Playing Ketchup

I've been really lazy busy the past week or so, which is why I haven't been posting as often. But here's just a quick catch up session before Monday's First Look:

1. The Nittany Line has been doing a very good, very smart retrospective of Penn State's 2007 squad. The best part about it is that he's doing it unit-by-unit. This week's focus is on my personal favorite, the defensive line. Is there any other unit that has so much of an impact on a team? I mean, really, if you can't stop the other team from running the ball, you're screwed (see: Penn State 2003). I highly recommend reading TNL's work on this.

2. Bob Flounders had to pump out something this week. The offensive line will be a strength? Really? Damn people.

3. Dennis Dodd is pissing off Big Ten fans, again. And everyone else, for that matter.

4. 2theLion pointed out this week that Kansas sued (and won) a small T-shirt shop for violating copyrights on the COLOR BLUE. Yeah, it's interesting, and a bit scary that no one gives a rats ass about the First Amendment anymore.

5. And finally, Penn State's recruiting class for 2009 is looking really good. Ok, so it's not USC, Ohio State or Miami good, but you can't say these guys won't be able to win some championships in the near future. Lineman Nate Cadogan (yes, he's Gerald's brother), and wide receiver Christian Kuntz both committed to Penn State this week*. That brings the class total to 16, and it's not even August!

*I linked to BSD on these stories because there's no point in linking to the big two (Scout and Rivals) since it's old news now.

**I'd also like to remind everyone to cast your vote in the poll below the posts. And check out last week's results, too!

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More on Steele's PSU ranking: 2008's No. 10 isn't anything like 2007's No. 10

Does anyone else realize that Phil Steele ranked Penn State No. 10 going into 2007? That's just something I'd like to point out. I understand that Penn State had all the makings of a top-10 team last year, but 2008 begs this question: Why are people so shocked that 2008 could be a much better season than 2007? Morelli, Connor, Kinlaw and Lee (for now) are gone, which adds up to two negatives and two positives. That's not a whole lot to lose, considering what Penn State brings back in 2008.

It was all about the "senior quarterback" last year. Morelli was coming off what was viewed as the stepping stone bowl performance, to lead his team to the BCS. We all got so caught up in the hype that it killed us to see the truth, that Morelli was hopelessly under-coached and the mistakes kept coming. He couldn't move in the pocket to save his life, resulting in a horrible campaign behind an excellent offensive line. Only Morelli could have pulled that one off.

This leads me to my next point about Phil Steele's rankings. Before 2007, Steele & Co. weren't that outrageous to put Penn State at No. 10. Shit, Beano-Freaking-Cook even picked Penn State as a national championship contender. But 2008 feels different. This year, it's not "expected" to go BCS-well. That might work out better than we could hope for.

So while I just seemed to go on a long-winded contradiction of myself, it's really not that backward to say all this. Penn State will retain the same exact pre-season ranking as Phil Steele's 2007 magazine, but these are two polar opposite No. 10 rankings. We'll discuss this more over the summer, but I just thought I'd mention it now.

Ok, four posts in one day. I'm done. See you Monday with the first official team preview: Coastal Carolina.

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2007

◊ Zombie Nation's 2007 predictions, Big Ten Bloggers posts, ZN's Top 25 rankings, game and season previews, etc.

*Last update: 02/07/09

2008 Schedule/Results

2007 PSU Previews & Reviews:
Game 1 - No. 17 PSU vs. Florida International
Preview
Game 2 - No. 14 PSU vs. Notre Dame
Preview/PSU wins 31-10
Game 3 - No. 12 PSU vs Buffalo
Preview
Game 4 - No. 10 PSU at Michigan
Preview/Stream of Thoughts
Game 5 - No. 21 PSU at Illinois
Preview
Game 6 - PSU vs. Iowa
Preview
Game 7 - PSU vs. No. 19 Wisconsin
Preview
Game 8 - No. 25 PSU at Indiana
Preview/PSU wins 36-31
Game 9 - No. 25 PSU vs. No. 1 Ohio State
Preview
Game 10 - PSU vs. Purdue
Preview
Game 11 - PSU at Temple
Preview
Game 12 - No. 25 PSU at Michigan St
Preview
Game 13 - Alamo Bowl, PSU at Texas A&M
Preview/Review

-Bowl Previews, Part 1
-Bowl Previews, Part 2

Other Bowls:
BCS Championship Game
Preview

Top 25 Rankings for 2007:
-Final
-Week 14
-Week 13
-Week 12
-Week 11
-Week 10
-Week 9
-Week 8
-Week 7
-Week 6
-Week 5
-Week 4
-Week 3
-Week 2
-Week 1
-Pre-Season Top 25 08/23/07

Email: ZombieNationPSU@gmail.com

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If you want respect, schedule good teams, Part 2 of 4

2/4.

Everyone argues that strength of schedule should mean everything in college football, until someone calls their team out on scheduling Directional Community College...

As promised, here's the top five toughest schedules BCS bowl teams have played from 2003 through 2007. In case you're already thinking of your team's "really, really tough [insert year here] slate," here's my criteria for selection:

-I-AA schools! If a team played anyone outside I-A, they're automatically out. A team should never be rewarded for playing those games. Frankly, I'd rather the NCAA force teams to take a bye that week instead of paying a couple hundred grand for a win. I realize that Florida International might get beaten nine times out of ten versus Appalachian State, but it doesn't matter. ASU is in I-AA. If they want to be considered on the same level as I-AA, then apply for that level and move up. If you want proof of my convictions, I would have left off Penn State's 2006 schedule in a heart beat if they made the BCS. Why? Youngstown State. If Penn State makes it to the BCS in 2008, they're not making the list either. Why? Coastal Carolina. If you want respect, play teams from your own division.

-Opponent records, looking back. Was a team good at the beginning of the season, only to implode and prove to be a bad team? Look at Ohio State's win versus Washington in 2007. The Huskies were coming off a victory over Boise State, 2-0 and a star quarterback in Jake Locker. Ohio State beat them handily, and everyone was praising the Buckeyes. Washington turned out to be a bad team, at 4-8. And what about Boise State, which lost in week to to Washington? That loss didn't look so bad when Washington was 2-0, but now that's considered a real bad loss.

-Opponent conference affiliations. OK, I know I'm one of the first to argue that the SEC is not the juggernaught its fans want to think it is, but it's still one of the top conferences each season. That being said, if a team like Notre Dame in 2005 convincingly defeats Tennessee, even thought he Vols finished 5-6, it still counts more that beating a 5-6 ACC or Pac-10 team. (By the way, that Vols team beat LSU in Baton Rouge) Beating a mid-level Big Ten or SEC team is much better than beating the Sun Belt or MAC champions.

So here's what I came up with. Debate all you want, but you're not going to be able to convince me your team's schedule was harder in the last five years. THIS IS ALL IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER!

Just missed the cut. Close, but not tough enough...

