Minnesota Drats

Because of a camping trip, I was unable to watch the game on TV.  I did listen to most of it, but I finally gave up when we fumbled yet again at the goal line.  There was still some time left on the clock, and part of me wanted to listen to another great comeback win.  I knew that scenario was unlikely, but no more implausible than a 4 OT victory over THEM or a come from behind OT win against the Illini.  I knew it was possible, but decided I'd rather read about the comeback on Sunday and not have my Saturday afternoon ruined any further.

I got home today to discover that not only was there no comeback win, Penn State never got the ball back with over six minutes left to go in the game.

Drat and double drat!

Not a point was scored in the second half.  If your cup is half full, the defense did their job in a manner of speaking.  If your cup is half empty, our offense really sucks.

Ten points.

Not counting OT points, just points in regulation, Penn State is averaging just under 20 points per game since starting Big Ten play.  Worse yet, we are giving up 36 points per game in regulation.

Even in the dark year of 2004, we never gave up more than 21 points, and we beat Indiana.  Of course that team was coached by a legend without sanctions.

This Minnesota loss was a doctoral thesis on how to miss golden opportunities.  The fumble on the goal line is a glaring example, but Minnesota fumbled giving Penn State a wonderful chance to get back in the game.  But even with a Minnesota defensive off-sides call, Penn State could not even manage a first down, let alone a touchdown.

This is where the coaching could certainly be questioned.  It sounded on the radio like we had the running game cranked up.  Zwinak was running lights out and almost single-handedly scored the first Lion touchdown.  Yet, after the off-sides in what was clearly four down territory at the Minnesota 32-yard line with a second and five situation, PSU tried two passing plays resulting in an incompletion and a sack that then triggered a punt instead of a celebration or a fourth down attempt at the least.

I'm not a coach.  Never will be.  But what exactly goes through a coach's mind at that point in the game?  You've got a running back averaging 5.8 yards per tote and two downs (three if you count going for it on fourth) to let him get the first.  Are you trying to catch the other team selling out against the run?  Really?  I don't understand how we could let that opportunity slip away.

We cannot chalk fumbling at the goal line to a freshman quarterback mistake.  This is the NINTH game of the season.  He's practically a sophomore in football years.  There is simply no excuse for poor execution like that. 

Deep down, although we were underdogs in the game as it was, I think many fans thought--perhaps not aloud or in print--but thought we could and would win this game.  But reality is a real downer sometimes.  For myself, and probably a lot of fans over 40, we remember the times when we always expected Penn State to win.  In the 70's and 80's, we didn't win every game, but by God we started the game thinking we were going to win it.

We were spoiled.  And entering the Big Ten did not change things initially.  In fact, it might have been the Minnesota game in 1999 that really woke Penn State fans up.  We could no longer expect to win.  Each win was a thing to be treasured, and often times the result of a lot of hard work AND luck.

But I still cling to that past.  I still thought we would win this game.  In fact, I was hoping Hackenberg would break out with a big day that would boost his confidence (as well as the fans') going into the remainder of the schedule. 

It just wasn't meant to be.

BY THE NUMBERS:

From GoPSUsports:

	PSU	MINN
FIRST DOWNS...................	22	19
RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............	36-190	46-195
PASSING YDS (NET).............	163	186
Passes Att-Comp-Int...........	25-14-0	25-15-0
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS.....	61-353	71-381
Fumble Returns-Yards..........	0-0	0-0
Punt Returns-Yards............	2-2	1-0
Kickoff Returns-Yards.........	2-39	3-67
Interception Returns-Yards....	0-0	0-0
Punts (Number-Avg)............	3-36.3	4-46.0
Fumbles-Lost..................	2-2	1-1
Penalties-Yards...............	1-10	5-45
Possession Time...............	24:32	35:28
Third-Down Conversions........	1 of 9	9 of 17
Fourth-Down Conversions.......	1 of 3	3 of 3
Red-Zone Scores-Chances.......	2-4	2-2
Sacks By: Number-Yards........	1-7	1-5

One for nine on third down conversions?  Are you kidding me?  While our defense gave up 9 of 17 third down conversions and ALL THREE fourth down conversions to the Gophers?  A performance like that against O$U is perhaps understandable.  But against Minnesota?  I simply scratch my head.  Because of these ratios, the Gophers controlled time of possession, and of course, the scoreboard.  A fumble to start the game, and then one on the goal line late were simply crushing.

INTANGIBLES:

Minnesota won the toss and deferred.  But PSU fumbled on the first play, so Minnesota essentially opened each half with a drive.

