room…I think this game will be better than many people are expecting and critics/analysts are anticipating. As the weekend approaches, I am optimistic but skeptical. Here are my keys to the game for PSU to have a chance heading into the 4th quarter…

Win the giveaway/takeaway battle. A PSU INT that could shorten the field for the offense and set up a TD could be big, especially in the 2nd half. On the contrary, the offense, and Bolden, MUST protect the ball.
The running game must eclipse 100-yds collectively. WE NEED TO USE OUR WEAPONS. Newsome in the backfield? End-around to Devon Smith? Bolden with some QB-reads? Curtis Dukes slamming it down the middle? If we can’t run, we put too much pressure on a young QB to make plays. This might be the toughest task for the offense but you know the coaches have a few tricks in the bag for this one. Remember, Alabama lost something like 8 starters on defense and will be without its top D-Lineman. I don’t know why that hasn’t been discussed more extensively.
Limit big plays. There is a part of me that thinks McElroy and Julio Jones could have a field day with the zone coverage much like Mark Sanchez did in the 2009 Rose Bowl. If we shut down this connection, the game will be manageable. Will D’Anton Lynn shadow Jones? Will we use the nickle more?

Cant wait to get some answers to these questions. I'll leave with this...the biggest improvements a team will make are between week 1 and week 2. Lets hope this holds true Saturday night.

Early Season Predictions

2010-08-28T14:44:00.002-04:00

Thank God its time for football again. Blame it on advances in technology and this new generation needing more and more stimulus if you like, but I cannot survive on baseball alone. I am so effing bored. Football time gentlemen, football time.

The fears for this season have been well stated and fairly obvious. I especially enjoyed Jason's quote regarding our quarterback situation. The second I hear the words "two quarterback system" come out of any coaches mouth I am completely packing it in for the season. This has never worked beyond a few gimmick plays for any team ever. Save for maybe Florida in which they used Tebow as the equivalent of William The Refrigerator Perry. And people can talk all they like about how with our running game we won't need our QB to do all that much but I think we know without the threat of the pass nothing works. The offense becomes very predictable and even the defense plays very tentative because they know their offense can't put points back on the board should they get burned.

I'll say again what I've always said, success for Penn State starts at the offensive line. We could have the most talented backfield in the country but without solid blocking we have nothing. Although this isn't one of the worst lines we've had in recent years, it isn't the best either. Overall I think we have the ingredients for a very ineffective offense.

The defense is an entirely different story. Obviously we lost a few guys but I am really excited to see Jack Crawford break out and I have extreme confidence in our safeties and corners. But again, Bradley has been known to pull the reigns and employ a "bend don't break" style defense when our offense is weak.

As far as predictions, I feel like you can count on losses to Bama, OSU, and Iowa. And Penn State teams like this in the past end up getting snakebit by a team they shouldn't lose to. Looking at our schedule I struggle to find it but I know its in there. And although my outlook on the season is pretty dismal, its still way better than watching the damn Pirates.

Season Outlook

2010-08-26T15:58:00.000-04:00

My outlook for this season is very similar to Rudy’s. I think we can all agree it’s going to be a rebuilding year, and another top 10 finish is extremely unlikely. But, just like Rudy, it is for that very reason that I’m particularly excited for and intrigued by this year’s team. It’s been a while since the Lions have had so many question marks and so many new players seeing action for the first time. I’m very much looking forward to seeing how these guys perform.

I agree with you guys that at this time, 2011 looks like it could be a good year for Penn State. But I’m always hesitant to look ahead like that with any certainty. You never really know what could happen from now until then, and the picture isn’t really that clear. There is no question that someone needs to step up at quarterback in order for the team to succeed.

Speaking of which, there has been a lot of buzz about Bolden so far this pre-season. Before we get too crazy, let’s keep a few things in mind: First, it’s extremely unlikely that he is the starting quarterback against Youngstown State on opening day. I’ve heard a lot of rumors that he will be, but I won’t believe that until I actually see it. Jason, you mentioned Zach Mills as being a freshman starter… but he was a redshirt freshman, not a true freshman, and there is a HUGE difference. Having a full year under your belt can make a world of difference, just learning the playbook and the speed of the game, not to mention adjusting to college life. Keep in mind, Bolden just graduated from high school. He didn’t enroll early last spring like many recruits do these days, although he did arrive in State College right after high school let out, so he has been around all summer. Lets also not forget that it took an injury to Matt Sennecca (who sucked) for Mills to even be entered into the starting line-up. So I personally do buy into the “Joe won’t start a freshman QB” belief, because it’s true. And while Joe has taken a lot of heat, and rightfully so, for benching younger more talented players (LaVar Arrington) in favor of older less talented veterans that have put their time in, I am with him when it comes to QB’s. I don’t think you can really expect much out of a true freshman quarterback, and I would be very hesitant to put a guy in there too soon. In my opinion, Bolden will be the starter by the end of this season. But I’ll be shocked if he’s the guy from day one. If he is, that is the indicator that Joe is either not making any decisions for the team any more, or he’s just completely out of it.

Second thing to keep in mind is even if Bolden is a legitimate star, he’s certainly going to have some ups and downs as a freshman. NOBODY is a stud from day one. Not Peyton Manning, not Drew Brees, nobody. So if he is named the starter, be excited that they have found a young talent for the next few years, just don’t expect him to be the savior right away.

I think this is a very talented yet inexperienced team, so they will struggle early. By the end of the year, I think they will be very competitive. I think it’s a shame the game against Alabama is the second week of the season, because the Lions simply will not be ready for the Crimson Tide, and I don’t expect a close game. Whoever the quarterback is, he will not be prepared to play at night in Tuscaloosa against the #1 team and defending national champions in just his second career start. The offensive line and defense, while talented, will only have played one game together as a unit at that point, and that is not sufficient time to gel. It could be ugly.

I think it will be a very fun season to follow Penn State football. I think the team will show a lot of promise for the future, but in terms of record, I see them losing at least four games this year, probably more. For the first time in a while, the Big Ten is actually looking pretty good this year, with OSU, Iowa and Wisconsin all potential top 10 teams.

It's good to be back...

Training for the 2011 National Championship

2010-08-25T22:37:00.003-04:00

This year's team isn't being given a chance. Some years you just aren't going to be as good, and expectations are lower....nothing is wrong with that.

For the first time ever, a team is playing against three BCS bowl winners from the previous season....that's Penn State...and all three of those games are on the road.

The Lions lost all three starting linebackers, all of whom were drafted and are playing in the NFL preseason.

The team lost the Big Ten offensive and defensive player of the year.

Some may look at this situation with disgust, knowing that this team has no shot at a National Championship, but sometimes these are the seasons I look forward to the most. Knocking off any one of Alabama, Iowa, or Ohio State would make the season memorable. Evan Royster will likely become the all-time leading rusher in Penn State history. JoePa will reach 400 victories. True freshmen will turn heads and gain valuable game experience heading into the majestic 2011 season. That's when we make our run. 2011. All the pieces are in place....and there has been a trend.

Every three years, Penn State makes a push. 1999 - They started 9-0 and were ranked 2nd in the nation before....well...you know. 2002 - They reemerge as a power after annihilating #7 Nebraska behind Larry Johnson and Zack Mills and finish the regular season in the top 10. 2005 - They once again reemberge from the worst stretch of JoePa's career and finish the season ranked #3. 2008 - After 2 so-so seasons of Anthony Morelli, the Lions fall one game short of a National Championship birth and reach the Rose Bowl. 2011 - Oh mama.

But it's 2010...and I'm still excited. We will witness Robert Bolden get his foot in the door, Silas Redd run by a defense, Curtis Dukes flatten a few dudes, Michael Mauti emerge as the next great LB along with Gerald Hodges, Jack Crawford absolutely dominate, and the secondary in man coverage. The team has more talent than last year...they just aren't as good......yet. Each position has so much potential, it just isn't fully matured. This team will be a force at the end of the season. Beating 'Bama will be incredibly difficult, but Ohio State will be a very tight game. They will continue to evolve all the way into 2011 when they will make their run. And it will be glorious.

A Giant Question Mark

2010-08-19T22:48:00.008-04:00

Toward the end of the 2009 season I prophesized that the 2010 PSU season would be a rebuilding phase with 2011 being the year PSU makes some noise. My thoughts on that have not really changed, but…I think this year's team could very easily surprise some people if all cylinders begin to click before they head to Iowa. Despite what you will hear from the College Football “experts”, I think the schedule is favorable for a 9-3 season because, when you break it down, the big 3 away dates (Alabama-Iowa-Ohio State) are really the only questionable games. The other 9 should be manageable.