West Virginia's 2007 schedule was tougher than most think. Mississippi State proved to be a worthy opponent to at least eight teams, and East Carolina came on strong. Oklahoma, regardless of what happened in the bowl, was still a powerfull team in 2007:

I think Texas' 2005 slate was bolstered mostly due to the night game at Ohio State. If the Longhorns had played one more tough road game, or at least one more top-15 team, this schedule would have made the top five:

Sure, Miami played a lot of really good teams in 2003, but it also played in the Big East and a game against a pathetic ECU team. There were tons of somewhat tough games, but none that particularly stood out:

Ohio State put on a good show in 2006 until getting pantsed in the championship game, but that didn't take away from the strength of their schedule that season. Playing a night game away versus the defending national champ will always gain you brownie points, but too many teams on this schedule turned out to be mediocre:

I know what you're thinking, "How did Notre Dame even get consideration in the first place?" Well, I hate to burst your bubble. The Irish's schedule in 2005 wasn't out of this world, but it definately wasn't as easy as you thought. Just having USC on there brought it out of the depths, and playing a bunch of bowl teams gave it the edge over many others:


Now for The Top Five Toughest Schedules Played by BCS Bowl Teams From 2003-2007...

I bet you looked down before finishing this, noticed Michigan, and though "Yeah, right." Hold on there cap'n. Playing in Autzen Stadium has been the death of many great teams, and matchups against Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio State and USC far outweigh the games against Indiana and Illinois. Add Purdue to that, and you have five ranked teams:

Why do you think it was such a big deal when West Virginia beat Georgia in the 2006 Sugar Bowl? This is why. The Bulldogs faced only six bowl teams in the regular season, but three other teams were one win away from bowl eligibility. LSU was probably one of the top two teams in the nation, but no one knew it. I hate to admit it, but getting throught teh SEC is really hard to do:

Scream all you want about Oklahoma's struggles in the Fiesta Bowl lately, but the 2006 schedule was much harder than most thought at the time. Eight bowl teams, and a Washington team one win from eligibility, sets this slate a notch higher than it could be. Plus, losing to Boise State that year wasn't all that bad, even if the Sooners should have won. The two BCS OOC games did it for me:

Here's my top underrated schedule on this list. Ohio State played two bowl-eligible BCS teams OOC, and a ranked, MAC champion Bowling Green squad. Going up against ten bowl eligible teams--five ranked--isn't something you run into every day. I wasn't totally convinced with this schedule, until realizing that the Buckeyes didn't really get a break outside of the Indiana game:

Remember, this is in no particular order. So you SEC fans don't go thinking that I put LSU here because I think they had the hardest schedule since 2003. But if you want to find a great schedule, look at LSU's 2006 docket. I really think that the 2006 Tigers were better than the rankings indicated. I'd like to see your team go through five ranked SEC teams in one year, including the eventual national champ, Florida. Tulane and Fresno St. turned out to be quite cakie, but the rest of the teams more than made up for it:

So that's it. Sorry it took so long to get this up, but hey, I'm not getting paid to do this. I don't know yet when I'll have Schedules, Part 3 up, but I'll keep you updated as to its progress.

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The new, new plan

Ok, so I've already called a timeout and changed the play once, now I'm changing the play again at the line of scrimmage. I'll have Schedule, Part 2 up soon, but not covering the top five worst schedules since 2003. Rather, it'll be the top five hardest from 2003-07.

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If you want respect, schedule good teams, Part 1 of 4

1/4.

Everyone argues that strength of schedule should mean everything in college football, until someone calls their team out on scheduling Directional Community College...

I don’t know the real reason Penn State pulled a U-ie by dropping Arkansas State from the 2008 schedule, replacing ASU with the Oregon State Beavers. But I know one thing; they didn’t do it for the jokes. Could it be that Tim Curley grew a set and went door to door, asking for any BCS school to come to Happy Valley? Even more surprising was that OSU didn’t demand a return game. But even if they did, it would allow PSU to really test the guts of the program. If the team can make a trip like that and pull off a win in a tough place to play—OSU ended USC’s 33-regular-season-game win streak in 2006 in Corvallis—it would pay enormous dividends in recruiting and national perception.

That aside, I’ve heard for years about PSU’s lack of interest in using the new 12-game schedule to renew the rivalry with Pittsburgh. Some have even said that if PSU doesn’t want to play Pitt any time soon, at least have an on-going rotation of former eastern rivals like Maryland, Rutgers, Syracuse and West Virginia. While I understand that PSU might not want to lock themselves into a long-term deal with one school—Lord knows, the Michigan/Notre Dame series has failed miserably and never gets good ratings—the atrocious scheduling policies used by PSU athletics is hurting the program. There’s no excuse for scheduling a I-AA school. I don’t care if Florida, Michigan (we know how that one worked out) or Texas does it. Penn State has gained a reputation for not being able to beat good BCS teams, and scheduling bottom-feeders won’t help.

The fight over whether or not a school should schedule I-AA’s will never end, so I’m just going to move past that. I’m just not buying PSU’s line that “We need the seventh home game.” It’s not so much that PSU wants to have seven home games; that’s perfectly fine. I don’t like that they’re using it as justification for not being more aggressive in their scheduling of BCS schools, and—dare I say—playing some away games.


In 2000, PSU and Pitt played their last games against one another, and if you subtract the Kickoff Classic, it was a pretty ordinary 11-game season—six home games, five away games. You didn’t hear PSU crying like a baby for that seventh game then. Now take a look at 2001. There were only three out-of-conference games that season, and all three slots were used for quality opponents. I’d say opening with Miami, taking on a good Southern Miss program and then traveling to Charlottesville is a damn good job of giving your team the upper hand when people look at strength-of-schedule.


I think 2002 was a fluke. No team should be allowed to play eight home games in one season. But it wasn’t even like that helped PSU, as it couldn’t even go through the home slate clean. That’s beside the point. 2002 and 2003 felt like a scheduling onslaught, with PSU traveling to Lincoln (remember Nebraska was still considered a power then) and taking on Boston College. At this time, Temple was still technically a BCS team, playing in the Big East. Penn State knew that 2002 and 2003 would have 12 games, and scheduled two very good BCS teams. It didn’t kill the program.

I almost have to give PSU a pass on 2004 and 2005, as Alabama was supposed to play a home-and-home series, but backed out like pussies. Just think of how strong PSU’s schedule would have been had it played Bama those two seasons. Would it have changed the landscape of 2005? We can only wonder. Overall though, I’d give PSU a failing grade for 2004, as I believe they could have found some better team than UCF to replace Bama. 2005 was a much better deal, since PSU sort of lucked out with CMU turning out to be one of the better MAC teams. Cincinnati and South Florida, looking back, had a lot of future stars in 2005.