Stadium attendance was 48,123.  I guess ice-fishing season hasn't started yet.

THE B1G PICTURE:

Nebraska defeated THEM 17-13 in Ann Arbor.  And I thought we had a chance against the Huskers.  Maybe I'm still in a funk from this game, but what the hell!  Can we win any of our remaining games?

Oh, there's Purdue.  They lost 38-14 to Iowa.

Indiana beat Illinois 52-35.

The Badgers beat BYU 27-17 in a rare out of conference game this time of year.

O$U, Michigan State and Northwestern were off.

The Buckeyes took advantage of Oregon's loss to move up to #3.  Curses!  The BCS ranks weren't available at this time.

SHEDDING TEARS:

1.  Notre Dame--boo hoo.  Beaten by Pitt 28-21.
2.  LSU--boo hoo hoo.  Beaten by Bama 38-17.
3.  WVU--lost to Texas 47-40.  Oh, you were so close!
4.  Oregon--thanks for playing again, Ducks.   We have a nice consolation bowl lined up for you.
5.  Arkansas lost again.  Way to go Bret!

LOOKING AHEAD:

So far, our season has gone WWLWLWLWL.  The pattern should end WLL (open with two wins, alternate for a while, then end with two losses to balance the opening wins.)  Sure hope it doesn't end up that way, but, it sure is looking that way.

Purdue comes to Beaver Stadium next week with their only win of the season against Indiana State.  Most of their games haven't even been close:

L Cincinnati 7-42
W Indiana State 20-14
L  Notre Dame 24-31
L  Wisconsin 10-41
L Northern Illinois  24-55
L  Nebraska  7-44
L  Michigan State  0-14
L  Ohio State  0-56
L  Iowa  14-38

There are no must wins.  There is nothing to play for.  Pride went out the window with a loss to Indiana and a blow-out to the Buckeyes. 

I just hope we keep things together and win this damn game.  It might be the last win of the year.

Weekly Game Guide: Better Late Than Never Edition

Hopefully Penn State will take the field on Saturday faster than this post hit the web.

Last night, Baylor pounded Oklahoma 41-12, hoping to leap frog Ohio State in the BCS Bonanza.  Meanwhile, Buckeye fans were celebrating Stanford's 26-20 win over Oregon.  If a tree falls on a duck in the forest, does it make a sound?  Maybe Baylor AND Stanford leave O$U in the dust?

The line with the Gophers opened around 2-2.5 points, and is currently 1.5 points this morning.  Penn State has not played well on the road, with somewhat embarrassing losses to Indiana and Ohio State.  It is clichéd, but the Lions must control the line of scrimmage, hold the Gophers on the ground, limit their mistakes, and come up with a few big plays.  It's a formula that will win a lot of games, but you still have to execute it.  We fumbled on the goal line last week and still won--but you can't depend on that kind of tenacity to win games on the road.

On to the Big Ten . . .

Nebraska is a 7 point underdog to THEM in Ann Arbor.   GO HUSKERS!

Wisconsin is favored by 7.5 points over BYU.  ON WISCONSIN!

The Hoosiers are favored (will wonders never cease?) by 9 points over the hapless Illini.  GO HOOSIERS!

The Hawks are favored by 15 points over Purdue.  Sooner or later, Purdue is going to win a B1G game.  It could be this year.  Maybe 2020.  Who knows?  I'd rather it not be against us, so let's hope the little Boilermakers are Spoilermakers this weekend and upset the Hawks.  GO PURDUE!

Ohio State is off this week, which will likely hurt them in the BCS rankings.  As suggested above, both Stanford and Baylor may pass them up due to performances over top 10 teams this week.  Northwestern and Michigan State are also off this weekend.

In games around the country:

F$U is heavily favored over Wake Forest and looks to move up in the wake of the Ducks loss.  GO NOLES!

Bama is favored by, let me check that--double digits!--by 12.5 over LSU.  ROLL TIDE ROLL!

Notre Dame is favored by 4.5 over the Panthers.  I don't normally root for Pitt, but this is the Irish we're talking about here.  GO PITT!

Future B1G team Maryland is favored by 5 over Syracuse.  GO TERPS!

GO STATE!  WHACK GOPHERS!

I Can't Gopher That

Nooo.  No can do.

It was a win, and that was about all that could be said about this scrimmage with the Golden Gophers of Minnesota.

And that is what this game felt like--a scrimmage.  We saw lots of players getting playing time--all three quarterbacks for Penn State played.  Penn State never trailed in the game and you never got the sense that we would lose, but the final product was not really what it seemed.

