410 Fund

Apparently, a fund is being set up . . . 410 for Joe's next win . . . to help football players pay back any debt after graduating.  This is a response to sanctions at Penn State that limit the number of scholarships by the NCAA.

According to Aaron Cheslock on WeAreCentralPA.com:

The "410 fund" looks to help Penn State football players repay their student loans after they graduate. Faith Lucchesi-Deboef, the organization's President says it was partly formed in response to the NCAA sanctions against Penn State handed down in July. 

"It doesn't have quite the same appeal as maybe curing cancer does, but sports and athletics and education go a long way into creating a good citizen."

Lucchesi-Deboef is the founder of the 410 fund. She's a mother of three football players, and says future football players shouldn't have to pay for Penn State's past problems.

It's not just for Penn state, Lucchesi-Deboef says donations can get sent in for any student-athletes leaving any D-1A football program in the country.

I have no idea if this violates any NCAA rules, but I don't think the NCAA can regulate what happens after a student graduates.  But then again, the NCAA apparently doesn't limit themselves to matters it has no business to regulate.  The part about not limiting it to Penn State football players may be a way around the NCAA, ala the NC academic fraud that is being dismissed by the NCAA because any student could have taken those courses.

What's a Mauti?

I don't know.  What's a Mauti with you?

Michael Mauti will likely go down as one of the best senior leaders in the history of Penn State football.  Before the season began, he was outspoken about the NCAA's decision to allow PSU players to transfer for any reason (even no reason) whatsoever, and he was upset by conference brethren coaches (well, one school anyway) who stalked PSU players on campus to recruit them away.  On Saturday, Mr. Mauti put his words into action as part of a good old ass whoppin' of Tim Beckman's floundering Illini.

Penn State beat Illinois 35-7 but should have scored more.  Oh, my kingdom for a kicker.

Mauti had two picks and returned one 99.5 yards for what could have been a touchdown but was just that much short.  Replay kept 7 points off the board, but gave PSU one second.  The lack of a kicking game kept three points off the board.  But you can't fault Mauti's heart or his effort.  He is all in.  He is all Penn State.  He may likely become one of my all time favorite players, and he may be now, though I'm not sure I can part ways with Michael Robinson.  MRob led the Lions to a fantastic 2005 season marred only by bungling refs and 2 freaking seconds, at a time when many had lost faith in Joe Paterno and Penn State football.

That's not so different from now, come to think of it.  Maybe there will be a tie at the top of that list.

I won't dwell too much on game details now, since I live-blogged the game in other entries.

And while Illinois is no Nebraska or Wisconsin, or USC or Alabama, this win was so huge to these kids that have stuck by Penn State and Coach O'Brien.  While the recruiting that Beckman did was not illegal, it was unethical and quite frankly, classless and unsportsmanlike.

Now, just to be fair, this Penn State team won't be mistaken for Alabama or Oregon either.  But I am encouraged by what I am seeing, the kicking issue notwithstanding.  We seem to be getting better every week.  McGloin has shocked a number of football fans, but he still has his moments.  I thought his performance against Illinois was a little below what he had been doing--missed some open guys, and took a sack with a ton of negative yardage.  On the other hand, he didn't throw the ball up for grabs and an INT or fumble it either, both of which would have been worse outcomes.

The secondary is still a little suspect.  We bit pretty easily on the trick play.  Our pass rush still doesn't consistently put pressure on the QB, and I am concerned that a strong offensive line giving a QB a lot of time could spell disaster. 

Yet, I remain cautiously optimistic.  Most people I talk to feel that O'Brien hasn't fully explored the offensive play book yet.  Could it be that we haven't unveiled all our defensive power yet?  Could there be some blitz packages we are saving for bigger games?  I certainly think that is possible.

And each week shows that the remainder of the schedule is not as daunting as we initially feared.  The Spartans showed that Ohio State is not invincible.  Nebraska looked really bad the first half of their game against the Badgers . . . and Wisconsin looked equally unimpressive in the second half as Nebraska overcame the shock of all those ugly uniforms on one field to come back and win impressively.

All in all, I am ectstatic over this win and looking forward to heading to Beaver Stadium next week to shock and awe the Northwestern Wildcats.

But I wonder . . . did Beckman tell his team in the locker room after the game that they could have won that game if he had replaced more of them with Penn State players?

BY THE NUMBERS:

Penn State won time of possession with 32:55 minutes of offensive control, thus giving PSU an edge in plays of 82 to 69.    The Lions only beat Illinois in total yardage by 18, but gained 173 on the ground to only 74 for Illinois.  Illinois had more passing yards, but also suffered 2 interceptions.  The Illini missed two field goals making Ficken not look so bad.  Ficken actually kicked a FG, but the points came off the board due to a roughing the kicker penalty that kept the PSU drive alive and enabled us to score a touchdown instead.