Probably the most disappointing schedule in a long time was the 2006 docket. Youngstown State was the first I-AA team scheduled in, well, a really long time. That was sort of the final straw for me. There were dozens of better choices for that spot. I remember hearing that SMU was free that week. How cool would it have been for PSU to play SMU in a revenge game for 1982? Great story line for the ESPN guys to harp on. They should have put Craig James on the crew for that one. Buffalo in 2007 was a curious choice. It wasn’t horrible, but not good. Florida International was a worse team to play than YSU in 2006. There are 70 teams in I-A which could be considered “quality” opponents. Penn State basically told everyone that it was too lazy to go out and find one of them to play.

*Temple: Before I finish up, just a word on Temple. It’s a nice idea to have Temple back on the schedule again. It builds excitement in the eastern part of the state, and strengthens PSU’s ties to South Jersey. It’s also a great situation with the Owls getting better, and several former PSU standouts are leading them to respectability. Even if it’s just a farce, and PSU is in it only for the quick buck (which I’m sure they are) I’m relatively happy that Temple will be on the schedule in the future, as long as the Owls are the only OOC “cupcake” PSU plays each season.

I'll have Part 2 up by the end of the week. In that installment, I'll look at some of the worst BCS team schedules played all over college football since 2000. Next week, I'll have Part 3, a look at the best BCS team schedules since 2000. Then, in the final installment I'll list the matchups I'm looking forward to seeing, and the ones I would love to see.

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Article of the day - Adventures in jackassery

I generally try to feature an article each day from another site. Usually they're from Penn State or Big Ten blogs, sometimes from other sites. Please check out the author's Web site. I always supply the link in the introduction.

If you said you didn't believe Penn State was a lock for 10 wins in 2007, you're a liar. At least RUTS is a man about it, and lays it out there for all to see. It's an interesting look back to pre-season 2007. Enjoy.

Adventures in jackassery

I actually wrote this after two weeks of the 2007 season while trying to talk myself into the idea of Big Things for our Lions:

“Ohio State is a good defensive team with a bad offense. They’ll have a hell of a time trying to score points during a late night game in Beaver Stadium. In fact, their next game at Washington is shaping up to be one of those cross-continental trap games.”

And this:

“Michigan is already looking ahead to 2008 and their new head coach, who will likely be Les Miles or Greg Schiano.”

And this:

“Wisconsin may still be Penn State’s greatest threat in the conference.”

All in the same post! My God! I knew the RUTS 680 needed an upgrade, but damn.

The season had so many possibilities back then, though. The depth of Notre Dame’s sucking was hinted at, but not truly exposed. So that seemed like a pretty good win for Penn State. Michigan, our greatest nemesis, had just been blown out by Oregon and dropped to 0-2. Ohio State farted around with teams like Akron, or Kent, or one of those other random Ohio schools. Wisconsin was shaky, and nobody knew what Illinois was capable of yet (I mean, those douchebags lost to Missouri! For shame!).

We had potential. At one point, Ohio State flipped the switch. So did Michigan and Illinois. Whatever their respective problems, they figured it out quickly and practically ran the table. Penn State just kind of floated along, waiting for a spark that the quarterback just couldn’t provide.

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ZN's official ESPN's Bowl Mania picks

Here's my official entry for ESPN's Bowl Mania, in descending order starting with the highest confidence. Feel free to search for my entry, username ZombieNationPSU (really original, I know). I'm a member of BSD's group, Black Shoe Diaries. The password is joepa. BSD invites everyone to join. I offer a few comments below the picks.

32. Sheraton Hawai’i: No. 24 Boise St. over East Carolina
31. International: Rutgers over Ball State
30. Brut Sun: No. 21 South Florida over Oregon
29. Valero Alamo: Penn State over Texas A&M
28. Tostitos Fiesta: No. 4 Oklahoma over No. 9 West Virginia
27. Allstate Sugar: No. 5 Georgia over No. 10 Hawai’i
26. Papajohns.com: No. 22 Cincinnati over Southern Miss
25. Rose p.b. Citi: No. 13 Illinois over No. 7 USC
24. Motor City: Purdue over Central Michigan
23. Capital One: No. 12 Florida over Michigan
22. Gator: No. 20 Virginia over Texas Tech
21. AT&T Cotton: No. 6 Missouri over Arkansas
20. Outback: No. 18 Wisconsin over No. 16 Tennessee
19. Chick-fil-A: No. 23 Auburn over No. 15 Clemson
18. Insight: Indiana over Oklahoma State
17. FedEx Orange: No. 8 Kansas over No. 3 Virginia Tech
16. Gaylord Hotels Music City: Kentucky over Florida State
15. Texas: Houston over Texas Christian
14. Bell Helicopter Armed Forces: California over Air Force
13. GMAC: Tulsa over Bowling Green
12. Pioneer Las Vegas: No. 17 BYU over UCLA
11. PetroSun Independence: Colorado over Alabama
10. AutoZone Liberty: Mississippi St. over UCF
9. Meineke Car Care: Wake Forest over No. 25 UConn
8. Emerald: Oregon State over Maryland
7. Allstate BCS Championship: No. 1 Ohio State over No. 2 LSU
6. Champs Sports: Michigan State over No. 14 Boston College
5. San Diego County Credit Union: Utah over Navy
4. Pacific Life Holiday: No. 19 Texas over No. 11 Arizona State
3. New Mexico: New Mexico over Nevada
2. R+L Carriers New Orleans: Florida Atlantic over Memphis
1. Roady’s Humanitarian: Georgia Tech over Fresno State

--Of course I picked PSU with higher confidence.
--I really like Illinois to pull the upset. If Stanford can do it in LA, so can the Illini.
--Look, Ohio State has been hearing it for too long. Plus, Jimmy Tressel is too good of a coach to let this one get away.
--Even though Texas' defense is holier than Swiss cheese, I think they really show up for this one. Plus, ASU is still brooding that USC meltdown.

There you go. My picks for all the bowl games. Now let's see what happens.

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Top backs

I’ve taken serious issue with many things on ESPN.com, SI.com, CBSSportsLine.com and many others. But this one has got me going. Not that he’s the utmost authority on college football, but SI.com’s Cory McCartney felt he’d take another shot at ranking the top-10 running duos in 2007 college football. When you read his list, keep this in mind:

“Before we begin, let's remember the cardinal rules: this is about running backs only -- no running quarterbacks, fullbacks or all-purpose wide receivers that take the occasional handoff -- and it has to be a legit tandem, not just one guy with monster numbers.” – McCartney.

You’ll see he frequently breaks his own rules by selecting the players he did. Here’s his list, along with my own comments on each entry. I compiled the stats. I took only the names he provided, and they are his exact selections, nothing else. Enjoy.