Minnesota outgained Penn State 433 to 351 yards and won time of possession by almost 7 minutes.  They had more first downs (26-17) and Penn State went 2-10 on third down.  They were coached by an interim coach whose career record as a head coach was 20-48.  And in his head coaching debut at Minnesota, Horton heard a boo.  Or two.

Perhaps the turning point of the game came when D'Anton Lynn made an interception in the Gopher endzone when the pesky little varmints were only down by 7.  He returned said interception 58 yards.  Third string QB Matt McGloin then came in and threw a 42-yard bomb to Derek Moye that put the Lions up 21-7 at the half.  That was a 10-14 point turn around right there.

Unfortunately, there was still another half of football to go, and the Nittany Lions were outscored 12-14 in the second half that included a 2 point safety.  Any momentum Penn State gained from that two play series was quashed on the opening drive when the little goofball gophers pushed us (literally--I kid you not) down the field and scored to make it a seven point game once again.  75 yards on 11 plays controlling the clock for over 6 minutes.  Where were our halftime defensive adjustments?  We adjusted the wrong things.

But somehow, we managed not to muck things up and came away with our first Big Ten conference win of the season.  I'll pause whilst you throw confetti, toot your horns and celebrate unabashedly.

Why am I not more happy about this win?  Have you looked at our schedule?  Have you seen any of the other teams left on our schedule play?  Have you seen us play?  Well, then you do the math.  You may only be able to celebrate one more time this season, and I'm not even certain of that.

Worse yet, Bolden may have suffered a concussion, so his status for this week is questionable.  As good as he looked as a passer in this game, he was absolutely awful running the ball.  What's worse, is that I thought our offense would be much better if he were allowed to run more.  I was wrong.  He draws defenders like flies to a dead carcass and the results smell the same.  It's like he sees a hole and then runs away from it like it's going to suck him into some other dimension.

That is not to say there weren't positives in this game.  The only thing worse than this win would have been if we had lost.  At least we didn't screw that up.

I do think the kids came out with a lot more intensity than they did against Illinois--or any other team to date.  It didn't necessarily translate into better play on the lines of scrimmage, but it is a start.

Our third string back-up QB seems just as capable of scoring points as our starter.  Is this good or bad?  It depends on your perspective.  You could argue that this epiphany is more a testament to how bad our starting offense is, as it is proof that our back-ups are just as good.

Despite some doom and gloomers, I do think there is talent on this team.  We see flashes of it every once and a while, like sunshine popping through a gray sky every now and then.  But there are more storm clouds approaching, and the weather is getting colder.  We could really use some more sunshine.  The future may be bright, but the present is still pretty cloudy.

But we are now ninth in a conference of eleven teams.  Is there anything else good we can say about our team at this point?

Oh yeah!  Thank God we don't have to play Wisconsin!

INTANGIBLES:

Joe Paterno notches win #398.  TCF Bank Stadium is the 65th stadium Paterno has coached in during his career.  Who keeps track of things like that?

Attendance was listed as 48,479, but Carolyn Todd was there and said an estimate of 35,000 seemed high for actual bodies in the stands.

Penn State is now 8-4 against the Gophers.

THE BIG (TEN) PICTURE:

Wisconsin rolled over a highly ranked team for the second week in a row, this time knocking off Iowa 31-30 on a fake punt in the fourth quarter and game-winning TD with 1:06 to go in the game.

Michigan State survived a scare by Northwestern, coming from behind on the road to win 35-27.

The Buckeyes rebounded from their loss to the Badgers with a woodshed beating of Purdue, 49-0.

Illinois defeated Indiana 43-13.

So the Spartans stand alone on the Big Ten hill and four teams have only one loss--OSU, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Purdue.  Indiana and Minnesota have yet to win a conference game.

SHEDDING TEARS:

1.  Oklahoma--#1 (BCS) falls for the third straight week as the Sooners are upset by Missouri.
2.  Notre Dame--Navy is really taking this rivalry thing seriously.
3.  Texas--upset by Iowa State for their first win over the Longhorns
4.  LSU--burned by Auburn 24-17
5.  West Virginia--squeezed by the Orange 19-14

LOOKING AHEAD:

The Wolverines of THEM  (as in, THE "M") come to Beaver Stadium for a prime time showdown.  Two things have basically defined their season--1) poor defense and 2) Denard Robinson.  There is no doubt that if Penn State is going to win this game, they will need to neutralize Robinson.

