Paterno Tribute

Joe Posnanski (SI) has written an open letter of sorts to Angelo Paterno, late father of Joseph Vincent Paterno.

Angelo, look at the way your son's eyes darken now. Look how he balls up his fists and uncrosses his legs, as if he's uncomfortable, as if he suddenly remembered someplace he needs to be. Look how the smile on his face—the smile that punctuates all the stories he tells, like the one about Bear Bryant wanting a lane of traffic cleared for his team (the Pennsylvania governor said no), or the time at a coaches' convention that Dan Devine mentioned an unnamed loudmouth coach at Oklahoma, and Barry Switzer shouted, "Switzer!" and raised his hand—look how that grandfatherly smile twists into a grimace. Madonn'! Someone is asking Joe Paterno about the wins record. Again.

The wins record. What the hell can Joe say about the wins record? That he doesn't care about it? That he does? Angelo, that record is like a noose around his neck ...

And now? They still don't see him. They see that wins record. That's how so many people define your son, Angelo. After beating Minnesota 20--0 last Saturday, he has 389 victories, five more than Bobby Bowden (at least for now; the NCAA wants to take away 14 of Bowden's wins, but Florida State's appealing) and more than any other Division I coach ever. People act as if that's what it's been about. As if that's why he still coaches. "What am I gonna tell you?" Joe asks. "I try not to pay attention to it. But it's there. I don't want the record. I say that, and I know people say, 'Oh, who are you kidding, Paterno, with that humble pie?' But humble pie's got nothing to do with it. What am I gonna do with that record?"

People have been telling Joe to quit for more than 40 years, going back to the time in '67 when he went for it on fourth down in the Gator Bowl against Florida State. The Nittany Lions didn't get the first down, the game ended in a tie, and on the plane ride home a joker on that team, Jack Curry, walked back to the coach, who was sitting with his head in his hands.

Joe looked up to see his player's face. Curry said, "When you started the game, people didn't even care who the coach was at Penn State. But after you went for it on fourth-and-one, the whole country went, 'Who the hell is the coach at Penn State?'"

As for being out of touch ... Joe relentlessly pleads guilty. He will tell you (and tell you and tell you) he doesn't have a cellphone, and he doesn't have a computer, and he doesn't know anything about all the social networking. ("What's that thing called, Facemask?" he asks.)

Angelo, methinks the coach doth protest too much. That's the Brooklyn in him. That's the you in him. Let them underestimate Joe. Let them think the world has passed him by. Let them think the old man has gone soft. Nobody needs to know that during the off-season Joe called all his coaches together for their usual meeting.

And, first thing, he said, "Gentlemen, we need to start Twittering."

Maybe he did lose faith for a while, Angelo. Friends saw something flicker in him a few years ago. For more than 30 years, nothing had changed at Penn State. Teams won. Players graduated. Joe taught football and life.

A friend says, "I think after Adam [Taliaferro] got hurt, Joe had a crisis of faith. I think he wondered in a small way if [coaching] was worth it."

In 2002 his brother died. They were so close, Angelo.

Toward the end of the '04 season, before Penn State played Indiana after a six-game losing streak, Joe canceled practice and held a team meeting. He said, "We're so close. We're going to win our last two games, and then we're going to win the national championship next year." His players looked at him, stunned, unsure if they were listening to a prophet or a madman.

"Nobody else believed," Adam says. "Nobody. Not even people in the program. Only Coach Paterno believed. And then ... everybody believed."

"He got what I meant," Joe said. No, Joe has not gone soft yet. People will talk about the wins record, Angelo, and make no mistake, Joe Paterno in little State College, Pa., wants to win every single game. But, even now, he hears your voice over the cheers: Are you making an impact? He is still trying.

"If all my life has been about is winning football games," Joe says, "then my father is
rolling around in his grave."

More Vintage Paterno photos here.

Weekly Game Guide

Bobby Bowden's Seminoles take on the Tar Heels tonight on ESPN. LETS GO HEELS!