The problem with this team is that nobody, including the coaching staff, really knows what they have at several positions. We know there is loads of young talent on this team, but the question is; who will emerge as the next big time player(s)? For me, these are the biggest question marks as the season approaches:

Quarterback(s) – I believe in the idea that “if you have 2 Quarterbacks, you don’t have 1.” I think we need to find one guy who will be under center for the next 3-4 years and let him develop (ala Terelle Pryor). Remember, in terms of experience, we really have 4 Frosh QBs. Don’t buy into the “Joe wont start a Frosh QB” idea and if you do, re-read my previous statement (somewhere Zack Mills is laughing!) It seems to be evident that Jones will redshirt; I don’t think Newsome is the guy that can lead a drive down the field late in a game; and McGloin, well…he's probably the leader of study table! Reports out of camp are that Robert Bolden is legit and has the tools to be the guy. Frankly, at this point, I dont have a clue to who should be the starter. Should be interesting to see who is the first one off the bus for the YSU game.
Linebackers – This might be the biggest question mark…who will be the starting LBs? No question there is talent in this group, but mostly young and inexperienced. My guess is that 5 or 6 guys will shuffle in and out before the coaches settle on a starting unit as conference play begins. At some point this season, the next stud(s) at LBU will emerge…just not sure who it will be!
Offensive Line- We do return several guys with experience but it seems that the coaches have shuffled them around to different spots. With a young QB, this group needs to find its identity soon or opposing Big Ten defenses will be owning real estate in our backfield.
Tight Ends - I think the TE position was one aspect of the offense that went underappreciated last year and could potentially be the achilles heel this year. The combination of Shuler and Quarless were one of the few constants last season and quite often bailed Clark out of trouble. The departure of AQ10 and MS82 doesn’t bode well for an offensive line and QB that are considered green. The question now becomes is there anybody out there that has the skills/talent to fill either set of shoes?
I SPY (Preseason Edition): WR Justin Brown - with the loss of Curtis Drake, the offense will be looking for another one of those “slash” guys to throw into the third receiver spot. Keep an eye out for Justin Brown as the slot receiver who may run some seam routes and create openings across the middle much like Quarless did last season. He is a big frame that seems to run well and could be a good complement to Moye and Zug as well as a rookie QB. I think he has a high upside and is set for a break-out season.

Breaking in the New Cleats

2010-08-10T20:48:00.005-04:00

Big Ten expansion, quarterback competitions, and Terrelle Pryor's second consecutive selection as the Big Ten preseason player of the year can only mean one thing. Football season is near, and there is plenty to discuss and even more to hate on. I must admit my performance and posts were consistent early last year to start the season, but a faulty laptop held me hostage from posting from my man-chair, hence the fewer posts in the latter part of the season. Fortunately for us, and the PSFS blog followers, I'm back with fresh legs for 2010 with a recent purchase of a snazzy ultra-portable laptop.

A couple thoughts to kick things off, hopefully this gets the ball rolling for '10....

Big Ten Expansion - safe to say its been a long time comin', however, I get the feeling the damage has not fully been done. I still believe a fourteen team conference is likely, regardless of the fact that Indy has been chosen for the 2011 championship game. I'm thinking along the lines of Pitt and Rutgers.
Bye-Bye-Bye - thankfully Penn State will be getting a bye week this year, which pushes the season later into November and ending it only about 13 weeks prior to the remaining five BCS conferences (See "The 2,032,746 reasons why BigTen expansion was necessary").
Quarterback Competition - its looking as if we're going to play the QB guessing game for another 1 to 2 years, let's just hope we don't leave the wrong guy in too long (See "Anthony Morrelli's Career").
Big House Expansion - Michigan Stadium is once again the official "big house" with their recent stadium expansion. How many more 1-conference-win seasons can D-Rod afford until the unnecessary red sweatband gets the axe?
Roll-Tide - September 11 has been circled/highlighted/saved to your MS Outlook work calendar for months now. This game intrigues me and I honestly haven't the slightest prediction. My biases lead me to believe it will be a good game, but it's hard to imagine this offense will produce with a new QB in a hostile environment against the reigning champ (See "2008 Penn State offense @ Ohio State"). Can the new trio of LB's contain Ingram? Again, letting my biases getting to me here, but I think putting points on the board will be a bigger issue than keeping them off the board.
Supply & Demand - Much hoopla has been created over the recent ticket hikes effective for the 2011 season. Gonna stick with my guns on this one. If the people don't like it, don't buy 'em. Fact of the matter is tickets have been under-priced for years, and it only took them until now to make the adjustment (See "Any NFL Team's Season Ticket Prices"). Either sack up and drop the cash, or sit down and release the footrest on your recliner.
Players to Watch - I'm looking forward to see how DM6 responds to an outstanding 2009 campaign. Will the 6'5 WR continue to deliver with an inexperienced QB at the helm? Keeping the deep-threat in the back of opponents' minds will be key to getting ER22 some running room behind a relatively fresh looking o-line.

Blue White Recap

2010-04-27T13:28:00.001-04:00

I wasn’t able to attend this year’s Blue White Game. Luckily it was televised by ESPN 2 with Herbstreit, Millen, Musberger and Desmond Howard calling the game, which was pretty sweet for a spring scrimmage. The game was far from promising, with the obvious concerns being 1. Quarterback and 2. Offensive Line.

Kevin Newsome came to Penn State as a highly recruited dual-threat quarterback. In his limited time last year, he looked very raw and displayed an incredibly awkward throwing motion. I was hoping that would be fixed in time for the Blue White game, but it clearly wasn’t. This dude really looks goofy out there. Albright texted me that he’s shocked every time Newsome drops back without falling over his own two feet. His throwing motion is kind of like Michael Robinson’s but far more awkward. And most of his passes were not within 20 feet of any receiver. He showed decent arm strength, but no accuracy whatsoever. He doesn’t seemed poised or comfortable out there at all. He can run with the best of them, but he’s not a quarterback, and he’s not the answer.

McGloin looked much more comfortable and poised running the offense. There is no denying that this 5’11” former walk-on from Scranton lacks the athletic ability that Newsome possesses, but he’s a much safer bet at quarterback. Anyone who has been following Penn State football for a decent amount of time can already tell you what is going to happen. McGloin will be the opening day starter. Newsome will come in occasionally for a series and do a lot of QB running plays. Like Rudy said, it will be similar to the Thompson/Casey duo. The problem is Thompson was better than McGloin and Casey was better than Newsome.

Yes Paul Jones was the most impressive quarterback out there on Saturday. But does anyone honestly believe Joe Paterno would start a true freshman quarterback? There is no chance. If that happens, you will have the definitive answer to the often asked question of how much coaching does Joe actually do these days? If there is a true freshman starting quarterback at Penn State, you will know that Paterno had nothing to do with that decision.

Jones did look very good out there, but don’t get too excited yet. Keep in mind he was not facing any blitzing, and he’s still only 18 years old. Don’t expect too much from him early on. I think they will find ways to give him some snaps early, and his playing time could increase by the end of the season, especially if Penn State loses a few games. But anyone thinking that he will start from day one needs to get that out of their head.

Once again the offensive line looked very shaky. Penn State really struggles with preparing new starters on the offensive line. The line doesn’t become good until the seniors have about 2 games left. Then they graduate and the line stinks again. This team will be strong on defense once again. Even with the quarterback concerns, they could be a very good team if they had a good offensive line. I’m just not so sure they will. They have all the other pieces of the puzzle. Loaded with talent at the skills positions. Very deep at running back. Some very promising wide receivers. And a strong defense. But they won’t be able to run the ball if the offensive line struggles. We know they won’t be a very good passing team, so a strong running game is crucial. If the line can develop by the start of the season, that will open up a lot of options for the offense. Royster can have a big year, Newsome can run the ball some, and the play action pass would be far more effective. All the Lions would need from McGloin would be to have him be a Trent Dilfer type quarterback that doesn’t turn the ball over and manages the game well. So, along with QB, offensive line is going to be a big determining factor of the success of the team this year.

Gerald Hodges just looks like a beast out there in his uniform.

Curtis Dukes looks really good as well. Great size. Showed good speed and vision. I think he will be good.

I will be interested to see who steps up at the tight end position this season.

Where was D’anton Lynn? Did he play?

Blue-White Game

2010-04-21T11:52:00.003-04:00

As Saturday approaches, we are faced with a very interesting and one of the most important spring games in recent memory. A few years ago, the QB situation was up in the air, but the two candidates (Clark and Devlin) were well established and had been with the team for a few years. Now we enter with a true freshman, and two true sophomores. Newsome displayed some of his terrific athleticism last year, but also his inexperience as he was prone to put the ball on the ground and tended to be pretty inaccurate with the football. Word on the street is that McGloin, the walk-on, is outplaying Newsome and Jones and is the most polished passer of the group and currently has more backing from his teammates than the other QB's. I am all for the best quarterback playing, but I also look at this year as a rebuilding year. This is a young team, and there will be some games that are lost because of the inexperience of the team. In the future, however, McGloin is not the answer. I would accept a two-QB system a la Rashard Casey and Kevin Thompson, but I think having McGloin start would simply be a temporary solution, and it would hurt the team for 2011. Newsome needs to get game experience even if he isn't the best QB this year. I can't stress this enough.

The running game on the other hand looks stellar. Royster has proven himself over the years and might not even participate in the game. Green has improved and seems to play his best football in bowl games. If he can become a better runner between the tackles, watch out. Silas Redd and Curtis Dukes are the guys to watch though. Thunder and lightning, and the future of this ground game. Reports indicate that Redd is ready to go and most likely will not be redshirted this fall.

The wide receiver position is another one in good hands, and a few new faces will bring even more talent to the most stacked position for the Lions. Brandon Moseby-Felder and Shawney Kersey who redshirted last year are two of the fastest players on the team and have really impressed this spring. Guys like Drake, Smith, and Brown are sophomores with experience and have pushed Chaz Powell to the defensive side of the ball. Powell is a big dude and could thrive on the defensive side of the ball. You need him on the field and I think that this move is a good one.