But the Penn State offense will have to show up as well.  It is the immovable object meeting the immovable force.  A poor defense against a poor offense.  Who will win the match-up?  In the pre-season, I liked our chances at home against THEM.  But having actually seen our performance on the field, I don't know if we can pull this one out or not.  I don't think we can win a shoot-out--we don't have the offensive consistency or confidence to do that.  But we cannot expect our defense--certainly not the way they have been playing---to keep THEM off the scoreboard.

The Wolverines cracked the USA Today Poll at #25.  They are 5-2 overall with an identical conference record to us.  Here is their season to date:

W  Connecticut 30-10
W  Notre Dame 28-24
W  U Mass 42-37
W  Bowling Green 65-21
W  Indiana 42-35
L  Michigan State 34-17
L  Iowa 38-28

Their marquee win over the Irish is fading as fast as our marquee victory over Temple.  The Irish are now 4-4 with an OT loss to the Spartans.

Can Penn State come to play next Saturday?  Can we translate some emotion into some execution?  Will Bolden be back, or will we be platooning Newsome and McGloin.  I am actually kind of neutral in this respect--i.e. I don't know which would be better for us.  I do know that Clark didn't do well after a concussion versus the Buckeyes in 2008, so I kind of hope we don't rush things with Bolden this week.  On the other hand, Bolden looked pretty good before his injury. . . I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Minnesota Fires Brewster

The University of Minnesota fired their head coach this weekend after a 28-17 loss to Purdue.  That's kind of harsh isn't it?

But Minnesota has not lived up to the Glen Mason era, yet alone an age gone by, where Minnesota football actually meant something.

According to Rittenberg at ESPN:

I can't remember how many times I heard Brewster mention Minnesota's 18 Big Ten championships and six national championships, never mind the fact that neither event had happened since 1967.


Brewster knew the bar needed to be raised in Minneapolis. You couldn't blame him for aiming high. Why else would the school fire a coach (Glen Mason) who consistently made bowl games?

Brewster went 15-30 at Minnesota and 7-18 since November 2008.


Co-offensive coordinator Jeff Horton will take over for Brewster on an interim basis.

Unfortunately for Horton, his team will face a Penn State squad that hopefully will be coming out to prove something--something besides the fact that they are not a very good football team.

Minnesota Flats

Snow covered the grass parking lots, a misty rain fell through most of the game, but the Nittany Lion team put on their best performance of the season for the Homecoming crowd of 107,981 en route to beating the Minnesota Gophers 20-0. This was the first shut-out since PSU beat Temple in 2007. It was the first “complete” game the Lions have played this year, although special team coverage and punt returns continued to be a weak spot.

Daryll Clark threw for 287 yards, completing 21 of 32 pass attempts and no INTs. Royster was back in form with 137 yards on 23 carries. Beachum got the ball a few times, mainly since Green had an ankle injury. The offensive line provided Clark with protection, and Clark looked more comfortable in the pocket than he has in other games this year.

But sparked by the return of Sean Lee to the line-up, the defense shut-out the Gophers and won the gold stars for the day. The little varmints brought bad weather with them, but no protection against a tenacious pack of Lions. Minnesota managed just 138 total yards, with only 37 on the ground. QB Weber was picked off once for the only turn-over in the game. With such a lack of production, it is no wonder they only had 7 first downs in the game. But what is even more revealing is the time of possession disparity which the Lions won nearly 42 minutes to 18!

Penn State has not allowed a first half touchdown this season, and only five total touchdowns on the year. This was the 40th shut-out of Paterno’s coaching career.

The Gophers got within sniffing distance of the goal line—their only trip into the redzone the entire day—early in the fourth quarter. With a first and goal from the eight, the Gophers got the ball to the one before turning the ball over on downs after a spectacular goal line defensive stand. Bowman and Wallace strung the play out and wrapped up Whaley short of paydirt. The Lion offense did not score on the ensuing drive, but moved the ball out of the shadow of the endzone and finished it off with a punt that trickled into the Gopher endzone for a touchback. Mission accomplished and shutout intact.

A lot of talk this previous week was about the Minnesota linebackers (a non-factor for the most part) and All-American receiver Eric Decker (an even bigger non-factor with a single catch for 42 yards.) I’d be cautious about calling this a statement game, but the Lions are definitely saying something. Slowly but surely, this group is improving each week. There is still room for improvement, especially on special teams, but I think things are starting to come together for the offensive line and the running game.