Mauti's 99 yard interception return was reminiscent of Harrison's return in the Superbowl for the Steelers, except for the fact that Harrison scored.  But the points weren't needed and Mauti made his statement.  I still wish he had gotten the score, though.

Penn State righted its penalty issues, logging only 2 flags for 17 yards.  The Illini were penalized 8 times for 69 yards, and had a player ejected.

INTANGIBLES:

The Blue Band made its one trip to an away game.  Not sure why they chose this one, as their audience was a meager 46,734 fans, and one sportswriter felt this number was "heavily inflated" (Cory Giger of the Altoona Mirror.)

Illinois won the toss and deferred.  That worked out well for them, didn't it.

O'Brien won his debut Big Ten game.  I'm not sure why ESPiN had to keep reminding us that Urban Meyer won his debut conference game at Ohio State, even running it along the ticker all night during the Wisconsin-Nebraska game, while not even mentioning that Bill did the same, but whatever.  It's not like Meyer never coached against a Big Ten team before.

Our uniforms are uglier than yours!

THE BIG (TEN) PICTURE:

Purdue was still out of conference, but beat Marshall 51-41.

The Buckeyes beat Sparty 17-16.  Did you know that was Urban Meyer's Big Ten debut?

Northwestern defeated Indiana 44-29.

Iowa mirrored Minnesota 31-13 for the Gophers first loss of the season.

Nebraska trailed most of the game, but came from behind to defeat Wisconsin 30-27.

SHEDDING TEARS:

1.  Baylor.  Scored 63 points, but fell to WVU 70-63.  That's some fine defense there in the Big XII.  The 'Neers should fit right in.
2.  Ga Tech--beaten by Middle Tennessee State 49-28.
3.  Va Tech--beaten by Cincinnati 27-24 in a wild finish.
4.  Arkansas--lost to Texas A&M 58-10.  Wow.  Just.  Wow.  And they started out the season ranked 8th!
5.  Idaho--beaten 66-0 by North Carolina.  At least the Vandals scored 14 against LSU (63-14.)

LOOKING AHEAD:

The undefeated Wildcats bring their game to Beaver Stadium for a nooner next week.

The Mildcats are 5-0 with such impressive wins as these:

W Syracuse 42-41
W Vanderbilt 23-13
W Boston College 22-13
W South Dakota  38-7
W Indiana 44-29

They are ranked 22nd in the USA Today and 24th in the AP.

On the flip side, our wins are not any more or less impressive, and we could have/should have won the two that we lost.  It will be interesting to see the opening line on this game (and we know how much that means after thumping a 1.5 point favorite this weekend) but I suspect we might be favored, even though NW is ranked.  I also think we will win this game.

And for Mr. Beckman . . . (to Drive By by Train)
On the other side of a field I knew
Stood a coach that looked like you
I guess that’s déjà vu
But I thought this can't be true
Cause you coach out in Champaign, not  here in mid PA
Now you can’t ever get away from me
Oh but those recruits
We could not dispute
They didn't leave me
Cause  they could all see
That you were overwhelmed, and frankly scared as hell
Because we really beat you too
Oh I swear to you
I'll be there with you
This is just a drive by

We Need THIS Guy

Big Shout out to Tim for emailing me this video!


Now, I don't think any of those field goals were very long (strange that the yard lines were perpendicular to the goal posts rather than parallel, but even if he doesn't have the "leg" for 45 yarders, he certainly looked good for extra points and inside the 20.  And, it at least gives O'Brien a reasonable option on fourth down in the red zone.  (I must admit, though, I am secretly loving the going for it on fourth down philosophy--I just don't want it to cost us a game!)

And if this guy's already on a soccer scholarship, Ficken wouldn't have to lose his scholie and could still handle kick offs.

Maybe we should email this video to O'Brien?  What do you think?????

Illinois In-Game: Second Half

Did Mark May really praise Penn State and Coach O'Brien?  Head to your bunkers, kiddies.  The apocalypse is close at hand.

Illinois deferred and gets the ball first to open the second half.  But the defense came out fired up.  Big hit on Scheelhaase followed by a sack and Illinois has to punt.  Freakin ball rolled around inside the five but not into the end zone.  PSU takes over in their own end zone.

The offense stalls and must punt from the endzone, with Illinois taking over with good field position at the PSU 42.

R U Kidding Me?  A backward pass and the guy is wide open?  In the end zone?  Holy Red Roof Inn, Batman!

Well, that didn't look pretty.  A great drive stalls and with no kicker, a botched fourth down play gives the ball right back to the Illini.  Don't like the feeling I'm getting now.

The defense held, but more confusion.  Time out Penn State.  Better than a penalty, but come on.  FOCUS!  FOCUS!