The secondary will be something I take a close look at as well. They could be a terrific unit with the return of pretty much everyone (Wallace should be easily replaced). This years squad is very aggressive and should produce more turnovers with their play. We saw what Stephon Morris could do in coverage, and now Derrick Thomas will join him on the field. He is reportedly a bigger version of Morris, but due to the fact that he started school in the summer and not winter, he redshirted. This could be a dominating force.

Linebacker and defensive line got decimated by departures, but these are the positions that Penn State has thrived off of, and I expect them to be solid. Defensive end should be at an elite level, and Devon Still might be able to make the kind of impact that Odrick has the past few years.

The offensive line is a giant mess, and I have no idea who will be starting where come September, but for now, Wisniewski has been moved back to guard and Doug Klopacz has taken over at center. I think the coaches were hoping one of the young guys like Shrive and Howle would be able to push for a starting position, but they look to be a year away from that. There is still a lot of talent on this line, but with the way JoePa has been ripping on them, it appears they just aren't there right now. The fact that he does tear into them on a regular basis means he believes they can be good.

Should be an interesting game, and I'm thankful that this year I don't have to pay some jabroni $10 to watch it in shitty resolution on my computer and I can enjoy it on my 46" Sony Bravia instead. Wish I could be there, but I've got a 10k to run tomorrow and a sister to beat or God have mercy on my soul. I remember back in the day when I was in college, I'd go to these games mildly hammered and start cheering for the White team hardcore and boo when the Blue team was doing well. People thought I was weird.

Some News and Notes from Spring Practice

2010-04-10T23:15:00.003-04:00

Since the activity of the blog has been rather quite of late, I thought I would share some of the news and notes that I have heard/seen coming out of State College since the start of Spring Practice. Maybe you have heard, maybe you have not. Either way, enjoy…

Nick Sukay has switched jersey numbers from #18 to the highly coveted #1 jersey which is interesting since this number has generally been reserved for a senior cornerback (ala Justin King, AJ Wallace, Anwar Phillips).
Ironically, Khairi Fortt is wearing #11. Is this an omen, and, will he start in 2010?
Chaz Powell has been moved from WR to DB. I was thinking this might happen with the abundance of talent at WR and Powell’s lackluster 2009 campaign. I think he could provide a little more depth at Safety.
Stefen Wisniewski is working at both Center and Guard spots. Remember all the mishandled snaps in the Outback Bowl? Are the coaches not happy with his progression?
Drew Astorino is recovering for shoulder surgery and will miss all of spring practice. Too bad because he needed spring ball to become more familiar with the strong safety position.
Joe says that Matt McGloin has a shot at winning the starting QB job…………REALLY?
The Blue-White game will be televised on ESPN2 and is the first Big Ten spring game to be televised nationally.
Starting punter candidate Anthony Fera was hit with an underage drinking citation!

NFL Draft Notes

2010-02-12T21:00:00.002-05:00

With the NFL draft slowly approaching the "experts" come out with drafts of Mock Drafts to tickle our fancy or maybe to just piss me off. Todd McShay (who I feel like we can all agree is a buffoon who would make a better doorstop than a sports analyst) and many others have both Odrick and Bowman much lower than I would expect because of "off the field issues". This is what bothers me about these idiots. A human being with common sense would see that the infractions that Odrick and Bowman committed, while not trivial, were really nothing so great in magnitude as to worry an NFL team. The New England Patriots drafted Brandon Merriweather (reallllly should have taken Poz!) with their first round pick....the same Brandon Merriweather who took part in the infamous UMiami-FIU slugfest where he did some head-stomping. Navarro Bowman is the kind of guy that I would have babysit for me, and Jared Odrick may have beat the piss out of someone, but whatever. Is that so wrong? Are these guys going to pull a Plaxico Burress and shoot themselves in the leg? NO! But McShay wants to prove to everyone that he knows how to read, and pretend that he knows what he's saying. Bowman is the best outside linebacker in the draft, and if he isn't taken in the first round, it won't be because of his character or any other "issues". Odrick is also a sure thing in the first round. He was not a flashy player, but the fact that the Big Ten coaches named him the defensive player of the year really speaks volumes about how they had to gameplan against him. He demanded double teams and was very effective both against the run and the pass. There has been talk that Minnesota would like to grab him, and the Patriots would also be a likely candidate to take him in the first round.

As for other Penn Staters in the draft, Sean Lee will go anywhere from the second to the fifth round with a lot depending on his performance at the combine. Josh Hull might even get drafted, which would be a great thing to see. He is the definition of a hard worker, and although he will never be a starter in the NFL, he is a kind of guy that can play effectively on special teams for a lot of years, something that many take for granted. Some also criticized Lee for not taking part in the Senior Bowl, but with that game it seems that very few players improve their stock. Tim Tebow for example absolutely ruined his chances of getting drafted with his agonizing performance (ok....I liked it). Andrew Quarless will be an interesting pick as well. He will get drafted, but where? Tough to say at this point, but I could see him going as high as the third round, and who would have imagined this a year ago?

Daryl Clark isn't a guy I see getting drafted in the first three rounds, but there really aren't many capable quarterbacks in the draft, and QB's usually get drafted higher than they should. Some analysts said that Clark had a bad Shrine game performance, but he performed pretty well. I think he will have a career in the NFL for a few years at least. The rest of the Penn State class will most likely sign with a team, but getting drafted might not be in the cards. Jeremy Boone is one of the better punters in the class. AJ Wallace, despite his five stars as a high schooler, had a lackluster career. He's athletic, he's fast, but just not a great football player. Someone might take a chance on him in the seventh round. Lastly, Dennis Landolt. He's a good player, and will get his chance in mini-camp, but I don't see him getting drafted.

All in all there is a lot of talent from PSU in the draft, and I fully expect both Bowman and Odrick to go in the first round. And McShay will still have his stupid job, and next year will roll around and we'll have this same bitch session about his unqualified, talentless ability to analyze sports. I hope he develops an allergy to hair gel.

Mr. Wonderful

2010-02-12T09:04:00.002-05:00

For those who do not follow the fight game former Nittany Lion national champion Phil Davis scored a decision victory in his UFC debut, moving his record to 5-0. Davis notched a dominating 30-27 win from all judges over UFC veteran and former WEC light heavyweight champion Brian Stann. For those unfamiliar with scoring this means Davis won all three rounds.

Stann is a decorated Marine and an all around tough SOB. He is by no means a top 5 fighter but he has fought and beaten a who's who of mma fighters. This was a very stiff test for Davis. I am very excited at the prospect of Davis's career as he is not your traditional wrestler trying to learn the fight game. Most wrestlers in mma are stout and stiff with their movements. They rely on their ability to take their opponent down and "ground and pound" him in to submission. This is a rather boring fight to watch. Davis, on the other hand, is an extremely athletic guy who was always more comfortable on the mat then on his feet which lends itself well to the jiu-jitsu style grappling necessary in the fight game. He is also very tall and lean for his weight class which should help tremendously in his striking.

Keep an eye on your tv guides for a replay on Spike TV. Congratulations to Phil on which should be a long and promising career. You can also join his facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/#!/philmrwonderful. There is usually a link to some shady Ukranian website where you can watch the fight for free.

Recruiting

2010-02-06T00:19:00.002-05:00

National Letter of Intent Day was on Wednesday, and Penn State finished with a very good recruiting class. Most publications rank them around 10-12 nationally, and pretty much everyone has them as the top class in the Big Ten. The Big Ten as a conference was down in recruiting this year, mostly due to a very rare down-year by Ohio State. The Buckeyes have consistently recruited top 10 and often top 5 classes, but this year they were ranked around 20. Michigan had a top 25 class once again. Their recent struggles haven't seemed to hurt their recruiting.

Even though Penn State's class ended up being very good, I was not very happy with how the recruiting season ended for the Lions. They started out on fire, with a very impressive list of early commitments. They were ahead of the game from the start, getting lots of high quality commits early. A lot of people, including myself, were thinking it would finish as a top 5 class. They ended up losing two verbal committments in wide receiver Adrian Coxson and Defensive Lineman Dominique Easley, both switched to Florida, who finished with the consensus #1 class. A lot of people were hoping to land top running back recruit Marcus Lattimore from South Carolina and were dissapointed when he chose the Gamecocks over the Lions. In my opinion though, this was not that big of a loss, and it was a longshot anyway since he was from SC. With Royster, Green, and Beachum on the roster, and 4-star recruit Silas Redd coming in with this class, there was no need for another running back.

Notes from this class:

-Interesting that the top two prospects in this class were both from Connecticut. Don't see that very often.

-Quarterback was a big time need and Penn State got two great ones in Jones and Bolden. I've seen Jones play a few times. He is a physical specimen, a huge dude with a big arm, a lot like Clark. But he is far from being ready to play quarterback in college. His mechanics need a ton of work and he is very raw. Enrolling early will help him for sure. I've also seen some video of Bolden, who has much better mechanics. He has a real quick release and a strong arm. He is extremely skinny though. He definitely needs to put on some weight. He did not enroll early. Even though the quarterback position is wide open for next year, anyone who thinks that either of these two true freshman have a shot at being named the opening day starter has clearly not followed Joe Paterno for very long. It will be Newsome or McGloin or maybe even Brackett, but that doesn't mean one of these two won't win the job eventually.

-Excited to have another Norwood on the team.

-Most important observation on recruiting: Notice that Florida State had a top 5 class after Bowden retired. I think Paterno retiring will have the same effect on PSU recruiting. Not to say that he is holding them back, but when Joe Pa decides to leave, that will be the start of something new and exciting at Penn State and will attract a lot of recruits. Especially since the top two recruiters on the staff are Bradley and Johnson, and they will most likely become the head coach and defensive coordinator.