Penn State is a 4.5 favorite over THEM on Saturday in Ann Arbor.

In other Big Ten games:

Purdue Spoilermakers are 10 point favorites over Illinois. A loss by Purdue would be a terrible letdown after last week, but I gotta root for Illinois since we don't play the Spoilers.

The Buckeyes will try to bounce back against the Gophers. The Bucks are 17 point favorites. Did you hear they changes their cheer at Ohio State? Instead of O-H-I-O, when Pryor goes back to pass they chant O-H-N-O!

Northwestern is a 5.5 favorite over Indiana. Who cares?

In the second most interesting game this weekend in the Big Ten, the Spartans are a 1 point dog to the Hawkeyes who have to travel to East Lansing. To stay in the title picture, the Lions have to hope !*w@ has to drop at least a game. This would be a good one right here. GO SPARTANS!

In Top Ranked Action:

Texas faces off against Missouri. The Horns are 14.5 point faves.

Florida is a big favorite (22) over Mississippi State.

Cincinnati is a 17 point fave over Louisville.

Bama is an 16.5 fave over the Volunteers.

Boise State is favored by 24 over Hawaii.

In games featuring previous opponents:

Syracuse is a 9 point favorite over Akron.

Temple is a 1.5 fave over Toledo. Go Owls!

Eastern Illinois is 5-2 and faces Jacksonville State which gave Bobby Bowden a run for his money. Who hasn't given Bobby a run for his money????

Anything else? Oh, yeah. GO BC! Beat Irish!

By The Numbers: THEM

Here are the NCAA statistics for Penn State and THEM:





NCAA Stats Comparison

Category:	Penn St.	Michigan
Rushing	25	8
Passing Offense	37	86
Total Offense	19	25
Scoring Offense	42	9
Rushing Defense	6	58
Turnovers Gained	68	68
Passes Had Intercepted	68	85
Pass Defense	14	80
Net Punting	86	2
Punt Returns	96	71
Kickoff Returns	119	37
Turnover Margin	67	88
Fumbles Recovered	97	85
Passes Intercepted	31	43
Fumbles Lost	39	66
Turnovers Lost	63	82
Passing Efficiency	32	54
Pass Efficiency Defense	12	38
Total Defense	5	64
Scoring Defense	2	46
Fewest Penalties Per Game	9	30
Fewest Yards Penalized Per Game	5	36
Punt Return Yardage Defense	116	46
Kickoff Return Yardage Defense	84	87
Offense Third-down Efficiency	3	44
Offense Fourth-down Efficiency	64	49
Defense Third-down Efficiency	21	34
Defense Fourth-down Efficiency	4	56
Tackles for Loss	7	33
Offense Tackles for Loss	10	88
Pass Sacks	11	86
Pass Sacks Allowed	16	49
Time of Possession	9	114
First Downs	16	30
First Downs Allowed	3	47
Red Zone Efficiency	67	78
Red Zone Efficiency - Defense	1	47
Average NCAA Rank:	37.14	55.38
Weighted Avg. Rank:	28.92	46.5

The only common opponent for both to date is !*w@. Both teams lost, and both teams had late opportunities to tie/win that went for naught on turnovers. For all the talk about how close this game will be, the NCAA stats are heavily in favor of the Lions. THEM leads significantly in a few categories: net punting, punt return yards, kick-off return yards and kickoff return defense. I hope they lead in punting this week as well, since you don't put points on the board if you are punting! They are also better in offensive fourth down conversions, but that is a rather dubious honor since it implies that the team has had to go for it on fourth enough times to pad those stats. When you look at the actual numbers, as opposed to the rank, you see PSU has a 4th down conversion of 50%. That is four attempts with 2 conversions. But for THEM, they rank higher based on a 56% efficiency--NINE attempts with five converted. That said, I really hope this game doesn't come down to whether they are able to convert a fourth down or not.