Mediocre punt to the PSU 44.  We need to mount a sustained, scoring drive.  Now.

Illegal shift and 5 yard penalty doesn't help.  FOCUS!

OK.  Moseby-Felder has his head in the game.  Good for a Penn State first down!  Then, Zwinak to the five--first and goal!  McGlion sneaks for the TD!  (Should have done that at the end of the first half.  Just sayin'!)  Oh wait.  We need to further review.  Can we use X-rays to see exactly where the ball is?  The radiologist in the booth states the play stands as called.

PENN STATE 28-7.

Illinois finally got a third down conversion and moved the ball into PSU territory, but Mauti comes up with his second INT of the game.  Again, he didn't score.  But I'm not complaining on this one.

McGloin is back firing.  The Illini defense is slow getting up off the field at the end of plays.  Drive that ball down the field, baby!  Zwinak powering to the 17!  Oooh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oooooh!  Oooh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oooooh!

Is that a bag of Tostitos?  I guess that's the end of the third quarter.

FOURTH QUARTER:

Zwinak pushes across for the score.  Cue the Blue Band.  Fight on State, strike your gait and WIN!  And the extra point is good before any official review.

PENN STATE 35-7!  Who was a 1.5 point favorite in this game?

Middle Tennessee State is beating Georgia Tech.  GO MTS!

Wow.  Kick-off coverage looks good.  Illinois starts around the fifteen.  Let's Go D!  They heard me!  Scheelhaase sacked at the TWO!  Punting time, baby.  PSU looks to get good field position.

Sure enough, the punt rolls out at the Illinois 44.  Keep.  The.  Accelerator.  Down.  Show no mercy.  We are not a dead Lion and these Vultures need to be taught a lesson.

Illinois takes over on downs near the Illini 10.

The remainder of the game was anti-climatic, but the Illini did push downfield and threatened to score with a first and goal on the one yard line with five seconds remaining.  The ensuing play was stuffed by the Penn State D to preserve the 35-7 final score.  Beckman could probably have called a time out with a second or two left, but in his favor, he chose to not prolong the agony for a pointless score.

FINAL:  PENN STATE 35 - ILLINOIS 7

Illinois In-Game Blog

I missed the opening of the game due to unforeseen circumstances, but as I tuned in, we had the ball already deep in Illini territory.  Unfortunately, we bogged down and Ficken successfully kicked a field goal!  But thanks to an Illini running into the kicker penalty, PSU converted those 3 points into 7 after two running plays.

PENN STATE 7-0.


PSU then held Illini and forced a punt.

So PSU is on the move and the Illini are helping out with a personal foul hit to the head.  Thank you very much.

Is that an Illini coach on the PSU sideline recruiting?

The PLAY is UNDER FURTHER REVIEW.  It certainly looks like Belton got in on the second effort, but alas, the video evidence was insufficient.  Doesn't matter.  McGloin sneaks for his third rushing TD of the year!  But wait.  There's more.  Let's REVIEW IT FURTHER.  Hell, the refs couldn't tell until they unpiled players.  How in the wide, wide, world of sports can TV replay add anything to that????  Moot point.  Play stands.

PENN STATE 14-0.  Ficken 3-0, counting the field goal that didn't count.

My God!  Even our return game is looking good!  I think Illinois should work at halftime to recruit a few more players over to their side.  It's not moral, but it's probably legal.  I'm sure the NCAA will allow them to change uniforms in mid game.  And maybe they could recruit some fans to fill their stadium while they're at it!

How the tables turn so quickly.  A couple of almosties by McGloin turned the ball over on downs, and the Illini burst a run deep into PSU territory.  I hate momentum swings.  Well, when the swing against us.  I still like going for it on fourth rather than a long field goal or a punt.  Defense needs to tighten up now.

ILLINOIS MISSED THE FIELD GOAL!  (Did they convert Ficken?--Just Kidding, Sam!)

Penn State took over on the 20 after the miss, but couldn't overcome a chop block penalty and were forced to punt when McGloin took a rare sack on third down.  Great punt by the Butterworth and a fantastic stick by Mauti to plant the receiver in his tracks.  PSU back on D.

END FIRST QUARTER.

Mission accomplished, although we couldn have been flagged for a helmet to helmet hit.  I like the defensive aggressiveness, though.  No running room on the punt.

PSU takes over and starts with a nice 20 yard run by Beltin' Belton.

Alex Kenney for the Penn State First down!  Oo, Oo, Oo, Oo, Oo, Oooooo.  Oo, Oo, Oo, Oo, Oo, Oooooo.  That quickly turned into Oo, No, No, No, No, Nooooo as McGloin took a huge sack and PSU tried a 47 yard field goal that is missed.  Ficken now 3-1 on the day.