Overall I'm very happy with this class and excited to see what they can do.

NYC HOPE GALA ANNOUNCES FOOTBALL STAR LAVAR ARRINGTON AS EMCEE

2010-01-19T18:04:00.006-05:00

NEW YORK, December 2009 — The NYC Hope Gala recently announced football star and Penn State Alumnus LaVar Arrington as Master of Ceremonies. The second annual Hope Gala, taking place on January 22, 2010 at New York City’s legendary Capitale, is designed to help raise money for Penn State’s Dance Marathon, benefiting pediatric cancer.

“Penn State has been a huge part of my life and I am so glad that I can give back by helping out with this event,” said Arrington. “THON is a Penn State tradition right up there with football and the Creamery.”

During his football career at Penn State, LaVar Arrington earned several awards for his defensive skill. He was an All Big-Ten selection, a two-time first team All-American, and won the 1999 Chuck Bednarik, the Dick Butkus and the Lambert Award awards. After leaving Penn State, he played six seasons for the Washington Redskins and one season for the New York Giants.

“We are so excited for LaVar to be involved with this year’s Hope Gala,” said Overall Chair Meghan Day. “He embodies all of the qualities that the Four Diamonds Fund is based on; courage, honesty, wisdom and strength.”

The Hope Gala was created to expand philanthropic efforts beyond Penn State for one of the school’s most unifying traditions, its 46-hour no-sitting, no-sleeping Dance Marathon, more commonly known as THON. As the largest student-run philanthropy in the world, benefiting the Four Diamonds Fund at the Penn State Children’s Hospital in Hershey, PA, students have raised over $50 million for the cause since 1977 and have helped thousands of children and families in their fight against pediatric cancer. Last year alone THON raised over $6.6 million.

Tickets for the 2009 Hope Gala can be purchased for $175 at:

www.psunyc.org/store.html

For event and sponsorship information, please visit:

http://www.nychopegala.com

About the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon (THON)

The mission of the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon (THON) is to conquer pediatric cancer by providing outstanding emotional and financial support to the children, families, researchers, and staff of The Four Diamonds Fund. THON is fundraising over a year-long effort involving thousands of students and culminating in a challenging, two day, no-sitting, no-sleeping dance marathon. THON is changing the lives of students and children, reinforcing the importance of caring for one another, and inspiring the determination needed to beat cancer. THON is helping to conquer pediatric cancer through strategic investments in hospital bills, research efforts, and a new family-centered Pediatric Cancer Pavilion at the Penn State Children's Hospital. Together we will find a cure.

About the Four Diamonds Fund

The mission of The Four Diamonds Fund is to conquer childhood cancer by assisting children treated at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital and their families through superior care, comprehensive support, and innovative research. Any family with a child being treated for pediatric cancer at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital is automatically eligible for support. The Fund has helped more than 2,000 families since 1972. Approximately 100 new families receive support each year. The Fund offsets the cost of treatment that insurance does not cover, as well as expenses that may disrupt the welfare of the child, such as car repairs, rent, or household utilities. The Fund supports the medical team that cares for the children and funds pediatric cancer research through start-up grants and the Four Diamonds Pediatric Cancer Research Institute.

Looking Forward: A Few Bold Statements

2010-01-12T15:30:00.005-05:00

As we prepare for the off-season and the dead period for college football, I thought it would be interesting to look into the crystal ball and see what the future might have in store for Penn State football. Here is what I have come up with...

1. Daryll Clark will start NFL games at QB. I think an NFL team will take a chance on Clark as a mid to late-round draft pick and work to develop some of his fundamental flaws. DC17 has definitely shown he has some of the desirable traits NFL scouts look for, i.e. size, vision, arm strength, mobility, ability to throw on the run, and most of all, leadership in the huddle. Give the NFL coaches a year or two to work out the kinks in his footwork and pocket presence and he could have a shot. If Dennis Dixon can play in the NFL, Daryll Clark can too.

PS…The PSU player in the 2010 NFL draft with the highest ceiling might be Andrew Quarless.

2. Gerald Hodges and Michael Mauti will be the next star LB duo at Penn State. Like I have said before, this is the one position at PSU that reloads rather than rebuilds so we know there are some stud LB’s waiting in the shadows. We have heard about how Mauti would have competed with Josh Hull for the MLB job this year had he not gotten injured in camp and Hodges is a big and quick physical presence with a lot of expectations and a high ceiling. Frankly, I don’t know why he didn’t see more action this season with the second unit or even with the first. You could presumably throw Khairi Fortt’s name into this mix too but I am hesitant to anoint any player with a label before he even steps foot onto a college campus (Plus, he doesn’t even have an initials/jersey number abbreviation yet!). Either way, the tradition and excellence at Linebacker U continues…

3. Curtis Drake will be the next Derrick Williams. CD7 might be one of the most versatile and athletic players we have seen in a while at Penn State. He’s not as strong as D-Will and I don’t know if he is quite as fast, but he definitely has the skills to be a big time player. We know he can play WR and in the slot. With Beachum out for 2010, Drake could be in the backfield. If Newsome doesn’t pan out, Drake could even play QB. Regardless, I think the coaches must find ways to get this kid the ball, much like they did with Williams. If they get him the ball in space, he can make things happen. With a dual-threat QB in Newsome, Drake will be an essential component of the Spread HD as we move forward. I think we can run an offense similar to Oregon’s or Georgia Tech’s with all of the athletes we will have in the backfield. I’m going out on a limb here, but…could Drake be the first player in PSU history to score a TD via five different avenues (Run, Catch, Throw, Punt Return and Kick Return)? He already has the toughest one in the bag!

4. Penn State will compete for a National Title in 2011. I am already considering 2010 a rebuilding year (9-4 at best), but come 2011, things begin to heat up. A senior-laden secondary and receiving corp, a rebuilt offensive line with 2-3 years of cohesive experience, re-loaded LB’s, Beachum leading the running attack with Stephfon Green playing his typical supporting role, and Curtis Drake simply being "The Man." The biggest question mark will be the development of the QB. Will Newsome be the guy or will one of the incoming 2010 recruits win the job and, furthermore, how will he develop in 2010 and into 2011? The fact of the matter is the talent is there, the schedule is favorable (Alabama, Ohio State, Iowa, and Wisconsin at home), Guido will be spitting out new pump-up videos, and Beaver Stadium will be filled with a brand new, filthy rich, excited fan base! Start getting psyched!

5. Joe Paterno will sign another contract extension. This idea is somewhat predicated on point #4. With Penn State back in the national picture in 2011 and Joe’s health at an adequate state, I can’t see him calling it quits nor being forced out by the admins after his previously signed contract extension expires. He says he feels good, he still enjoys what he is doing, and he’s about to ink possibly the best recruiting class of his career. I agree with Pete, his longevity has nothing to do with Bobby Bowden or the record. The man just loves being around football and young people. That being said, Joe stays for another 3-4 years and squashes all controversy over who is the winningest coach in college football history as he eclipses 420 wins, a record that WILL NOT be broken. The big question is…will Joe coach till he’s 90?

6. Pitt will continue to be Penn State’s little brother! No big surprise here but until Pitt consistently begins playing games in January, they take a back seat to The State University.

FOR THE FUTURE THAT WE WAIT...

2009

2010-01-09T15:22:00.001-05:00

Thoughts on 2009:

For me, personally, 2009 was a pretty boring football season all around. We have been spoiled the past few years with some awesome college football filled with shocking upsets (App. State over Michigan!! Stanford over USC) and unbelievably dramatic games (Boise State over Oklahoma, Texas over USC, Texas Tech over Texas). Maybe it’s just me, but this year just seemed to be kind of lacking. Overall I found myself much less interested in college football this year than I typically am. Nevertheless, I still watched my share of college football, so here are my thoughts on the past year:

We all pretty much agreed heading in to this season that Penn State’s schedule was set up beautifully for the Lions in 2009. The two biggest games, Iowa and Ohio State, were both at home. The game against the Hawkeyes was a night game at Beaver Stadium, and it was the Big Ten opener, with last year’s crushing last-second defeat at Iowa fresh on the minds of all players and fans. It was a recipe for great revenge for the Lions. The current state of Michigan football made this year’s trip to the Big House not nearly as intimidating as usual. Penn State dodged the Badgers on the schedule this year, and the non-conference opponents consisted of four cream puffs once again. Heading in to the season, I heard many Penn State fans express the same feelings that I had: An undefeated regular season was well in reach, and anything less would pretty much be a disappointment. Realistically though, most people knew that 11-0 is a lot to ask for, and a 10-1 mark is not too shabby.

We all know what happened. The Lions handled all of the opponents that they should have, and lost in the only two tough games that they played. I guess this is why it was kind of a boring season. But a lot of people take those wins for granted, when taking care of business each week is not as easy as people assume. It’s easy to sleep against an inferior opponent at some point during the season (Ohio State against Purdue, Iowa against Northwestern), but PSU managed to avoid this, and that should be commended.
The efforts against Iowa and Ohio State were very poor and disappointing, especially on the offensive side of the football, where they couldn’t do a thing. The early non-conference wins were pretty sloppy and ugly, but the team hit full stride in an impressive performance in Ann Arbor. Overall, a solid season, but again, with the way the schedule was set up for them, you couldn’t help but be a little disappointed.