Another quirky stat is the time of possession, where THEM ranks 114th in the country. Yet they have the 8th ranked rushing defense. You would think that a team that good at running the ball, would be pretty good at chewing up the clock. Apparently not. But their offense does make good use of its time, being 9th ranked in the nation in scoring. The time of possession skewing is probably a combination of turnovers, poor passing, and poor defense. They can stop the run, but not the pass. PSU averages TOP of 32:57 while THEM averages 27:07, so the actual disparity of those ranks is about 6 minutes--give or take a COUPLE OF SECONDS! We really should not bet atlking about time in Ann Arbor.

I think the key stats for a Penn State win on the road is our rush defense against their rush offense. Force THEM to pass, and we will have a good chance to win. If we can't contain their run game, it could be a long, dreary afternoon.

Blog Poll Week Seven

I departed this week from a long-standing tradition of keeping the #1 team the same as long as they contiunue winning. Florida was my #1 last week, but quite frankly, I thought Alabama looked better. I'm in a pissy mood, so down go the Gators. Deal with it.

I also had to rank Pitt which didn't help my mood. But the bastards keep winning somehow, but I'd feel foolish ranking a one-loss Idaho team or a one-loss Central Michigan team. Don't get me wrong--I THOUGHT ABOUT IT. But I have to admit, the Wannstache would probably beat either of those two teams. So be it. But the Rank Nazi is just waiting for another loss--and then NO RANK FOR YOU!

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Alabama	1
2	Florida	1
3	Texas
4	Iowa	2
5	Boise State
6	Southern Cal	1
7	TCU	2
8	Cincinnati	2
9	Miami (Florida)	2
10	Penn State	3
11	LSU	1
12	Georgia Tech	8
13	Oklahoma State	2
14	Brigham Young	2
15	Oregon	2
16	Virginia Tech	12
17	Houston	5
18	Ohio State	10
19	Utah	6
20	Pittsburgh
21	West Virginia
22	Kansas	8
23	THEM
24	South Florida	5
25	Texas Tech
Last week's ballot

Dropped Out: Oklahoma (#18), Nebraska (#21), South Carolina (#23), Missouri (#24).

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.

End of an Era

Today marks the end of an era for me. It is the first time since 1993, when I was a resident, that I will miss a home football game at Beaver Stadium.

I always thought the only thing that would keep me from a game was my own funeral. Although this might upset some people, I am still alive.

It is not the weather that beat me.

Unfortunately, it is Penn State.

I woke up this morning fully expecting to head out early to make sure I got a space that I had already paid for. There was no need to pack tailgating stuff--we wouldn't be allowed to put up a tent or have any fun anyway. Just sit in the car for an extra few hours.

But I still wouldn't get "my spot." And my dad has knee arthroscopies, and while he is still able to play golf in his 70's, sitting in the cold is not helpful. My mom just had foot surgery yesterday, and was willing to go IF I could get a spot--normally I am seven rows from the stadium and with the escalator at gate B, getting to my seats is easier for her. But who knows where the parking nazis would force me today.

And the more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I considered taking my gun along, but that would only ensure that I was behind bars before the day was over. I didn't need some snot nosed, pimple faced kid trying to earn a few bucks for his pizza and beer addiction tell me where to park my car. Worse yet, I didn't need an officer of the law whose salary I pay with my tax dollars telling me where I can or cannot park, especially after sending over $8,000 to Penn State this year alone.

It would be like the police knocking on my door and throwing me out of my house because there are homeless people that need shelter. I don't deny they need shelter, but the answer is not to take my shelter away from me. I'm sorry Kate if people can't afford reserved parking spaces. So those that do should suffer? None of us can be blamed for the weather, but this asinine decision to stab the donors in the back is simply unconscionable.

I would not have enjoyed today, and so I will watch the game on DVR, as my son has a hockey game at 3:30 that I can now actually attend.

Unfortunately this decision brings me no peace. I am still disheartened by my streak ending. While it is not be like losing a good friend to cancer, it is still a loss and for a heinous, random twist of fate.

I hope the University official that made this decision is fired.

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!