Arkansas – Darren McFadden (305/1727/15), Felix Jones (122/1114/11) - I really can’t argue with the Razorbacks as No. 1. And if you want to take it a step further, Arkansas fullback Peyton Hillis (57/327/2) was one of the best blockers in college football, and had that highlight run against No. 1 LSU.
Georgia – Knowshon Moreno (239/1273/12), Thomas Brown (129/706/9) – I don’t really know about this one. Once Brown went down, this was only a one-horse show. But for a while, it was a lethal combo.
Kansas – Brandon McAnderson (175/1050/16), Jake Sharp (138/788/7) – This was more true to the traditional running back double-punch. Both had great YPC (6.0 and 5.7 respectively) and rarely lost yards. Neither was a true starter, or a true backup.
Michigan St. – Jehuu Caulcrick (207/813/21), Javon Ringer (224/1346/6) – Trust me, I know how dangerous these guys can be. Possibly one of the most productive touchdown machines in the nation, the Spartans’ backs plowed over and through the opposition all season.
Oklahoma – DeMarco Murray (127/764/13), Allen Patrick (159/927/8), Chris Brown (142/561/8) – Imagine if Murray didn’t get knocked out for the year? He would’ve been on pace for a Heisman invite the way Adrian Peterson was his freshman year. But all Patrick did was step in and nearly bread a grand. They could be No. 1 running back stable with little argument.
LSU – Jacob Hester (204/1019/11), Keiland Williams (68/459/6) – This is purely political. LSU is hardly an offensive juggernaut and this running back corps is not even close to the top-10. They’re only up here due to the media’s love affair with the Tigers.
USC – Chauncey Washington (183/894/9), Stafon Johnson (89/569/5), Joe McKnight (84/415/2) – I don’t know if this is just a bunch of good running backs, or an offense without a go-to guy. I think it’s the latter, actually. Out of three blue-chippers, USC can’t find one that can carry the load.
West Virginia – Pat White (177/1185/14), Steve Slaton (210/1053/17), Noel Devine (60/519/4) – This is probably the most comprehensive backfield in football, in terms of running the ball. The Mountaineers have a quarterback that can scoot, a feature back and a slasher. When healthy, no team in 2007 disrupted the production.
Clemson – James Davis (191/992/9), CJ Spiller (137/656/2) – Talk about a major underachievement for 2007; coming into the season these two were supposed to race each other to the Heisman ceremony, but neither could get it going. This should have been the ACC version of Arkansas, but wasn’t by a long shot.
UConn – Donald Brown (157/749/8), Andre Dixon (160/809/3) – If you like equality, look no further than the Huskies’ backfield. I think this is more of a “Hey! Here we are!” kind of thing this season, rather than how truly good they were.

Auburn – Brad Lester (111/473/3), Ben Tate (188/856/7) – What, because they’re in the SEC, they’re automatically moved up a few notches? I don’t think so.
Fresno St. – Ryan Mathews (145/866/14), Lonyae Miller (125/571/7) – I really don’t what the hubbub is about here. The only good part is that they combined for 21 touchdowns.
Maryland – Lance Ball (172/763/12), Keon Lattimore (206/789/13) – This was a nice running tandem out of College Park, but nothing to lose sleep over. Yeah, deserves to be in the top-20.
Navy – Reggie Campbell (64/464/5), Eric Kettani (140/755/9) – Doesn’t make sense when there are SEVEN rushers with more than 400 yards for 2007.
Southern Miss – Damion Fletcher (266/1431/15), Tory Harrison (93/386/5) – Fletcher could play with any team, even in the SEC. However, when the next rusher has less than 400, there’s no “duo” aspect.
Texas A&M – Mike Goodson (139/646/2), Jorvorskie Lane (159/746/16) – Throw in quarterback Stephen McGee and you’ve got yourself a power-version of West Virginia’s tri-fecta.
Western Michigan – Mark Bonds (157/690/8), Brandon West (183/848/4) – All things considered—they play in the MAC—this is a pretty good set of backs to work with in any mid-major league.

Now, it’s my turn to vent. So, he’s telling me that certain players from a team in central Pennsylvania wouldn’t qualify above any on this list? Or, should I ask, why isn’t Penn State’s duo of Rodney Kinlaw and Evan Royster on this list?

Here would be my entry:
Penn State – Rodney Kinlaw (222/1186/10), Evan Rosyter (73/448/4) – Not only were both backups to start 2007, Royster’s best games came against some of the better teams. Experienced veteran met raw talent and got along quite nicely for the Lions.

Now compare those numbers to the rest of McCartney’s list. See anything wrong? So do I.

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News and Notes: More Michigan, Is Schiano Next? and Volleyball Vindication

Michigan has stolen the spotlight this week. But that's not really difficult to do when you're wearing the Maize and Blue. If you didn't figure it out by now--or, didn't read my comments posted minutes after the UM hiring story broke--there could be some immediate problems stemming from installing Rich Rodriguez's spread-run system at Ann Arbor. CollegeFootballNews.com's Pete Fiutak really hit the nail on the head with his analysis of the situation.

Rutgers head man Greg Schiano might join the coaching carousel sooner than we think. Talk on him making a move to coach Penn State after Joe Paterno retires has been swirling around for years, especially since RU has become much improved. But going back to that CFN article on Rodriguez, I thought it was interesting how Fiutak found it necessary enough to mention Schiano's possible future with the Nittany Lions.

"Michigan made overtures to Rutgers' Schiano, but he'll probably end up in the NFL or at Penn State sometime in the next three years."

Now, I'm sort of biased towards Schiano, being from North Jersey and all. But I can't help but get excited at this very real possibility. Schiano has all the makings of the next Joe Paterno. You laugh, but who expected JoePa to be as wildly successful as he's been, when he was hired to replace the revered Rip Engle?

Finally, congratulations to the Penn State Women's Volleyball team. After posting a mere two losses, national coach of the year, and four All-America selections, Penn State took home the 2007 Women's Volleyball National Championship, defeating top-seeded Stanford 3-2.

While everyone in the Nittany nation is ga-ga over football, Head Coach Russ Rose has turned Penn State into a powerhouse not unlike UCLA basketball under Gooden, Oklahoma football under Wilkinson, or the New Enlgand Patriots under Belichick. Good job. I've been to quite a few V-ball games in Rec Hall, and I can tell you, they're some of the best game environments you'll see. It's like a Beaver Stadium night game, but packed into a 5,000-seat gym.

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Ranking the bowl games, Part 2

Yes, this is completely my opinion. How I ranked the bowls were based completely on how much I will pay attention to each game. This has nothing to do with intriguing national story lines, talent match ups or whether or not Stewart Mandel thinks it's worth watching. (or any of the other "experts'" bowl rankings) Also, you can just assume PSU vs. TA&M is ranked No. 1 in my mind, just because I want to see the Lions play more than any other team. That ranking has nothing to do with ratings appeal and such. So, here's the other 31 bowls:

16. Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl (Dec. 31, 4 p.m.) Kentucky vs. Florida State - This one should be called the Mediocre Bowl, but UK's offense vs. FSU's defense is compelling enough. Maybe Jenn Sterger will take time out of her busy schedule to show off her boobies. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: UK 29, FSU 21.

15. Brut Sun Bowl (Dec. 31, 2 p.m.) South Florida vs. Oregon - The Shoulda-Woulda-Coulda Bowl is definately worth your time, given at one point, both were No. 2. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: USF 20, Oregon 17.