So sitting at 10-2 after the regular season, it really came down to the Bowl Game to determine whether or not this year was a success. Win, and they notch a solid W over a tough SEC opponent that has been one of the nation’s premiere programs over that past 10 years. Lose, and it’s a 10-3 season with 10 wins that they were expected to win and 3 losses in the only three difficult games they had all year. I would call that an unsuccessful season.

The conditions at the Capital One Bowl were clearly horrendous, so it’s hard to take a whole lot from the game. It’s pathetic that the field was in such poor condition, but that’s a whole different discussion. I thought Penn State was clearly the better team in the game. They could have put it away by finishing off some drives, but settling for field goals kept the game close when it shouldn’t’ have been. The defense played great, shutting down LSU for almost the entire game. The offense moved the ball all game long, and the performance by the offensive line was very impressive. Perhaps they were aided by the conditions, but they were much more successful than LSU’s o-line, so perhaps not. It was a good game, and a very big win for Penn State and the Big Ten. With the bowl victory, I think you have to say that 2009 was a pretty good year for Penn State. Maybe not what we had hoped for, but it could have been much worse. You can’t complain about an 11 win season.

Wrapping Up 2009

2010-01-08T12:45:00.003-05:00

I would just like to add a few points to wrap up the 2009 season...

As for the Capital One Bowl...I think it is difficult and pointless to take anything away from a bowl game. The bowl game marks the ending of one season and the beginning of the next and the only thing that matters is a win. No style points. No moral victories. That being said, Penn State did what it needed to do to cap off a good season. I think we were the better team and dominated most of the game. If we cash just one of those field goals into a touchdown, it is LSU playing late-game-spoiler rather than PSU. Most of all, I feel good for Daryll Clark. Hopefully now, his legacy will hold a little more credibility. I still think he ranks among the best of PSU QB's.

As for the National Championship...very disappointed to see Colt McCoy go down early. That really tarnished the whole game. I really felt sorry for the kid. His whole career came down to this game and to see it all wash down the drain like that must have been devastating. Hopefully, he has a successful NFL career to ease some of the pain.

I agree that Alabama should have taken a knee to end the game rather than scoring again. I thought Saban was a classy guy and did things the right way?

As for next season's Penn State-Alabama game...I dont see Penn State beating Alabama next year due to our uncertainty at QB coupled with the fact that it is the second game of the season, but I think you can make their offense one-dimensional. Defense will be a key in that game and I think Penn State will compete but we can get into all that stuff later. I view this series much like the Notre Dame series. I will give them 2010 but I am pumped for their visit to the Valley in 2011!

Note to all the Big Ten bashers out there: The Big Ten has 3 teams ranked in the Top 10 at season’s end…a season which had five undefeated teams heading into the bowl games. Additionally, each of these three teams proved to be the better team in their respective bowl game. It is clear that the Big Ten is a different brand/style of football, but can we really still call it an inferior conference?

Food for thought: Since 2005, only 11 D-IA college football teams have won 50 games. Penn State is one of them with 51 while Boise State and Texas lead with 58!

Big Ten Supremacy

2010-01-08T11:16:00.000-05:00

Oh yeah

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State was one of three Big Ten Conference teams to finish in the Top 10 of the final Associated Press and USA Today coaches' polls released today.

It was the highest total among any conference and marked only the fourth time in the past 48 years that the Big Ten has had three teams finish in the Top 10.

Penn State (11-2) ended up No. 9 in the AP poll and No. 8 in the coaches' poll, while Ohio State and Iowa were No. 5 and No. 7, respectively, in both polls.

A Few Things to Hate On

2010-01-08T00:11:00.002-05:00

1) Alabama not putting the knee down with 50 seconds left and instead scoring again....despite being up 10 and Texas not being able to stop the clock. Classless

2) Holding 4 fingers up going into the 4th quarter. Enough of this shit already. Everyone and their mother does it....so who cares? "It's the 4th quarter! OMG!" Dude, shut up. We know. That's why the ref blew his whistle and you're changing sides of the field. What really pisses me off about this is that every fan and players on BOTH teams do this....even the teams that are getting blown out. Why are you so happy it's the last quarter of the game? You are closer to your demise. Ughhhh

3) The Gatorade bath. Who cares anymore. It was cool a long time ago, but now you're just ruining clothing. I don't care what kind of laundry detergent you've got....you're being a dick.

4) Michelob Ultra commercials. For those that are unaware, these commercials show people doing outdoor activities and exercising the day after drinking their Mick Ultra, clearly marketing toward health conscious individuals. But hey....guess what? Natty Light has the same amount of calories. Get a better product or just shut up.

5) Mark Ingram's Dad. The dude is in prison for a serious criminal offense. Who gives a shit if he can watch his son play in the national championship? Maybe he shouldn't have laundered money and committed bank fraud. How about giving someone else's dad some pub....maybe one that ins't incarcerated. This reminds me of a game when Penn State was playing MSU and Jeff Smoker was the MSU quarterback. The announcers would not get off Smoker's balls about him recovering from a drug addiction. They praised him allll game long and didn't even give mention to his teammates...the ones that never got addicted to drugs in the first place.

What kind of message is this sending people? My future plan is to get arrested after some grand larceny and assault, then I am going to get my kids addicted to crack so that one day they overcome their addiction and play football and the announcers can praise them about what they've overcome and talk about how great it is that I can watch my wonderful children play football while in prison.

6) Dave Matthews Band should never be played during a football game. Period. This isn't soccer

Lastly, I would just like to say that Colt McCoy is a terrific individual, and it is really unfortunate that someone that really cared about his university could not help them win a national championship.

I have Sept. 11, 2010 circled on my calendar (or I would if my parents had got me one like they normally do for Christmas). I would love to stick it to Saban....jabroni

Capital One Bowl

2009-12-31T19:19:00.002-05:00

First of all, I can't believe you idiots actually think you can pull off the record the game and try to watch it later without hearing about the score. It's impossible. It's never been done. I've tried it many times, never with any sort of success. If you honestly think you can pull it off you are fooling yourselves. The very thought of it is so arrogant and ignorant of you. But good luck! I might text you guys score updates just to teach you a lesson.

This game really snuck up on me, and I haven't really put nearly as much thought into this bowl game as I normally do. This entire college football season has been pretty underwhelming in my opinion, and I just haven't had as much interest as usual. We have been spoiled the last few years with some incredible college football seasons though, so I can't complain.

Anyway, I don't really have a whole lot to say about the game. I agree with a lot of the things that Rudy and Drew said. I expect a defensive battle like Rudy said. I don't know a whole lot about this LSU team. I do know they aren't as good as some of the great LSU teams in recent years, but they definitely have a ton of talent on their roster. I am going to take LSU in this game for a pretty simple reason. Penn State's only two losses this year came at the hands of Iowa and Ohio State, and the reason they lost both games was because their o-line was completely dominated and overpowered by the defensive line of the opponenent. LSU always has an excellent defensive line, so I expect the same thing to happen. Penn State's offense will struggle to move the ball as the d-line gives them fits. It will be a low scoring game, but I see LSU coming out on top. Les Miles prepares his teams well for bowl games. But then again, so does Joepa...

Also, Drew, I like how you state that you are trying to "bring some legitimacy" to this blog under the post titled "Southern chicks are sluts."

Southern Chicks are Sluts

2009-12-31T13:32:00.002-05:00

Before I began to actually think about what I was going to say in this post, I had my mind made up that Penn State was going to lose. When you look at our losses compared to theirs, the scales just tip to LSU's favor. I think Ohio State is a good team and if we had shown up to play at all I would be proud to call it a loss. How Iowa beat us still baffles me. What discourages me more is that Iowa should have beaten OSU on their home turf. Astounding. But the closer I got to putting pen to paper all I could think was "Can Penn State really lose two bowl games in a row?"

Unfathomable, right? Penn State has far and above proven themselves to be the over-achiever of the Big Ten in bowl victories. I remember the days of my father preaching to me "Give Jerry Sandusky two weeks and he'll prepare a defense that could stop God." To a lesser extent I still find this true with the current coaching staff. They have done a tremendous job, by and large, preparing for an unfamiliar foe. And I don't know how many times we have to prove that we have speed at Penn State. Every year that's all the announcers talk about leading up to the game and we always hear of opposing coaches being amazed at our speed after the game. You would think they could find a new angle.

What honestly sat in my mind the most was last years bowl prediction. All three of us took Penn State over USC and although hindsight is 20/20 and you guys will think I'm full of it, I didn't really see how Penn State could beat the Trojans and was less than surprised at the outcome. I don't want to make that mistake again. Because to be completely honest, the fact that more and more people are reading what we have to say is maybe one of the coolest feelings in the world. And I'm trying to bring just a small piece of legitimacy to this site.

So after days of waffling one thought came to my head and my decision was made up. This is a big game, and Darryl Clark has proven he can't win them. I don't mean to throw losses on one guy's shoulders but he really has not come through when we needed him the most. I think the Bayou Bengals take this one based on a stagnant Penn State offense and a porous special teams.

Cat Fight

2009-12-31T01:47:00.003-05:00

Lions and Tigers and....Bears! Oh my! What Bears you ask? The Bruins! Unfortunately I will be unable to view the Capital One Bowl live since I will be attending the Winter Classic hockey game at Fenway Park, but Drew and I (and Fitz) will attempt to do the impossible....record the game and watch it from start to finish as if it were live. To do this, we will be incommunicado from 1pm until we have seen the final play of the Penn State - LSU matchup.