On a day when upsets or near upsets seemed like a dime a dozen, Penn State did just what you would expect a ranked team to do. They dominated the game despite adverse weather conditions. It’s too bad we played !*w@ so early in the season, because I don’t think this team has peaked yet. But there is a lot of football left to played—a lot of winnable games—but a field of potential landmines still awaits between today and the January bowl season.

BY THE NUMBERS:

From GoPSUsports.com:

Team Totals	MINN	PSU
FIRST DOWNS	7	21
Rushing	2	6
Passing	4	14
Penalty	1	1
NET YARDS RUSHING	37	177
Rushing Attempts	18	43
Average Per Rush	2.1	4.1
Rushing Touchdowns	0	1
Yards Gained Rushing	53	193
Yards Lost Rushing	16	16
NET YARDS PASSING	101	287
Completions-Attempts-Int	10-22-1	21-32-0
Average Per Attempt	4.6	9.0
Average Per Completion	10.1	13.7
Passing Touchdowns	0	1
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS	138	464
Total offense plays	40	75
Average Gain Per Play	3.5	6.2
Fumbles: Number-Lost	0-0	0-0
Penalties: Number-Yards	5-40	9-76
PUNTS-YARDS	6-299	3-90
Average Yards Per Punt	49.8	30.0
Net Yards Per Punt	44.8	23.3
Inside 20	2	2
50+ Yards	5	0
Touchbacks	1	1
Fair catch	2	0
KICKOFFS-YARDS	1-67	5-324
Average Yards Per Kickoff	67.0	64.8
Net Yards Per Kickoff	48.0	47.8
Touchbacks	0	2
Punt returns: Number-Yards-TD	0-0-0	1-10-0
Average Per Return	0.0	10.0
Kickoff returns: Number-Yds-TD	3-45-0	1-19-0
Average Per Return	15.0	19.0
Interceptions: Number-Yds-TD	0-0-0	1-0-0
Fumble Returns: Number-Yds-TD	0-0-0	0-0-0
Miscellaneous Yards	0	0
Possession Time	18:01	41:59
1st Quarter	6:36	8:24
2nd Quarter	3:23	11:37
3rd Quarter	3:25	11:35
4th Quarter	4:37	10:23
Third-Down Conversions	3 of 11	11 of 17
Fourth-Down Conversions	0 of 1	0 of 0
Red-Zone Scores-Chances	0-1	3-3
Sacks By: Number-Yards	0-0	1-11
PAT Kicks	0-0	2-2
Field Goals	0-0	2-3

INTANGIBLES:

Penn State won the toss and deferred.

All-American defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd did not attend due to “miscommunication.” Virginia OT Kolb was among the uncommitted recruits in attendance.

Students were throwing snowballs. Japan attacks Pearl Harbor. Man invents fire.

Joe Paterno is now at 389 career victories, FIVE ahead of Bobby Bowden, appeal of 14 other Bowden wins notwithstanding.

THE BIG (TEN) PICTURE:

!*w@ is the only undefeated team in the Big Ten, overall and in conference play. They took down the Badgers in Madison after trailing at halftime, a game eerily similar to their victory at Beaver Stadium. The final score was 20-10, almost identical to the 21-10 decision that opened conference play. The Hawks travel to East Lansing next week.

But the BIG story of the week was the upset in West Lafayette, where the unlikely Spoilermakers took out Ohio State 26-18. Cryor threw two picks and fumbled twice, as the Buckeye offense sputtered miserably. The Boilers are 2-5 but that includes a two point loss to a good Oregon team and a 3 point come from ahead loss to the Irish. The Buckeyes will try to rebound against the Gophers next week.

THEM rolled over Appalachian Delaware State 63-6. They will host us, hopefully not roast us or toast us, next week.

Michigan State overcame a slow start to upend the Wildcats 24-14. Luckily for Northwestern, they can bounce back against the Hoosiers next week.

The Hoosiers, though, managed to win 27-14 against Illinois, the only team without a conference victory. The Illini will take on the Spoilermakers next week.

Wisconsin has a bye next week.

SHEDDING TEARS:

1. Va Tech—Hokies are chokies, losing to Ga Tech
2. The Buckeyes—thanks for hurting our schedule strength!
3. Nebraska—shucked by Texas Tech 31-10
4. Kansas—first loss to Colorado. Thanks for playing.
5. Oklahoma and Sam Bradford—so close . . .
6. The Irish—having suffered through the streak against THEM—I feel your pain. I still enjoy your pain. But I feel it.
7. South Florida-“bull”ied by Cincy

LOOKING AHEAD:

Penn State heads west to Ann Arbor. How good is THEM? Who knows? 4CA has looked awesome at times, and beatable at others. The team looked good against the Irish, but then lost to Michigan State in OT. They almost beat the Hawkeyes, hanging in to the bitter end.