PENN STATE D HOLDS ON FOURTH AND SHORT!  WE ARE! . . . .

PENN STATE!

Zwinak's the hot knife.  The Illini D line is butter.  Penn State is moving the ball in big chunks on the ground.

Lehman for the TD off of play action!  Helmet to helmet hit brings the flag against the Illini!  15 yards enforced on the ensuing KO and #9 was ejected from the game!  Bring it on, Illini babies.  BRING.  IT.  ON.   Recruit that, losers.  I hope we hang another 50 on Beckman and his merry little band of poaching recruiters.  Douche bag.

But Todd, how do you really feel about them?

PENN STATE 21 - F'N LOSERS 0

Penn State D being challenged again.  Illini have moved the ball inside the PSU 10 with half a minute to go.  Fourth and goal at the four, and they already missed a field goal.  Can PSU rise to the occasion, or will Illinois opt for the FG?  Only the shadow knows.

YOU HAVE TO BE F'N KIDDING ME!  SERIOUSLY?  Illinois really deserved to have that shit shoved so far down their throats a gastroenterologist would have to come in to get it back.  Either way, it was a great play by Mauti and an in-your-poaching-face moment for Mr. Beckman.

Well, well, well.  One second left.  Sucks to be you Beckman.  Unfortunately, PSU took their foot off the accelerator and opted for the FG which was blocked.  There were more ups and downs than an elevator in the Empire State Building in that final minute.  This was the first really questionable call for O'Brien.  One yard.  McGloin has been gold on the sneak from there.

HALFTIME.  PSU 21-0.

Game Guide: John Paul Jones Edition

I have not yet begun . . . to pick who to root for in this week's games.  So I guess I'd better get started.

As you probably already know, Paul Jones joins Kevin Newsome and Rob Bolden as Penn State's most recent QB to leave the program.  Originally a walk-on, Matt McGloin continues to outlast his competition.

Many fans have noted the remarkable improvement in McGloin at the helm so far this season, albeit against less than top caliber opponents.  He certainly does look more poised and capable and indeed seems to improve with each and every game.  Is that his natural progression, or is it the coaching.  Perhaps it's the shoes?  But if this is what QB coaching can do, we can only wait in anticipation to see what they will mold future recruits into.

So Stanford and Washington are tied at 3.  I guess Washington is no USC.  I've got no problems with Stanford, but who wants to root for a tree?  (See what I did there?  Root.  Tree.)  Whatever.  GO HUSKIES!

Penn State takes on the Poachin' Illini on Saturday in Champaign.  The pesky poachers are 1.5 point favorites even as of this morning.   GO STATE!

In the Big Ten:

Minnesota opens as a 7 point prairie dog to Iowa.  We play Iowa, but not the goofy gophers.  Gotta go with the Hawkeyes on this one.  GO HAWKS!

Indiana gets to open its Big Ten season against the Wildcats of Northwestern.  The purple are favored by 13.5  GO WILDCATS!

Purdue is still out of conference and favored over Marshall by 15.  GO BOILERS!

The Spartans have angered the football Gods and must travel to Columbus to open the season against Pope Urban I.  Michigan State is favored by 2.5.  It would be better for Penn State if the Buckeyes win since they are in the Leaders Division, but it's never a bad thing when the Buckeyes lose.  And it's not like we can play for a championship or anything.  GO SPARTY!

And in the grandaddy of them all, the Badgers travel to Lincoln to take on the Cornhuskers.  Nebraska is favored by 12.5.  GO HUSKERS!

Denard Robinson has the week off.

Around the nation:

Texas is favored by 2.5 over Okie State.  Fera defected to Texas.  GO COWBOYS!

Ohio is favored over UMass by 25.  GO BOBCATS!

Navy takes on San Jose State, which is favored by 2.5.  GO MIDDIES!

Temple is off this week.

Quarterback wasn't in the cards for Paul Jones!

McGloin Named Player of the Week

Matt McGloin was named the B1G Ten Player of the Week despite not taking the NCAA free ticket to anywhere but State College.  Does that make him a B1G Mac?

McGloin has looked like a different quarterback this season under the leadership of new head coach Bill O'Brien, and he turned in his best performance Saturday in Penn State's 24-13 victory against Temple at Beaver Stadium. He completed 24 of 36 passes for a career-high 318 yards and accounted for three touchdowns (2 rush, 1 pass). His yards total ranks ninth in team history, and he tied predecessor Daryll Clark for the second most 300-yard passing games in team history with his third. McGloin spread the ball to nine receivers, a season high for him, and found top targets Allen Robinson and Kyle Carter five times each. He also matched his career total for rushing touchdowns in the game, recording his first since 2010. "I definitely think it was one of the better games of my career," he said afterward.

Congratulations Matt!