Now on to the game itself! I am really looking forward to this defensive duel, and the opportunity for Penn State to finally earn the evasive meaningful victory. So far this season Penn State has taken care of business in their wins and in their losses they have made mistakes and not been able to run the ball. LSU presents a stingy defense that held Florida to only 13 points, and we have come to expect a solid defensive unit out of the bayou on a yearly basis. This year however, the defense has been giving up more yards (both passing and rushing) than their own offense can produce. Their defense has 20 sacks (not a bad number) but they have allowed 35! In a game against lowly Louisiana Tech, LSU managed only 246 yards while giving up 322 after squeaking out an ugly 8 point victory. All season LSU has failed to live up to their billing.

All in all I have not been impressed with LSU all season. They, like Penn State, have not beaten a currently ranked team, and I feel that much of their legitimacy is due to the fact that they "hung in there" against Florida and Alabama. In both of those games, however, their yardage was doubled by their opponent. In addition, for the bowl game, LSU's top running back, Charles Scott, will not play due to an injury....too bad. Even without him in the lineup, all month I have heard about "Southern Speed" yada yada yada. Everyone's got their blazers, and Penn State is no different. What's so damn special about LSU? Oh my god they have someone on their team that runs a 10 second 100-meter! Terrifying! Too bad the chump only has 23 carries and 3 catches on the season. Yet all month that is all I heard. "LSU is too fast"...."this Holliday kid is going to outrun the Penn State defense". Horsehockey. I love Devon Smith, but the little guy has been a non-factor over the course of the season. Sure he's as fast as chihuahua falling down a manhole, but he isn't a great football player. Neither is Holliday...he's just fast. Put it back in your pants media types! He concerns me on kickoffs and that's about it. People don't realize the speed of Penn State's defense. AJ Wallace, Bowman, Lee, and Crawford are all guys that have above average speed for their positions. There are also rumors that we may see a fair amount of the fleet of foot Gerald Hodges at linebacker. LSU simply put has not been able to do much offensively all season while Penn State's defense has been smothering. Put that together and LSU is going to have a tough time moving the ball.

Their inability to sustain drives on offense has hurt their defense, and this is not the same kind of LSU defense we have seen in the past. Typically their defensive line is full of monsters, but this year the stars of the defense have probably been the secondary and LB's. Look for Penn State to really try to establish the running game and make a statement on the line. The Lions have a number of guys that can produce offensively, and with a whole month of focused practice, I fully expect guys like Curtis Drake to play a major role in the game. All in all, Penn State seems much more talented and they possess greater depth than the Tigers. Keep LaFell (LSU's star WR) double covered and stuff the run and LSU can't do much else.

With all this being said, you can't count out LSU. They are well coached and play well in bowl games. Only a few years ago they were national champions, and last year they diagnosed Georgia Tech's triple option and absolutely dominated the game, but in my opinion, it will be quite tough to prepare for Penn State. They are well balanced, disciplined, and perform well in bowl games. The coaches have proved in the past several years that they are not afraid to throw in some new wrinkles during bowl preparation, and even if they don't throw any gimmicks at LSU, the threat of one will constantly be on their mind when guys like Drake, Smith, and Newsome are in the game. Over the past four years, Penn State has performed at a high level offensively and they have execute well, even against some very stout defenses.

I am clearly biased, but LSU has underachieved all year and have been sloppy in most of their games. The same could be said of Penn State, but with the way they came out and executed against Michigan State, I tend to forget about their slop. Florida held LSU to 162 yards of offense. Penn State has a better defense, and as long as Clark can minimize errors, I see LSU gaining well under 300 yards and scoring at most one touchdown. The biggest danger for Penn State, and an area LSU will undoubtedly target, is special teams. With a whole month to get healthy and work on their kick coverage though, I expect PSU has addressed this. With how poorly LSU's offense has played, it wouldn't be a bad idea to just kick to an up-man every kickoff to get the ball out of Hollidays little mitts. This is a big test and a very meaningful game for the university and the Big Ten as a whole. I was very pleased with Wisconsin's win over Miami, and hopefully, with the exception of the damn Hawkeyes, the trend can continue.

Mufasa takes down Shere Khan.

Let's party

Women's Volleyball

2009-12-20T00:31:00.002-05:00

I would like to extend my congratulations to the Penn State women's volleyball team. 102 straight wins to accompany 3 straight national championships is easily one of the most astounding runs a team can assemble. And anyone who did not watch this game is an absolute idiot. I am usually the guy at the head of the line hating on women's sports, but these games are EXCITING! They are some of the most stressful events to watch. My only beef is it seems each team has 13 timeouts per set. Its too easy for momentum to die or get shifted.

For those who missed the event. Penn State lost the first two sets and rallied to win the last 3. Worm's boy Russ Rose has unparalleled composure and seems unfazed at all stages of the game. Admirable, but I prefer coaches with a Cowher like emotion. Another amazing stat is that Penn State is the only respectable volleyball program east of the Mississippi. Everything else is out west. This is comparable the the University of Maine being the best baseball program in the country. Think about it. So sound off if you watched the game and look for bowl prediction in the coming days.

Who Wants to Join the Big Ten?

2009-12-17T09:21:00.002-05:00

Probably no one in the SEC, or most Big 12 members, but pretty much everyone else says hell yeah to this question. These talks are preliminary in every sense of the word, but make no mistake, it's a big deal. Joe Paterno's been stumping for another team in the Big Ten since PSU joined in the early 90's, just like he stumped for Eastern Elite athletic conference way back in the day. Will anyone ever listen to guy?

Colin Cowherd talked Big Ten the other day. A lot of people like him, a lot of people hate him, but damnit, the guy is interesting. I like him. He said the slam dunk no brainer to add to the Big Ten is Rutgers. He focused on size, academics, and location as primary factors. And they all make sense. Huge state school, great academics and research, and close to somehow still untouched New York market as it relates to college football.

The obvious downside to this that everyone would go on record as saying is, who the hell wants to make a road trip to New Jersey? Just think...Ann Arbor, Madison, State College, Piscataway? I don't think so. You don't need to be a huge school to match up academically with the rest of them (Northwestern). Athletically, I don't really see it either. For every Ray Rice and Kenny Britt there are 10 walk on guidos. Basketball, I can't even really comment because I know nothing about the program. Average across the board. Very good baseball program though, not surprising.

Time to turn to my buddy Ron Cook
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09351/1021570-87.stm

Would the Big Ten dare? I say yes for several reasons. We would be doing a great human service to all the Kenny Rayls and other shapes of Pitt fans by validating their existence. And if you had to add another stop on the Big Ten roadtrip map, why not the City of Champions? 70,000 seats, as good a tailgating as you'll get inside city limits, and a casino with table games right next door. Immeasurable improvement for Big Ten basketball as well. And while it's always enjoyable to make fun of Pitt, don't forget. Pitt's academic chops stack up against anyone and would fit right in with Big Ten standards.

It would also make Pitt/Penn State relevant again, and this time with the context of ever important conference implications at the heart of it. Outside of Notre Dame, Pitt makes the most sense to add from every standpoint, including location. Notre Dame will never happen. I don't think Pitt will happen either. Everyone loves Rutgers for some reason. Am I only one that notices that they still haven't ever done shit ever? A couple trips to the International Bowl and they are big timers? I don't get it. People are trying to get out of New Jersey, not stay there. That's why they come to Penn State. Let's make this happen. I hate to say it, but Hail to Pitt!

Waiting...

2009-12-15T18:05:00.004-05:00

I'm sure when you read the title of this post you immediately had visions of Ryan Reynolds, Juan Guzman, and some of the ridiculous malformations you can sculpt out of certain parts of the male anatomy! But, since this is a football blog, I will save my Roger Ebert skills for another time.

Instead, I am concerned with the amount of time between the last Penn State regular season game and the upcoming Bowl game. I must admit, I am excited for the LSU-PSU matchup. An SEC opponent in a rather meaningful bowl game will give Penn State, and the Big Ten, a chance to see where they stand in relation to the almighty SEC. But, like a 6-year-old counting down the days on his advent calendar, I am really getting sick of waiting for Jan. 1.

Apparently, the NCAA and the Big Ten feel preparation for a bowl game deserves more practice time than preparation for the season opener. Penn State will have had more "official" practice time to prepare for LSU than they did for Akron, in terms of days. Either way, the time off between the end of the Big Ten regular season and the Bowl games is absolutely atrocious (Penn State will have 33 days off between games and this year the waiting time is relatively short). This is entirely too long to go without playing a football game. It's like starting over again. Teams lose their rhythm, players lose their competitiveness, and we have nothing to blog about! As a result, many of the teams have sluggish first quarters in the bowl games because the players are still waking up to game-type action. Two, maybe three weeks is PLENTY. Any coach or sportswriter who tells you that this is not a problem nor a disadvantage is simply giving the PC response...a response which is also BS! I have a feeling that this lay-off has been the reason Big Ten teams have underperformed in recent bowl games.

I am not positive about this, but I think much of this malarkey in scheduling revolves around the Ohio State-Michigan game (a game that nobody outside of Ohio or Michigan really cares about...but fans of the respective schools will tell you different). This game is always the last weekend of the Big Ten season and Jim Tressel does not want to play this game the weekend of Thanksgiving because it will interfere with Thanksgiving break for his players and his fans. Tressel wants this game played before Thanksgiving so his players can "go home for the Thanksgiving break." Tressel has also denied the long lay-off as being detrimental when it came to getting whacked in the '06 and '07 Title games. Why Jim Delany and staff entertain this idea, I dont know. And, if this game is such a huge rivalry like they claim, why isnt it played on the final college football "rivalry" weekend?