14. Konica Minolta Gator Bowl (Jan. 1, 1 p.m.) Texas Tech vs. Virginia - My cousin went to UVA, so I sort of a fan. Plus Penn State played them when I was in school, and I don't like passing teams like TT. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: UVA 23, TT 20.

13. Insight Bowl (Dec. 31, 6 p.m.) Indiana vs. Oklahoma State - I know I said no to feel-goods, but IU has overcome a lot to get here. Too bad not many people will see it on the NFL Network. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: OSU 41, IU 35.

12. AT&T Cotton Bowl (Jan. 1, 11:30 a.m.) Missouri vs. Arkansas - This will be the Tigers' chance to shove it in everyone's faces that they should have been in the BCS. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: Missou 45, Ark 28.

11. Outback Bowl (Jan. 1, 11 a.m.) Wisconsin vs. Tennessee - The first of the BigTen/SEC bowls. Remember, the Badgers have a two-game win streak against the SEC in bowls, and UT lost to PSU in the 2007 Outback. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: UW 24, UT 20.

10. Pacific Life Holiday Bowl (Dec. 27, 8 p.m.) Arizona State vs. Texas - This will be an underrated game going in, but might turn into a classic, as long as both teams show up to play. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: UT 30, ASU 20.

9. Champs Sports Bowl (Dec. 28, 5 p.m.) Boston College vs. Michigan State - The only reason to watch is to--hopefully--see that MSU really is a decent team, negating the "fluke" status of the PSU win. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: BC 16, MSU 14.

8. Chick-fil-A Bowl (Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m.) Clemson vs. Auburn - The similarities between the two programs are just plain creepy. I like getting spooked, so this one's worth it. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: AU 18, Clem 14.

7. Allstate Sugar Bowl (Jan. 1, 8:30 p.m.) Hawai'i vs. Georgia - Sure, everyone is curious about this one, but really, I'll only watch it because no other games are on. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: UGA 31, Haw 27.

6. FedEx Orange Bowl (Jan. 3, 8 p.m.) Virginia Tech vs. Kansas - A lot of people will be screaming in the state of Missouri if KU loses big in this one, so it'll be fun. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: KU 24, VT 21.

5. Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (Jan. 2, 8 p.m.) Oklahoma vs. West Virginia - Another one of those "if they both show up..." bowls. These two teams are pretty upset with themselves right now, as they both could have been playing in the Big Easy. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: OU 35, WVU 28.

4. Capital One Bowl (Jan. 1, 1 p.m.) Michigan vs. Florida - This is beginning to sound scary for the Wolves, but with all this time to prepare, and the final game for so many players and their head coach, UM's best will come out. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: UF 24, UM 23.

3. Rose Bowl presented by Citi (Jan. 1, 4:30 p.m.) Illinois vs. USC - How is it that the Illini--as four TD underdogs--can beat Ohio State in Columbus, but have no chance to beat the Trojans? Watch out. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: Ill 34, USC 31.

2. Allstate BCS Championship (Jan. 7, 8 p.m.) Louisiana State vs. Ohio State - I'm convinced that this one will go awry for certain "favorites," as the Bucks have everything to lose, while the Tigers are just happy to be there. Would have rather seem Oklahoma in this one. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: OSU 35, LSU 20.

So that's all folks, for my complete bowl rank--wait, I forgot...

1. Valero Alamo Bowl (Dec. 29, 8 p.m.) Penn State vs. Texas A&M - Of course I'm going to watch this. Duh. Off the cuff, no-research involved pick: OK, maybe I know a little bit more about these two teams than any of the others, but Penn State will win. PSU 38, A&M 14.

Comment on this story: What's your favorite match up this bowl season?

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But can Kermit coach?

You've seen his face on the sidelines and during pre-game warm ups. But you weren't sure exactly as to what he did. Well, now we know what he will be doing. Following the unexpected departure of former Penn State safeties coach Brian Norwood to head up Baylor's defense, Kermit Buggs has been promoted from Coordinator of Player Personnel. Buggs will inherit arguably some of the best safeties in college football as that unit's coach, effective immediately.

But the question is raised, "sure, but can he coach?"

"Prior to coming to Penn State, Buggs was a successful high school coach, leading Surry County High School in Dendron, Va. to a 34-14 record from 1999-2002. His 1999 squad was 14-0 and won the Division I state championship and Buggs was named the state's Division I Coach of he Year." -- Penn State Sports Information press release.

That record could be deceiving though. Take away that perfect season, and his overall record is 20-14. But don't underestimate his abilities. Going undefeated with any team is an impressive acheivement, especially after a coaching change.

Buggs' abilities should be tested right away, leading his new unit against a Texas A&M offense that put up 38 points in a season finale win over the Longhorns. In the 2007 Outback Bowl win over 9-3 Tennessee, current safeties Anthony Scirrotto and Tony Davis made the two biggest plays of the game. Scirrotto's violent hit on Vol star wide receiver Jaycen Swain, set the tone for Penn State that the mythical "SEC speed" couldn't match the Lions' determination. Tied at 10, Davis broke the game open late when the Vols were moving in for a go-ahead touchdown. He recovered a fumble forced by Sean Lee, returning it 88 yards for the score. Penn State never looked back.

So, Buggs, what do you have up your sleeve for the Aggies?

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Roysteritis

I'm getting more and more excited about Evan Royster. Remember the buzz around Austin Scott's arrival to Happy Valley in 2003? This kid should get more, much more than that kind of hype. But before we all take a collective heav-ho onto the band wagon, let's look at Royster's stats through his first 12 collegiate games.


It's no coincidence that Penn State got hot when Royster got the meaningful carries. This is no manipulation of the stats to suit my argument. Here's my breakdown of each of Royster's performances in 2007:

*FIU: This really was just mop-up duty, so it's not that insignificant that Royster ran against one of the worst teams in football.
*ND: PSU got rolling after a late wake-up call. Royster saw action, but didn't get any carries. Wouldn't affect the outcome anyway.
*Buff: Did not play, despite the fact that the PSU running backs were horrendous.
*Mich: Royster only got one carry for one freaking yard. PSU could have used that spark in this one, especially since no one could hold on to the ball.
*Illini: PSU moved the ball well in this one, thus negating Royster's possible affect on the game. Morelli was the difference maker, not the running backs.
*Iowa: Well, it's about freaking time! I'm sorry, I liked Austin Scott, but he was a detriment to this football team. Royster explodes on national TV, against a team PSU hadn't beaten in five tries.
*Wisc: Seeing the possibilities, and partly out of necessity, PSU starts playing Royster more. If there was one play in 2007 that exemplified Royster's season, it was the 25-yard touchdown run on 4th and 1.
*Ind: Now he was on a tear with three straight games with 68+ yards. He kept the chains moving in crutial situations.
*OSU: Just when you thought things were turning around, the door slams shut. Royster gets only four carries and never gets in a rhythm.
*PU: Royster fires back with vengance. His long touchdown jaunt in the fourth quarter essentially shuts the door on the Boilermakers. His first 100-yard day.
*TU: Hampered by injury, but luckily PSU didn't need him.
*MSU: This one hurt for everyone, but none more than Royster. Reaggrivated his injury.