Thus far:

Western Michigan W 31-7
Notre Dame W 38-34
Eastern Michigan W 45-17
Indiana W 36-33
Michigan State L 20-26
!*w@ L 28-30

The scary part of this game is the location. If this were at Beaver Stadium, I’d think our chances were really good. But in Ann Arbor, strange and unfair things seem to happen. I don’t think we’ll need to worry about Joe clamping the playbook shut like he did in 2007 with Morelli at the helm. But you never can be sure with Joe, stubborn as he can be. THEM has the 8th ranked rushing attack in the nation, but they will face our 6th ranked rushing defense. I expect this to be a real nail biter, but I am wondering how 4CA will look against our defense.

MinnyShack

Don't miss Joe Spackler in Minnyshack . . .

"The crowd is standing on its feet here at Beaver Stadium. The normally reserved Nittany Lion crowd, going wild, for this young Daryll Clark..who's come outta nowwhere."

"My foe, my enemy, is an animal. And in order to conquer him, I have to think like an animal and, whenever possible, to look like one. I've got to get inside this dude's pelt and crawl around for a few days."

"License to kill gophers by the Trustees of the Penn State University. Man free to kill gophers at will. To kill, you must know your enemy, and in this case my enemy is a varmint. And a varmint will never quit, ever. They're like the Vietcong. Varmintcong."

Thanks to Lion4Life76 for his Joe as Carl Spackler sig pic at the top!

Linebacker Who?

The upstart Gophers, who have managed the 83rd best scoring defense and 77th best total defense in the country are starting to think that maybe they are Linebacker U. Maybe they meant Linebacker Yew--bends but doesn't break????

According to Marcus Fuller of PioneerPress.com:

[The] Gophers hope to show Penn State who really has the best linebackers in the Big Ten . . .

Lee Campbell and Simoni Lawrence, a couple of senior linebackers, drew attention to themselves at the University of Minnesota's football practice Tuesday, hopping around, bobbing their heads and shouting, "Linebacker U, Linebacker U, Linebacker U."

That traditionally has been a nickname for Penn State (5-1, 1-1), ranked No. 13 nationally this season, but the Gophers (4-2, 2-1) feature one of the Big Ten's most talented linebacker corps this year — and want to prove they are the best.

"I don't think Minnesota compares with Penn State's history," said Campbell, who was a big Penn State fan while growing up in Pittsburgh. "It's hard to even argue who is Linebacker U. But all I know is that the linebackers here, we're doing our best to play well week in and week out. We'll see at the end of the year which linebackers are more productive."

". . . drew attention to themselves" Some kids will do anything to get attention.

"I don't think Minnesota compares with Penn State's history," Could this be the understatement of the year?

So where do those impressive numbers show up on the scoreboard? When you look at Minnesota's defensive statistics, they are not good. Granted, their linebackers are making a ton of tackles--but is anyone else? And where are they tackling? At the line of scrimmage or 8 yards downfield? Penn State is 4th in the nation for tackles for a loss, while Minnesota is 57th.

I'm not impressed. Are Yew?

By The Numbers: Minnesota

Here are the NCAA statistics for Minnesota and Penn State:

NCAA Stats Comparison
Category:	Penn St.	Minnesota
Rushing	32	99
Passing Offense	39	75
Total Offense	23	99
Scoring Offense	38	65
Rushing Defense	8	83
Turnovers Gained	59	26
Passes Had Intercepted	82	96
Pass Defense	26	62
Net Punting	65	13
Punt Returns	99	7
Kickoff Returns	119	12
Turnover Margin	76	61
Fumbles Recovered	90	8
Passes Intercepted	30	55
Fumbles Lost	59	59
Turnovers Lost	79	90
Passing Efficiency	41	79
Pass Efficiency Defense	18	55
Total Defense	8	77
Scoring Defense	6	60
Fewest Penalties Per Game	4	40
Fewest Yards Penalized Per Game	3	41
Punt Return Yardage Defense	113	14
Kickoff Return Yardage Defense	93	64
Offense Third-down Efficiency	3	68
Offense Fourth-down Efficiency	55	106
Defense Third-down Efficiency	25	112
Defense Fourth-down Efficiency	15	75
Tackles for Loss	4	57
Offense Tackles for Loss	4	52
Pass Sacks	7	50
Pass Sacks Allowed	26	93
Time of Possession	27	95
First Downs	13	111
First Downs Allowed	8	97
Red Zone Efficiency	70	36
Red Zone Efficiency - Defense	5	84
Average NCAA Rank:	39.78	64.22
Weighted Avg. Rank:	31.67	69.00

Penn State leads most if not all offensive and defensive categories. But Minnesota leads nearly if not all kicking and returning (special teams) categories. Penn State is favored by 15 points. The statistical edge is with the Lions.