A few suggestions for the future...

Push the start of the season back a week or two into September. Do we really need to be playing football in August, sometimes before school is even in session? As a result, the season would extend well into December.
Build a bye week into the Big Ten schedule. We don't need 12 games squeezed into 12 weeks. Give everyone involved (players, coaches, media, fans) a breather half way through!
All non-conference games must be played BEFORE Big Ten games start. That mid-season Eastern Illinois game was flat out stupid.
Develop a Big Ten Championship game. Whether its 11 or 12 teams, lets determine the champion on the field like everyone else does. Enough of this co-champ nonsense. The Big Ten falls off the map in December while everyone else is playing Championship games.

I still think the whole college football season could be one week longer and extend into mid-December. I hear there is talk about making changes to the Big Ten schedule. Feel free to share some insight...

Jerome Hayes

2009-12-15T13:45:00.002-05:00

After reading some of the Capital One Bowl Media Day interview transcripts, I learned that Jerome Hayes is appealing to the NCAA for a sixth year of eligiblity. He did have two season-ending knee injuries, so I suppose he has a shot at getting a sixth year granted, although I don't know how good his chances are.

Personally I think it would be great for the team if we got him back next year. When he's healthy, he is a great player. He is also a veteran and a leader, and he has experience at both linebacker and stand-up defensive end.

It takes about two years to fully recover from a torn ACL. He's had one in each leg. But next fall he would be 2+ years removed from each one. He wasn't even close to being 100% this year, and you could tell. He really didn't make any plays in the first half of the season, but he did improve toward the end. I think he would be much better next year and could be a big help. This will be interesting to keep an eye on.

Rudy's Heisman

2009-12-12T20:12:00.002-05:00

Gerhart is a stud. I won't argue that. His numbers are unreal, leading the FBS in rushing yards and adding 26 rushing touchdowns. However, this trophy isn't like the MVP in baseball, and stats aren't everything. When I look at this, I see five guys that are phenomenal players that all mean a lot to their team, but one that plays for an undefeated team that could not be replaced. Colt McCoy is a player that does whatever his team needs and although his season doesn't measure up with what he did last year (I thought he deserved the award last year instead of Bradford) he really defines a great football player. Last year for the majority of the season he led the team in rushing and this year is second on the team in rushing yards. Texas is a team that has lost one game in two years and had virtually no running game that whole time. Statistically I would pick Gerhart over everyone else. In terms of stepping up in the clutch you have to give it to Ingram for the way he played against Florida. In terms of the most valuable player though, McCoy really deserves this. He got snubbed last year and his team is undefeated while Stanford is 8-4. All are deserving and I find it funny that the least deserving is Tebow. Larry Johnson had over 2000 yards rushing in 2002 and didn't get the Heisman largely due to Penn State's record...wins matter more than yards. McCoy gives the stiff-arm

Heisman Vote

2009-12-12T19:44:00.002-05:00

I am notching my Heisman vote for Toby Gerhart. If you look at this kids stats game in and game out, he never took a day off. Kid got his yards. Some would argue that because Stanford finished at 8-4 he is less legitimate than say Mark Ingram. I disagree because teams like Alabama, Florida, and Texas have lots of weapons to help other guys look good and also spread the defense in many areas. The Cardinal are not a power house and any coach who watches the tape knows where the ball is going yet he still gained ground.

Many are calling for Suh and saying if he doesn't win its because old sportswriters only want to give it to offensive players. For me, he doesn't get my vote because if he doesn't show up like that against Texas he's not even in talks. Beano Cooke used to say the two best ways to win the Heisman is to play for Notre Dame or Beat Notre Dame. I think the same is true for teams like Florida and Texas today. I'm hesitant to give the Heisman to a guy based on one game.

Also, my sincerest thanks go to Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs on his record breaking 24th rushing TD this season, breaking Lord Tebow's record for single season rushing TDs by a quarterback. Thank Jesus for that one crybaby.

Notre Dame....who do they think they are?

2009-12-04T16:12:00.002-05:00

As we all know, Charlie "the Chocolate Factory" Weis was axed a few days ago after an uninspiring tenure as Notre Dame's head football coach and adviser to the student group "IFL" (International FUPA League). Although he is now jobless, he received somewhere around $15 million due to his extensive contract that had him coaching until his Adidas wind breaker pants were the only thing he was capable of wearing. He is expected to make his next live appearance on ESPN on July 4, 2010 where he will attempt to dethrone Joey Chestnut and Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi at the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest. But to get back to the focus of this jab at Notre Dame....they are coachless right now...but they are 6-6. They are bowl eligible. However, if they were going to play in a bowl game, it would either be the Little Ceasar's "I want to shoot myself in the head" Pizza Bowl played in lovely Detroit, or the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, AL (likely against a C-USA opponent). Not great options...but it's a bowl game, and you're team gets money for that. And in Notre Dame's case (since they are independent) they don't have to share that money with anyone. Reports indicate that the team is highly unlikely of accepting a bowl bid, however, and it seems as if their pride has gotten in the way of letting their players compete in another football game.

No, they won't be playing on New Year's Day, and not many people will probably go or watch, but what about those seniors that lost their last home game to Connecticut? Do they not get to play again (some for the rest of their lives) because the school doesn't want to "stoop" to the level of Conference USA? I am just flabbergasted at this possibility, and can't say that I have ever heard of a team saying "no" to a bowl game....except for the ones back in the day where the team got a bowl bid, but they weren't allowed to bring their black players so the team decided not to go...that's fine....but just not going? Where do they get off? This really bothers me because there are kids playing at schools like Temple and Buffalo that worked their tails off to even have the chance of going 6-6 and getting to a bowl. Getting an invite to the Little Ceasar's Pizza Bowl for these schools would be like Notre Dame hiring Jesus as head coach, yet here ND sits. Sometimes you've got to lower your standards and go after a fat chick, because something is better than nothing. Hopefully Notre Dame changes their mind because it isn't fair for their players, and even though I want them to lose every single game they ever play, it's just not right.

Keep an eye out for a new Klondike Bar commercial where the "What would you do for a Klondike Bar" slogan will be sung, and we will then see Charlie Weis decimate a pet store full of puppies with a blow torch.

Bowden, Bowls, and The Rest of College Football

2009-12-03T06:25:00.003-05:00

Going into depth a little more on Bowden, I am starting to feel for the guy. I blame this solely on the media who tends to depict athletes and coaches as Saints when they retire/die when the full story is nothing but the opposite. Example: Steve McNair. People are calling this guy a great community leader and family man before he was so tragically slain. Not buyin it. Bowden is a less than perfect guy who has been maybe the biggest perpetrator of nepotism I have ever seen. His recruitment of certain players has had a lot of people raising their eyebrows and his players have criminal records only rivaled by their athletic prowess. Having said that, I thought he handled the academic scandal extremely well and gained a lot of points with me in that one.

His forced retirement at FSU reminds me of a few years ago when fans and faculty were calling for JoePa to step down. I will admit for the first time publicly that I was one of those fans. It is one of the most shameful behaviors of my life I wish I could take back but can't. I feel terrible every time I think about it. But I was a 18 year old kid tired of seeing his once mighty Lions lose to the same teams that we used to beat right off the field. I'm glad to see Penn State kept Joe around and made a solemn vowel to myself I would support him no matter how many losing seasons we might have. The problem with guys like Paterno and Bowden is, given the chance, they will never leave. Its just not in them. So when things go terribly afoul its up to someone else to make the tough decision.

I have to agree with Jason on a playoff system. Not so much for the same reasons as he stated but its just not feasible. I think that goes into the pageantry of college football that it often resembles a Greek tragedy. But as with most things in life, sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you get screwed. But in the long run things seem to work out. If we think back a few years ago, the number one team most times didn't even play the number two team in their final game and it was left up to writers to determine the National Champion. Its an imperfect world, why should our bowl selections be any different? I am still holding strong on my opinion that Penn State does not deserve a BCS game this year though.

I don't know if anyone saw this from last weeks USC-UCLA game. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVpyI6eWvwQ Its absolutely atrocious. You would think the media would have a field day with this but the fact that Tiger Woods dinged his Caddy coupled with the fact that Pete Carrol is a media darling and it all makes sense. I hate Pete Carrol. I have always hated Pete Carrol. I think he pays his recruits and I think he is a scumbag. And all the Behind the Lines stories where he gave an inner-city kid a chance to be their towel boy for a game won't change that. As for UCLA, either sprint across the field and start throwing fisticuffs or sit there and shut up. I totally agree that what USC did was the poorest showing of sportsmanship and they have every right to be mad. But either put up or shut up. All you've done is create a pre-game montage for next year.

Big ups to Big Ten hoops which brought home victory in the Big Ten/ACC challenge for the first time in 11 years.

Bowl Game Propaganda

2009-12-02T21:12:00.002-05:00

Not sure how many of you got a chance to watch the "Bowl Game Promo" (click here for link) shown smack dab on the front of Penn State's athletic website Gopsusports.com. I read briefly about this in some articles, but not until this evening did I stumble upon it and actually watch the video.

