The Penn State Football Show

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...

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

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.

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.

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?

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

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.