Notice the pattern? When Royster rushed for more than 68 yards, PSU went 5-0.

Again, let me reitterate that I'm not manipulating these stats just to pad my argument. Some of Royster's biggest games came against good opponents. In case you've forgotten, Wisconsin is currently ranked, Indiana is going to a bowl game, and Iowa's defense was pretty good up until late in the season.

I hope this doesn't turn out to be another Scott situation, where Royster fizzles. But I have a really good feeling about this one. Imagine Daryll Clark and Royster running the Texas-spread (or M-Rob-spread) in 2008...

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Penn State to the Alamo Bowl

From the Alamo Bowl's Web site:

11/30/2007, San Antonio, TX –The Pennsylvania State University (8-4) has accepted an invitation today to play in the 2007 Valero Alamo Bowl on Saturday, December 29 at 7:00 p.m. CST in San Antonio’s 65,000-seat Alamodome.

“San Antonio football fans should be excited to see Penn State back in the Valero Alamo Bowl,” said John Yantis, Valero Alamo Bowl Chairman. “Penn State is one of the nation’s most tradition-rich programs and this selection continues a streak of the biggest names from the Big Ten after hosting Ohio State, Michigan and Iowa the previous three years.”

Penn State will be making its second appearance in the Alamo Bowl with their first coming in the 1999 SYLVANIA Alamo Bowl against Texas A&M in front of a standing room only crowd of 65,380 which ranks second in all-time Alamo Bowl attendance.

“We are looking forward to playing in the Alamo Bowl and meeting a very good team from the Big 12 Conference,” said Penn State Head Coach Joe Paterno, who is in his 42nd season as head coach and has an overall mark of 371-125-3 (74.6). “This team has worked hard all season and has been a great group to work with. I’m happy for the squad that their efforts will be rewarded with an opportunity to go to San Antonio, where we had a great experience the last time, and be involved in a good, tough game.”

This year’s game will be the 15th installment of the Valero Alamo Bowl and the inaugural game with new title sponsor Valero. Since 1995, the game has matched the Big Ten and the Big 12 Conferences. This combination has produced eight of the Top 20 most-watched games in ESPN bowl history and has averaged a 4.5 rating.

The last two Alamo Bowl games (Michigan vs. Nebraska and Texas vs. Iowa, respectively) currently rank as the #1 and #2 most-watched games in ESPN bowl game history and trail only the BCS and Capital One Bowl ratings overall.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming the Nittany Lions to San Antonio and the Valero Alamo Bowl,” said Mike Ciskowski, Valero Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. “In our first game as title sponsor, we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to host Penn State under the leadership of Hall of Fame Coach Joe Paterno that will help us continue the Valero Alamo Bowl’s growing track record of capacity crowds and top ESPN ratings.”

“We're delighted to have the opportunity to return to the Valero Alamo Bowl,” said Tim Curley, Penn State Director of Athletics. “Everyone from Penn State had a wonderful experience during our previous trip to San Antonio. The hospitality extended to our team and fans was outstanding. This will provide a chance for some of our alumni in the Southwest to see our team play in person. The Valero Alamo Bowl has been a great partner with the Big Ten and all the Conference schools and we’re excited about returning to San Antonio.”

Ticket prices for the 2007 Valero Alamo Bowl are $32-$67 and can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at (210) 224-9600 or visiting www.ticketmaster.com. Fans can also purchase tickets at the Alamodome Southwest Box Office from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

The Valero Alamo Bowl will announce Penn State’s Big 12 opponent (either Texas Tech or Texas A&M) on December 2 at 5:00 p.m. CST as part of the Fleming’s Steakhouse Team Announcement Party. The press conference will be held in conjunction with the party at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar in the Quarry Market at 255 E. Basse Road.

To download the Valero Alamo Bowl logo, request a credential or view a tentative media schedule, please visit the Media Center section of the bowl’s website. For more information, please call Rick Hill at (210) 704-6388 or Lara Smedley at (210) 704-6389.

About Valero--Valero Energy Corporation is a Fortune 500 company based in San Antonio, with approximately 21,000 employees and 2006 annual revenues of more than $90 billion. The company owns and operates 17 refineries throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean with a combined throughput capacity of approximately 3.1 million barrels per day, making it the largest refiner in North America. Valero is also one of the nation’s largest retail operators with approximately 5,800 retail and branded wholesale outlets in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean under various brand names including Valero, Diamond Shamrock, Shamrock, Ultramar, and Beacon. Please visit www.valero.com for more information.

ESPN’s Top 5 Most-Watched Bowl Games are as follows (rating—household impressions):
1. 12/30/2006 ALAMO BOWL TEXAS vs. IOWA (6.0—5,521,220)
2. 12/28/2005 ALAMO BOWL NEBRASKA vs. MICHIGAN (5.4—4,875,543)
3. 12/30/2005 PEACH BOWL LSU VS. MIAMI (5.2—4,706,275)
4. 12/30/1998 HOLIDAY BOWL NEBRASKA vs. ARIZONA (6.0—4,556,937)
5. 12/29/2005 HOLIDAY BOWL OREGON vs. OKLAHOMA (5.1--4,555,583)

The Valero Alamo Bowl boasts the #3 highest attendance among the 21 ESPN bowl games. Listed below is the all-time list of Alamo Bowl attendances:

•65,875* Alamo Bowl, December 30, 2006 (Texas vs. Iowa)
•65,380 SYLVANIA Alamo Bowl, Dec. 28, 1999 (Penn State vs. Texas A&M)
•65,265 MasterCard Alamo Bowl, Dec. 29, 2004 (Ohio State vs. Oklahoma State)
•65,232 SYLVANIA Alamo Bowl, Dec. 29, 2001 (Texas Tech vs. Iowa)
•64,597 Builders Square Alamo Bowl, Dec. 28, 1995 (Michigan vs. Texas A&M)
•62,016 MasterCard Alamo Bowl, Dec. 28, 2005 (Michigan vs. Nebraska)
•60,780 Builders Square Alamo Bowl, Dec. 29, 1998 (Kansas State vs. Purdue)
•60,028 SYLVANIA Alamo Bowl, Dec. 30, 2000 (Nebraska vs. Northwestern)
•56,229 MasterCard Alamo Bowl, Dec. 29, 2003 (Nebraska vs. Michigan State)
•55,677 Builders Square Alamo Bowl, Dec. 29, 1996 (Texas Tech vs. Iowa)
•55,552 Builders Square Alamo Bowl, Dec. 30, 1997 (Oklahoma State vs. Purdue)
•50,690 Alamo Bowl presented by MasterCard, Dec. 28, 2002 (Wisc. vs. Colorado)
•45,716 Builders Square Alamo Bowl, Dec. 31, 1993 (California vs. Iowa)
•44,106 Builders Square Alamo Bowl, Dec. 31, 1994 (Washington State vs. Baylor)
* The 2006 Alamo Bowl featured the largest sports crowd in Alamodome history.

