Penn State beats Ohio State, 13-6

Penn State beat Ohio State in Columbus. It's kind of a big deal. Here's some initial thoughts.

The Good: The defense played out of this world at Ohio State. Navorro Bowman was all over the field, as was Jared Odrick. The defensive line and the linebackers were fantastic on containing the zone-read option plays with Beanie Wells and Terrelle Pryor. On the offensive side, I was completely thrown off by the insertion of Pat Devlin. But it was a brilliant way to spark this offense. He displayed the level of composure that was missing with Daryll Clark at the helm. That's not to say Devlin should be the permanent starter. By putting him in for Clark, the coaching staff, and Joe Paterno, showed their true desire to win this game. This was the decision of the season. Tom Bradley really called on his defense to make enough happen late in the game to prevent the feared "comeback drive" from Pryor and the Buckeye offense.

The Bad: The offense, for most of the game, was pathetic. There was no rhythm, no focus, and the blocking was horrid. I don't have much to complain about on the defensive side of the ball, as you can't be picky when you hold Ohio State to six points in Columbus. I would have liked to see the defensive backs make more plays against the Buckeye passing game–earlier than the Lydell Sargeant interception–but again, that's being picky. Back to the offense, Evan Royster never got it going, and that was partly due to the line and the play calling. The vertical passing game was non-existent. I liked the play-action passes and the outside runs on the first drive, but where did that go? Penn State tightened up quickly once the Ohio State defensive front gained traction against the Lions' front. If Penn State makes it to the BCS or even the Title Game, this kind of offensive performance will only earn the Nittany Lions a big, fat blowout loss.

Overall: And we thought the Michigan game was adversity? If there was any doubt whether Penn State could handle the pressure in 2008, it was just laid to rest in Columbus. Remember Columbus, that place Penn State hasn't won in since 1978, and hadn't scored more than 10 points since that same year? I think Penn State earned the respect some failed to give it prior to this win, and does–gasp!–put itself squarely on the inside track to the BCS National Championship Game. Let's hope Penn State uses this bye week very wisely, and doesn't get into any trouble.