Bowling Coming to Penn State?

I don't think he's talking about rolling strikes or making spares!

Of course, this is Gerry DiNardo, so the relative value of this claim is probably less than the cost of a cup of coffee.

We can always hit the lanes in January!  But I'd rather the team hit the line and roll up the score . . .fight on to vict'ry ever more . . . Fight On, On, On, On, On, Fight On Penn State!

Welcome to Penn State!

The NLC has sent out a welcoming proclamation . . .

Welcome Coach! James Franklin, one of the nation’s most successful and dynamic coaches, becomes the 16th Head Coach in Penn State History

The Nittany Lion Club is excited to welcome our new football head coach James Franklin and his family to Penn State.  He is the former head coach of Vanderbilt University and assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at the University of Maryland.                       

 

Coach Franklin will be introduced on the Penn State campus today at 4:15 p.m. The press conference will be streamed live at BTN.com and at 6:30 p.m., BTN will air a 30-minute special on Coach Franklin coming to Penn State.

“I can't tell you how excited I am to come home,” Franklin stated.  “I grew up watching Penn State football and now to be at the helm of such a storied program is a tremendous honor.  It's important to me to be a part of a University that strives for excellence in everything they do. When football student-athletes come to Penn State, they have a unique opportunity to receive a premium education while playing at the highest level of competition. 

“I'm incredibly excited to get to know the students, alumni, and fans who have demonstrated such loyalty to the University as a whole and to the football program in particular,” Franklin added. “I've worked my way through every division of football and no other school boasts a fan base like we do. We Are...Penn State!”

Unwelcome to the Rock

Just what the hell was that?

Welcome to the Rock!

Did you know that the Indiana Hoosiers had never beaten Penn State in football before today?  There is no way you could have watched that game on BTN and NOT known.  It was repeated ad nauseum in the fourth quarter more time than they used to show Dan Persa's mother ort Brady Quinn's girlfriend.  Now in all fairness, I did point out that stat in the Weekly Game Guide, but I'm a Penn State homer and that is expected of me.

The problem was that they never put it in a graphic.  Had they put it in a graphic, Penn State would have won.  It's the curse of the TV graphic.  They flashed up a graphic that Penn State led the nation in 24 straight scores in the red zone right before Butterworth watched a pitch in the dirt go past him to the back stop on a field goal attempt.  Graphic=Curse.  It's as simple as that.

We can dispense with the usual pleasantries.  This was a lousy game from top to bottom against a mediocre, at best, opponent.

How do we sucketh, let me count the ways . . .

Go for it on fourth and short on our own 33 yard line in the fourth--and failing.  Check.

Fumble a kick-off to set up a score.  Check.

Bad snap on a field goal.  Check.

Have a field goal blocked.  Check.

Fumble in our own end zone for a safety.  Check.

Throw a pick six?  What?  We missed one?

We can spend a lot of time blaming--the sanctions, the coaching, the bad breaks.  The bottom line is this: this is not the most difficult game on the Big Ten schedule, and if Bill O'Brien can't find some answers and create some improvement, it is going to be a long second half of this season.

Let's look at the stats, shall we?

BY THE NUMBERS:

From GoPSUsports:

	PSU	IND
FIRST DOWNS...................	27	23
RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............	38-70	41-150
PASSING YDS (NET).............	340	336
Passes Att-Comp-Int...........	55-30-0	39-24-1
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS.....	93-410	80-486
Fumble Returns-Yards..........	0-0	1-3
Punt Returns-Yards............	1-3	2-6
Kickoff Returns-Yards.........	3-64	1-13
Interception Returns-Yards....	1-0	0-0
Punts (Number-Avg)............	4-45.2	6-41.5
Fumbles-Lost..................	2-1	0-0
Penalties-Yards...............	5-20	5-42
Possession Time...............	35:11	24:49
Third-Down Conversions........	11 of 22	4 of 15
Fourth-Down Conversions.......	1 of 5	0 of 1
Red-Zone Scores-Chances.......	2-3	5-6
Sacks By: Number-Yards........	4-22	1-5

Penn State actually looks good on paper.  They led in first downs, third down conversions, and time of possession--by a lot.  There was a lot of separation in the total yardage category as well.  But it was the key turnovers on downs and fumbles that contributed to the lopsided margin of loss.  The stats showed PSU only lost one fumble, but the second fumble was recovered for a safety.  Still a turn-over when you consider we had to free kick it back to IU.

INTANGIBLES:

INDIANA WON ITS FIRST FOOTBALL GAME AGAINST PENN STATE IN SCHOOL HISTORY!!!  Didn't know if you knew that or not.

Penn State won the toss and elected to receive.

Attendance was an anemic 42,125 in less than ideal weather.

Penn State is 3-2 on the season and 0-1 in the conference.

THE B1G PICTURE:

Minnesota lost to THEM without their coach for the fifth time (seizure.)  Final Score: 42-13.

The Spartans upset Iowa in Iowa by a score of 26-14.

Nebraska shucked the Illini 39-19.

Northwestern currently leads the Buckeyes by 3 starting the fourth quarter.


SHEDDING TEARS:

1.  Maryland--crushed by Seminoles 63-0.
2.  Iowa State--longhorned by Texas 31-30
3.  Temple--0-5 and beaten 30-7 by Louisville
4.  Alabama--beat Georgia State 45-3, but didn't cover the spread.
5.  This spot is for Northwestern or Arizona State, but hopefully neither

LOOKING AHEAD:

THEM.

Beaver Stadium.  5pm start.

Homecoming.

White Out.

The wolverines are undefeated with wins over Central Michigan (59-9), Notre Dame (41-30), Akron (28-24), UConn (24-21) and Minnesota (42-13.)

GO STATE!  BEAT THEM!

Do Not Adjust Your TV

The Big Ten Network is taking control of Atlantic Broadband. This is good news for the folks in my viewing area--including me.

From the Altoona Mirror:

Atlantic Broadband and Big Ten Network officials announced at a joint news conference today that the Big Ten Network will be carried on Atlantic Broadband starting Sept. 1. The company's vice president for operations, David Dane, said the multi-year agreement specifies coverage will be on the value or basic level of service. The announcement means that the Big Ten Network will be available to Atlantic Broadband customers in time for Penn State's football opener Sept. 5 against Akron.

Well, it's about time.