Penn State Notes

Penn State in 2007: The Nittany Lions bring an 8-4 record into their 40th bowl game all-time. Three of the losses were by seven points or less. Penn State won 30 of its last 39 games overall and ranks among the Top 15 nationally in best cumulative record from 2005-07 (28-9).

Joe Paterno: The Valero Alamo Bowl will be Joe Paterno’s 500th as head coach of the Nittany Lions. In his 42nd season as head coach, Paterno owns a career record of 371-125-3 (74.6) and ranks second in victories among major college coaches and fourth among coaches across all NCAA divisions. He ranks fourth among active coaches in winning percentage (10 years or more).

Paterno is the all-time leader in bowl appearances (34th) and bowl victories (22-10-1 record). His 68.2 bowl winning percentage is third-best all-time among coaches with at least 12 bowl appearances.

Second Time Around: This will be Penn State and Joe Paterno’s second appearance in the bowl. The Nittany Lions are 1-0 in the bowl, defeating Texas A&M in the 1999 SYLVANIA Alamo Bowl 24-0.

Bowl Success: The Nittany Lions are No.3 in the nation with 25 post-season victories and first nationally in bowl winning percentage (66.7, 25-12-2) among schools with at least ten bowl wins.

Three Senior Starters: Penn State had just three senior starters for the last two games of the season: linebacker Dan Connor, tailback Rodney Kinlaw and quarterback Anthony Morelli. The Nittany Lions will return 21 starters for the 2008 campaign – nine on offense, ten starters on defense and both specialists.

Five Lions First Team All-Big Ten: Five Nittany Lions earned first team All-Big Ten honors, the second-highest total among all teams. A total of seven Penn State players earned all-conference recognition. Penn State’s five first team honorees were second only to Ohio State.

Senior All-America linebacker Dan Connor and junior cornerback Justin King were selected first team All-Big Ten after earning second team all-conference honors in 2006. Connor leads the league with 136 tackles and King leads the Big Ten with 17 passes defended.

Also garnering first team all-conference honors were freshman punter Jeremy Boone, sophomore defensive end Maurice Evans and junior center A.Q. Shipley. Junior linebacker Sean Lee and junior guard Rich Ohrnberger earned second team honors.

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Paterno's salary: $500k. Really?

OK, so Paterno's announced base salary is $512,664, according to The Daily Collegian. Can everyone now take a deep breath and rest easy, knowing he makes less than most SEC waterboys? Sure, he gets those freebees all the time from Nike and such, but a half-million dollar salary--for what he does--is NOTHING.

Makes you wonder just how schools like Alabama and Texas A&M feel, after dishing out millions per year for their coaches to lose five and six games, and drop one at home to a certain Sun Belt team. Does this make Penn State fans feel better, knowing their years of tuition aren't really going towards a coach who wins eight or nine games?

I frankly couldn't care what Joe Paterno makes. But I does make me giggle to know he makes less than most decent lawyers. Maybe his father had the right idea when he wanted his son to go to law school. If this doesn't cement Paterno's legacy as a selfless coach who only cares about the game, then I don't know what else people are looking for.

Yeah, I'm a little nieve on this one, but why bother getting worked up about this. What really matters right now? How much Paterno makes, or the possibility that 2007 should never have been thought of as the year, and that 2008 is setting up to be the typical Penn State every-three-year title run. I think we all know that answer.

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No. 25 Penn State at Indiana, Preview

School: Indiana University (IU), Hoosiers
Conference: Big Ten
Head Coach: Bill Lynch, 5-2 overall
Last Game: Lost to Michigan State, 52-27
Record Last Five Years (sans 2007): 22-47 overall; 0-0 in bowls; 16-10 non-conference

Key Players, Defense: DE Greg Middleton, CB Tracy Porter, LB Will Patterson

Key Players, Offense: QB Kellen Lewis, WR James Hardy, K Austin Starr

What to look for: D – Everyone has been raving about IU’s ability to rush the passer, leading the nation with 32 sacks. However, it doesn’t matter how many sacks you get when you give up a 20-yard play on the next down. IU is giving up 385 yards and 25.3 points per game. Those aren’t good numbers with PSU coming. The one chance IU has in this game is to get Middleton going. He is second in the nation with 9.5 sacks (-61). It may not be so easy, as PSU’s O-line has come on recently. The IU run defense hasn’t been the same the last few weeks, giving up more than 150 ypg. If IU wants to stop the run, they will send LBs Patterson and Adam McClurg on run blitzes. But IU’s undersized D-line could have problems shedding their blocks. Don’t underestimate IU’s pass defense hasn’t been great, but if they can get a few turnovers (which PSU gives away often on the road), the defense can keep points off the board, and that’s all that will matter in this game.

O – IU can pull off the big one here. Lewis is a playmaker, and has another playmaker to throw to in Hardy. They were the only two to do anything against MSU last week. The real reason for IU’s offensive woes LW was because MSU held the ball for 41 minutes. This team relies on the offense to win games, and if Lewis and Hardy have a big play or two, PSU might get nervous. When the QB is your best runner, there’s problem. Many of Lewis’ runs have come on rollouts or scrambles. A team can only survive so long on those plays. PSU is very good at containing mobile/option QBs, so if IU wants to have any sort of ball control, they need to run with RBs Marcus Thigpen or Bryan Payton a few plays. But I have a strong feeling this game will come down to IU airing it out, looking for the big plays, unable to run the ball.

ST – Starr has been just that, nailing 14/15 field goals in 2007. He could be IU’s only chance to get on the board, leading the team with a whopping 71 points in only seven games. P Michael Hines, while not impressive at 38 yard per punt, has been effective at not allowing returns with a 34-yard net average. KR/RB Thigpen returned three KOs for TDs in 2006, but hasn’t gotten rolling in 2007. Illinois’ win was sparked when WR Arrelious Benn took a KO for a TD, and IU could use the same against PSU.

C – While South Florida is the best on-field story; the best off-field story is IU’s Bill Lynch. He’s taken a team, after their head coach tragically died from a brain tumor this summer, to a place IU fans have only dreamed about for 13 years–bowl eligibility. At 5-2, this could be the best coaching job in the Big Ten. (Shut up Illinois fans) While this game won’t be the most memorable, the season will be come December, when IU is playing somewhere warmer than Memorial Stadium.