In common opponents, both teams played Syracuse. Penn State won their match-up 28-7 while Syracuse took Minnesota to OT before losing 23-20. Edge PSU.

Records. Penn State has one loss to !*w@, ranked 11th. The Gophers lost to Cal and Wisconsin, neither of which is currently ranked. Edge PSU.

Looking Ahead: The Lions travel to Ann Arbor. Minnesota travels to Columbus. Push.

It is homecoming for Penn State. Edge PSU, even though the 1999 Minnesota game was also a homecoming game!

Weekly Cup of Joe

Normally I don't spend much time rehashing press conferences. After all, what do we really learn from these things. Temple's a great team. Eastern Illinois will kick us in the teeth if we're not careful. I don't know anything about that. Blah, blah, blah. But, being that I couldn't find much else to blog about, I thought I'd take a look at this week's presser.

Q. Sean Lee was scheduled to test his knee yesterday. I was wondering, how did he do? Has he received medical clearance to play?

He hasn't received medical clearance yet to play. But I watched him a little bit (on Monday). We told him take it easy. Ron Vanderlinden, who is his position coach, stuck him in a couple plays. Monday's not tough day. We don't do a lot of hitting or anything like that. But it's a good day to break him in. And I think he came out of it okay. I'm anxious to see how he feels today when we go out there.

But it's still not a done deal. I'm not sure whether he's going to make it or not this Saturday. But, he's working like a dog trying to, so we'll see.

OK--some valuable info there. I will be surprised if Sean Lee plays this week. It has little to do with his rehab or his determination. It has everything to do with him being healthy for the games we might really need him.

Although, that said, will we be able to handle the Gophers? Adam Rittenberg dissects the Gopher Offense as a work in progress:

Minnesota has taken a variety of approaches in Fisch's first season as it transitions to a pro-style offense. When the running game stalled early on, the Gophers kept throwing the ball to superstar wide receiver Eric Decker, who carried the offense at times. The Gophers opened Big Ten play with a balanced effort against Northwestern (186 pass yards, 166 rush yards). The run game stalled the next week against Wisconsin, so Adam Weber took to the air. Last week against Purdue, Weber attempted only nine passes as Minnesota racked up 207 rush yards in a win. It's been a process for a unit still in transition.

Minnesota ranks last in the league in total offense (319.7 yards per game) and rushing offense (114.5 ypg) but owns a 4-2 record, 2-1 in Big Ten play. "We've shown that we can run the ball, and we've shown that we can throw the ball," Fisch said. "The games have dictated what we've chosen to do."

Joe addressed the issue of the Minnesota Offense:

Q. From your point of view, is it harder to defend a passing game that primarily features one guy, like Minnesota does with Eric Decker, or a passing game that really spreads the ball around?

Well, you've always got to be aware of the superior wideouts such as Decker. Decker is a great football player. There's a great chemistry with him and the quarterback (Adam Weber). And the quarterback has so much confidence in him, he'll make throws to him that you ordinarily wouldn't make. You've got to know where he is all the time. If you don't, he'll catch seven, eight, 10 passes for a lot of yards and a couple scores. That's one thing.

But, it's hard. When you say one receiver as opposed to three good receivers, offensive line, kind of pass protection, handle certain blitzes, quarterback, can he read certain things when he's working with three receivers, it's just not that simple to answer that question. I think each one of them, depending on the cast of characters, gives you problems. Decker gives you a problem. He's not the only guy. You know, that No. 11 (Troy Stoudemire) is a good football player and return guy....No. 5 (MarQueis Gray), they've got a couple other guys that can go catch the football. Fall asleep, (they will) throw the ball to the tight end. In the clutch, it's a one-man show maybe, but it's not a one-man show the entire game. You can go overboard trying to cover Decker. They can hurt you other ways. So it's a combination. When you're dealing against a team that's as well-coached offensively and defensively as Minnesota is, then you've got to be available to handle a lot of different things, and one of them obviously, top of the list, would be, don't let Decker beat you.

Got it. Don't let Decker beat you. But how will we cover Decker? Joe was asked about both our secondary, and this particular issue.

