Blog'er Up! Boiled Sports on PSU vs. PU

It's Penn State's first Big Ten road trip this week, and we'll all learn a lot more about both teams by game's end. Penn State is coming off a convincing win over Illinois, and Purdue limps home after falling to Notre Dame. Boiled Sports, a delightfully cynical Purdue blog, joins Zombie Nation this week to tear down this week's match up.

1. For us Penn State fans who don't quite understand, just how much does Purdue normally hate Notre Dame, never mind after a loss to the Irish?

BS: "We can't speak for everyone, only our friends, family and those we know well. But we think UND is the biggest sham in college sports. From their phony opinion that they're still important to college football to their belief that their student athletes are good lil' Catholics to the bastardization of the Catholic church that their fans help perpetuate by mixing Catholicism and VooDoo practices; we truly can't stand that place. Don't get us started on the fact that they have their own set of standards, which the NCAA has allowed... which give them more money for recruiting and more independent publicity (NDC Broadcasting) and the way the BCS bowls kiss their ass each time their over-rated teams win 9 games. They're a joke; have been since 1994 and hopefully will be until 2022 and beyond. Nothing would make us happier than to see PSU get to play them in a BCS game and then get to see the Lions beat them by 3 or 4 touchdowns...like a typical UND bowl appearance."

1b. How does the average Purdue fan feel towards Penn State?

BS: "'Dowd visited Happy Valley back when Brees played for Purdue...and J was there when Painter was a frosh. In both cases, PSU fans were pretty good hosts. Plus, most of the PSU fans we know are good people who see not only the positives of their team (a la UND or aOSU), but also the shortcomings. Don't get us wrong, some of you guys are bags, but most of you are A-OK by us. Probably has something to do with not having been in the conference long enough for us to hate you. Heh."

2. Where does Purdue go from here? Does it invigorate the team to play mad against Penn State, or will the ND loss deflate any remaining optimism this season?

BS: "We're circling the drain. It'll take a miracle or emergence of a player that no one saw coming for Purdue to make a bowl."

3. You've expressed some displeasure with Curtis Painter's poise when under defensive pressure. Penn State has one of the best defensive lines in the nation. Does Purdue have enough talent up front to keep Painter cool, or will they allow Penn State to bring the heat?

BS: "The offensive line hasn't been too bad this season, but Curtis' decisions have been awful and his technique is not so good either. For instance, against UND on more than one occasion, the pocket collapsed on the back side, and instead of stepping up into the pocket to make the throw, he stood where he was and threw the ball off of his back foot and threw it errantly. Morfe should be expected more from a Senior quarterback who's started for 3.5 seasons. But he's been coached very poorly for most of his career; we don't blame the guy...we blame the system that allows him to get big numbers against MAC opponents and other patsies, but has him wet his pants against teams like PSU."

4. On the offensive side, last week Penn State had its worst day by far this season--a mere 38 points and 420 total yards. If you had to pick one unit-to-unit match-up Purdue must win Saturday, what is it and how does PU win the battle?

BS: "First off, let's be honest. PSU has played NO ONE prior to Illinois. You guys know, just as we do, that this season will get tighter and tighter as more real competition steps in front of PSU. In other words, don't make your plans for Arizona just yet. PSU clearly wore down Illinois due to their depth and size; Illinois looked like a typical spread offense team (ie Purdue 5-8 years ago) as the game wore on. Without Mendenhall, they're not the world-beater they once were (or thought they were).

But Purdue is different. There's really no group, from Special Teams to Defense to Offense that has impressed me for longer than a quarter this season. Our defensive unit played a bend-but-don't-break style against Oregon that worked for some of the game, but failed (as usual) when it mattered. We're pretty sure Purdue cannot beat the Lions in any aspect of the game come Saturday (see answer #2)

5. The early line is 12.5. Does PU cover?

BS: "Highly doubtful. Does this team have some pride to show, playing at home in their Big Ten opener? Perhaps. Is the talent gap as large as records and spreads would indicate? We don't think so... but the gap is just enough that we have a hard time imagining the Boilers truly believing they can win. The painful problem is that once the Boilers are down a couple scores, it's over. But when they're up a couple scores, they play so tight and conservatively (starting with coaching on down) that the collapse is inevitable."

Be sure to visit Boiled Sports all this week for a look behind enemy lines!
Coming tomorrow: I preview No. 6 Penn State at Purdue.