How do I feel about this video? The fact that I have to make a stance on this video is what is wrong with the system. Go ahead and argue the x' and o's, head-to-head comparisons, etc. This is blatant proof that the selection process is absolutely ludicrous and that college football is simply a money-making MACHINE.

As a loyal fan, sure, I'm pulling for us to get a BCS bid and a chance to knock off a top-ranked and/or potentially undefeated team (Boise State). Contrarily, I have about as much interest in watching Iowa play in a BCS game (should they be selected) as some of the West Point Cadets had (caught snoozing) listening to Obama present his politically divided Afghanistan insurgent speech. However, do we deserve the bid? See previous posts and you decide.

I'd imagine Guido is behind this operation, as he should be because it's his job, to promote Penn State football (and basketball). But I guess I will go ahead and make my stance. I don't like it. If the Penn State brand is that good, do we need to sell it this much? Is the Fiesta Bowl committee really going to base their selection off some statistics they saw on a promo video? As much as it may seem like they are sometimes (see the BCS), these people are not idiots and they have access to this information at their fingertips at the touch of a button.

Maybe I'm totally off-base here, but I'm not buying into the whole Bowl Game Propaganda. Get your popcorn folks, December 6th is quickly approaching. WE ARE...(and if you don't know the rest, I'll throw together a promo video clearly describing the origins of this popular game-day chant.)

Sheding Some Light On The BCS Controversy

2009-12-02T12:47:00.002-05:00

As the college football season progresses into the final month, the BCS puzzle pieces begin to fall into place. Like they say, "You remember what happens in November." As the season rolls on, we will hear fans ignorantly bitch, moan, and debate over the validity of the current BCS system. Everyone will give you their "perfect playoff" scenario: a 6-team playoff, an 8-team playoff, a 16-team playoff similar to D-IAA, II, and III. All of these are valid arguments and potentially could happen.

If you are a college football fan, you have probably shed your opinion on this matter at some point and you cant help but get caught up in the debate. And if you're like "Rulebook" Albright, you have gone as far as sending letters to Joe Paterno and the NCAA outlining your proposal. Say what you want about the business aspects and how the bureaucrats control the system, but in terms of football and the product on the field, the BCS might not be all that bad. Not too long ago, I too was one of those clamoring for a playoff system, but as my wisdom continues to expand at an exponential rate and i invest more time and interest into college football, my thoughts have slowly changed to the contrary. Here is why...

As Jim Mora would say, "PLAY-OFFS? PLAY-OFFS? PLAY-OFFS!?!?!?" I am beginning to agree with the notion that a playoff system will significantly de-emphasize the importance of many of the regular season games (I mean, PSU fans need some reason to get all jacked up for Eastern Illinois, right?). Case in point: Florida and Alabama will meet in the SEC championship game ranked #1 and #2. As the BCS system currently works, this game will essentially be a semi-final matchup for the National Championship...winner is in and loser is out. With an 8 or 16-team playoff system in place, this game would be far less important. Yes, they would be playing for an SEC Championship, but the loser would probably only drop to #6 or #7 and still be seeded in the playoff, taking the National Title implications off of this game. The only people with any vested interest in this game would be fans of the respective schools.

This late season matchup was also the case back in 2006 when #1 Ohio State played #2 Michigan, both undefeated, on the final weekend of the Big Ten season. Another semi-final to the National Championship. With so much riding on this game, it lead to one of the most exciting games in recent college football history. Again, if a playoff system were involved, this game would not have had as much of an impact nationally. It would have merely determined playoff seeding. Note: I understand the importance of a #1 or #2 seed in a playoff system, but that does not grant playoff immunity. In one game in football, anybody can win.

Take the 2008 Penn State season as another example. After the big win at Ohio State, Penn State would have had to win two out of the last three games to win the Big Ten and be placed in a playoff system. If this were the case, would we all have been hanging on the edge of our couches as Ricky Stanzi drove Iowa down the field in the 4th quarter? Probably not as much. The loss at Iowa would not have been as devastating and Penn State would not have been in a must-win scenario until after this loss. And to go one step further...would USC or Oklahoma fans have cared at all about our loss?

As a result of the situations described above coupled with a playoff system, teams will begin to employ strategies similar to the NFL, i.e. resting players for the playoff run and essentially throwing end of season games because they "don't matter." I do not want to see this in college football. This is why college football is so much more exciting than the NFL. There only are 11, sometimes 12 games. EVERY game should be meaningful. I don't really care about the NFL till about week 10 when the playoff picture begins to take shape and the games mean something.

Frankly, I think a playoff system promotes too much post-season parody...much like the NFL where Wild Card teams end up winning the Super Bowl and much like college basketball where the best teams going into the tourney often get knocked off before the final (it's not a coincidence that only once have four #1 seeds met in the Final Four). Should a college football team who goes 12-0 in the regular season be subject to a first round playoff loss? Or, do we really want to see a 9-3 West Virginia team playing a 10-2 Virginia Tech team in the title game while two 12-0 teams sit at home because they got bumped in the first round? The parody should arise throughout the regular season, not the post-season, which is evident in the current BCS system.

The current BCS system is not perfect by any means, but it's almost a playoff system in disguise. On any given year, there are probably three or four teams who, at the end of the year, truly deserve to play for a National Championship. Furthermore, every year there are always late season, intra-conference matchups between two highly ranked teams that can determine the seasons of the respective teams, ala Penn State-Ohio State, LSU-Alabama, Oregon-USC, Texas-Oklahoma and so on. Aren't these games kind of like playoff games...lose and you're out? At season's end, does the sixteenth, or even eighth ranked BCS team truly deserve an equal opportunity at a National Championship as the #1 or #2 teams? NO!

Ideally, I think a +1 system would be then next step and probably would be sufficient. Teams would be re-ranked following the four BCS games and #1 and #2 would then match-up for the Championship. Therefore, an undefeated non-BCS school such as Boise State/TCU/Utah (2008), who had not yet beaten anyone of respective quality, gets an opportunity to show they are for real and belong in a title game.

The bottom line is the BCS is good for college football. It is always a topic for discussion and the discussion brings college football to the forefront of the sports world. Only time will tell what happens, but I don't think the BCS is as big of a disaster as the average fan believes.

Bowden

2009-12-02T10:49:00.003-05:00

A couple thoughts on the Bowden retirement: It is clear that the University kind of forced him out, which is unfortunate. He said after his last game that he wanted to return next year, and then a few days later he announced he’s retiring. He’s done so much for the school, you don’t want to see him go out like this. Florida State was not a competitive football program before Bowden arrived. He turned them into a national powerhouse.

Drew’s post says “Paterno wins.” Personally, I think it’s Penn State that wins, because the school has allowed Joe to go out on his terms and is handling Joe Pa with the respect he deserves, which make the University look good, especially compared to Florida State. Granted they asked him to step down a few years ago, but when he refused, they listened to him and didn’t force him out. I’m not going to get into the whole conversation about whether or not Joe should go. I can quickly sum up my own thoughts on the matter by saying I think he should retire, but he has earned the right to stay as long as he would like.

The whole “Bowden vs. Paterno” race is something that gets way more attention than it deserves. First, you will hear a lot of people say that they think Joe will now retire because he knows he has the record over Bowden. The people that think Joe has been holding out until Bowden retired are completely clueless. There is no way that has ever, or ever will, factor into his decision to retire. I’m not saying Joe doesn’t care about having that honor. I went to nearly every press conference Joe had in my four years at Penn State and can tell you the man definitely has an ego. I’m just saying the race with Bowden has nothing to do with his decision to stay in football this long.

More importantly though, in my opinion, there never has been any race between the two. Bowden’s first 31 wins came at Howard, a Division IAA school. I’m not saying these wins don’t count. I have no problem counting these wins. But if we count these wins, then you have to count ALL of Eddie Robinson’s wins at Grambling (also DI-AA). Robinson had 408 wins in his career, which is more than both Paterno and Bowden.

So there are only two ways you can look at it. Either you count all NCAA wins, or you count only Division I wins. Either way works for me because they both make sense. Under the first scenario Robinson holds the record. Under the second scenario, Paterno holds the record and Bowden is pretty far back. Either way, there really is no significant race between Paterno and Bowden.

It just doesn’t make sense to count Bowden’s 31 IAA wins toward this “record” but disregard Robinson’s entire career. It’s all or nothing. I don’t know why more people don’t realize this.

Hate Card

2009-12-01T09:55:00.001-05:00

What is the deal with the media reporting that things that are going “to be announced tomorrow?” What the hell is that? If the Bottom Line on ESPN says “Adam Schefter reports that Bobby Bowden will announce his retirement tomorrow,” didn’t Adam Schefter just announce Bowden’s retirement for him? Now what is there for Bowden to say?

In the specific case of Bowden, I feel sorry for him that it leaked out before he could announce it himself (assuming he does indeed go on to announce his retirement). The man has been coaching for a long time, and when he decides he wants to hang it up, it should be him telling it to the world, not Adam Schefter.

Drew/Albright: Does this qualify as an acceptable hate card?

PATERNO WINS!!!

2009-11-30T21:13:00.004-05:00

The battle of crotcheny old S.O.B's for most career wins appears to all belong to Joe Paterno as sources say FSU coach Bobby Bowden will retire. Although Paterno claims this record means nothing to him, pride doesn't escape any of us. Although it would not suprise me to see Bowden try to coach again at a crappier D-1 school. With coaching turnover these days, I think this record will be up there with Joe D's 56 game hit streak as one that will not be broken. Congratulations to JoePa and Penn State fans everywhere.