On Knowledge Timmons:

Knowledge practiced yesterday. I'm anxious to see how he feels today. I think he's going to be fine.

On the Secondary:

I think our secondary has been good, solid. Hasn't come up with the football as often as I'd like to see them do it. They've made one or two mistakes. Two big passes on us, and that's about it. The rest of it's been pretty good. . . I think this week -- I think we'll know a lot more after this week. Although, as I said, I'm encouraged at where we are right now, particularly with the attitude of the practice yesterday.

And on the issue of Decker:

Q. On the Timmons thing, what would your plans be to cover Decker? Will you try to rotate cornerbacks?

Why in God's name would I answer that in any way? You sound like a Minnesota assistant coach. "What are you going to do with Decker?" You know, I don't know. We may put four corners on him, all right, let everybody else run for touchdowns. I don't know what we're going to do yet. We've got to look at some things. It's Tuesday. We've had one practice. We had a long discussion this morning as to some of the things they do.

Gotta Love Joe. Yeah, that's the ticket. Maybe FIVE guys on Decker. That'll fix him.

The Season Countdown: #8 and #7

In my countdown from the easiest game (#12) to the most difficult (#1), here is where we stand so far:

12. Eastern Illinois
11. Syracuse
10. Akron
9. Temple
8. INDIANA . . .

With the out of conference schedule such as it is, we have only Big Ten games left. It should be no surprise that Indiana is the easiest of those games since most projections have them finishing last or near last in the conference. In fact, the real argument here might be whether Akron or Temple will be a tougher opponent, but does that positioning really matter in the great grand scheme of things?

Indiana has never beaten Penn State on the football field. They came within a goal line stand in 2004 but came up short, a game that many point to as the "turn-around" for Penn State football in this decade. So the Hoosiers have got that going for them.

Indiana will come to Beaver Stadium on November 14, after facing Iowa and Wisconsin the previous weeks. They won't likely be looking ahead to Purdue. The Lions could be caught looking ahead to the Spartans, and will be coming off a big game with the Buckeyes. Schedule wise, the differences are a wash.

The Hoosiers return 18 starters from a team that finished last in the conference. QB Kellen Lewis was actually slated to shift to WR, but ended up being dismissed from the team in April for violating team rules. They also lost leading rusher Marcus Thigpen. As the next to last game of the year, their new quarterback will have had plenty of experience--maybe some bad experiences--but it will be his first time in Beaver Stadium.

I just don't see this team pulling an Iowa-type upset. Coach Bill Lynch, in his third year, has his work cut out for him.

#7: MINNESOTA

I quite frankly don't know where to put this Gopher team. I still remember vividly the 1999 homecoming game where the Gophers spoiled a perfect season--a game which many feel was the start of Penn State's slide that bottomed out in 2003-4.

But Glenn "let's open the half with a successful onsides kick" Mason isn't on the sidelines anymore. Minnesota went 7-6 last year with a lopsided loss to Kansas in the Insight Bowl. Penn State has not faced the gophers in two seasons when they rotated off the schedule.

Minnesota opens their season at Syracuse, so a common opponent will help us gauge this match-up a little better beforehand. The Gophers will be coming off games against Wisconsin and Purdue before coming to Happy Valley, and have another road trip to Columbus looming on the horizon. Penn State will be coming off a road trip to Illinois and a scrimmage (functional BYE WEEK) against Eastern Illinois, and as I said, the game will be played in front of a homecoming crowd. Caution must be used not to be thinking ahead to a road trip to Ann Arbor the following week. Unlike Indiana, Minnesota is able to win some games. They also have an un-Minnesota like OOC game with Cal.

I know it's unfair to criticize their schedule when our own is laughable this year, but the last few years have seen the gophers scheduling ridiculous OOC games (they have South Dakota State late in the season) which they ride into conference play undefeated. They lost their last 5 games last year after opening at 7-1.

The Gophers had trouble with their ground game last season, but sport a capable passer in Adam Weber, who had an accuracy of 62%, threw for 2,761 yards and 15 touchdowns. He has veteran receivers to throw to, which is a concern for our secondary. The line will be bolstered by Notre Dame transfer Carufel and junior college transfer Wills. I think our defense will be settled in at this point, but then I never expected USC to light up the scoreboard against us last year either. The Gopher staff will have new offensive and defensive coordinators running the show, so that presents an unknown quantity.

I don't expect a 2005 result, but I would not be surprised if we didn't control this game. However, the Gophers have 18 starters returning and they likely will improve. This game could be close enough to cause the Lion faithful palpitations. I still think we win at home.