Interesting Stat: IU hasn’t had a winning season since 1994. (No bowl invitation)

School: The Pennsylvania State University (PSU), Nittany Lions
Conference: Big Ten
Head Coach: Joe Paterno, 42nd Year, 368-123-3
Last Game: Def. No. 18 Wisconsin, 38-7
Record Last Five Years (sans 2007): 36-25; 1-1 in bowls; 7-4 non-conference

Key Players, Defense: LB Dan Connor, LB Sean Lee, DE Maurice Evans

Key Players, Offense: QB Anthony Morelli, RB Rodney Kinlaw, WR Derrick Williams

What to look for: D – This week will be tougher on the defense than people think. While PSU had little problem with Ilinois’ QB Juice Williams (it was the other players than hurt PSU), IU’s Lewis is a much better passer. DEs Evans and Josh Gaines have to get to Lewis quickly for the pass rush to be effective. Coverage sacks are for pro-style QBs, not a runner like Lewis. But that run threat can’t be the main focus this week for the back seven. PSU likes to blitz, but watch for fewer defenders coming, as the LBs will frequently drop back into zones and spy coverage. Over the last few games, LB Lee has outplayed Connor. But that’s not a bad thing. One of those two may not have such a great game this week, but no one will notice because the rest of the defense will step up. It was nice to finally see S Anthony Scirrotto make a big impact in last week’s game. Watch for the PSU secondary to be hungry once again.

O – Now, was that really QB Morelli? Playing away from Beaver Stadium has been PSU’s kryptonite since 2000, and the valuable lessons learned from Illinois and Michigan must be applied this week: No turnovers, No bad penalties. I can’t remember the last time Morelli looked so calm and collected in the pocket (or even on the rollouts) as he did last week. The passing game has to be used this week to set up the run again. WR Williams has to become more of a factor against a defense that isn’t as good as Wisconsin’s or Iowa’s. But if he doesn’t, any of the other WRs should fill in nicely again. There’s no reason PSU won’t run the ball well on IU; it just won’t be the first choice. RB Kinlaw has been the story; I don’t care what Morelli has done. It’s been Kinlaw who’s stepped up and surprised many. This week he should see a lot of carries in the second and third quarters, before RB Evan Royster gets some snaps in. Watch for another 200+ PSU rushing game.

ST – The special teams play last week was actually the only disappointment in the win, coming from Williams’ fumble on the punt return. But, in the overall scheme of things, it was a good game. This week, IU’s Thigpen is dangerous on KRs, and PSU has been suspect in that area. Staying in coverage lanes is essential this week.

C – What? PSU found a weakness in the opposing defense? And exploited it? No way. Way! The Wisconsin win was easily the best coaching job done by PSU in a long time. Really, it wasn’t just that PSU had better talent–UW is a good team. It was that PSU out play-called UW. If PSU plays it safe again on the road, this will be an ugly win. If PSU calls another game like either of the last two, this will be a monstrous blowout.

Interesting Stat: PSU has allowed 12 TDs in its last 13 games.

GAME PREDICTION: IU will come out of the tunnel jacked up and ready to go. That will all change on the first few drives. PSU will force three consecutive three-and-outs by IU. After stalling on their first drive and settling for a FG, PSU will turn around and score two quick TDs from good field position. 17-0 PSU. Going into the second half, IU will drive the ball, but miss a FG, giving momentum back to PSU. Kinlaw will have 100 yards by the mid-third quarter. Enter Royster. He rips a big one for at least 45 yards, putting PSU up 31-0. Backups are in by the fourth. IU will finish with 250 yards of offense, but most of that will come directly from Lewis. PSU will roll for 500+ yards, 250+ on the ground. Morelli throws a pick deep in PSU territory, but later reviewed and called incomplete, killing any chance of an IU comeback before the half.

PSU 45, IU 3

VEGAS:

PSU (-7.5) IU

ACTUAL SCORE:

PSU 36, IU 31

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It's Wednesday

And I'm bored yet again...

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Next Butkus Winner... Lee?

Could it be that the best linebacker on the 2007 PSU football team is in fact not AA Dan Connor, but Sean Lee? It's a very tough call, but the junior LB is every bit as good as the senior captain, in terms of production on the field:

S. Lee- Tackles: 63; TFL: 5; Sack: 2; PD: 2; FF: 1; FR: 0.
D. Connor- Tk: 58; TFL: 8.5; Sack: 4; PD: 5; FF: 0; FR: 1.

I don't know about any of you, but those are award-consideration numbers. If Lee continues on this pace, he'll log 126 total tackles, and double everything else. That would be the highest single-season total since Ed O'Neil had 126 in 1972 and Brian Gelzheizer in 1994. (Both had 126).

Connor, on the other hand, can easily smash Paul Pozluszny's career record (372) with 390 if he continues at his current 2007 pace. He's already seventh on PSU's all-time tackles list. Remember, Connor missed the first three games of 2005, a season which he had 76 tackles in nine games.

This is just something that I've noticed lately, especially PSU's defense woke up on time against Iowa. I'm going to the Wisconsin game this week, so I expect to lose my voice by the end of the first quarter. I would expect nothing less from anyone else in attendance.

I expect to finally post my comments on this week's ZN Top 25 rankings. It was a crazy week, part of a crazy season. Could 2007 be the greatest season ever for college football? We'll leave that for another day.

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Penn State vs. Iowa, Preview

School: University of Iowa (UI), Hawkeyes
Conference: Big Ten
Head Coach: Kirk Ferentz, year, 57-46-0
Last Game: Lost to Indiana, 38-20
Record Last Five Years (sans 2007): 44-19 overall; 2-3 in bowls; 15-3 non-conference

Key Players, Defense: DE Mitch King, LB Mike Humpal, LB Mike Klinkenborg

Key Players, Offense: QB Jake Christensen, RB Albert Young, KR/WR Derrell Johnson-Koulianos

What to look for: D – Don’t let the Indiana loss fool you; this defense is good. Before last week, Iowa was in the top-5 statistically in most defensive categories. Still, after allowing 322 pass yards and 73 on the ground, they’re still in the top-20 defensively. The UI run defense is the best it’s been in years, and should have no problem containing a suspect PSU run game. The front seven will be key to any success at PSU, and if DE King and LBs Humpal and Klinkenborg can harass the PSU backfield often enough, UI has a good chance in this one. UI held its first four opponents to fewer than 17 points, and still average less than 15 points per game allowed. This UI team is scarily similar to PSU: great defense, but an offense that, well…

O – …Just can’t seem to get it together in the clutch. UI rolled for 428 total yards against IU, but only managed 20 points. Sound familiar PSU fans? UI QB Christensen piled up 308 pass yards, but was sacked an unacceptable nine times. Even though IU is the nation’s leading sack team, a team like UI should let that happen, especially at home. Now, this shaky (to say the least) offense has to go on the road to arguably one of the worst places to play. RB Young ran for almost 100 (94) on a mere 15 carries last week, and with the PSU run defense struggling recently, he should find some holes. That, though depends on the O-line, which cost UI the IU game. UI has to keep Christensen upright and keep Young from getting hit before he even reaches the line of scrimmage.

ST – UI has a hidden gem in KR/WR Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. He’s gaining 27.6 yards a pop on kickoffs, and after watching Illinois’ Benn bolt for a TD last week, UI’s special teams should be drooling. The biggest problem for UI is that there’s no reliable FG kicker. A long time has passed since Nate Kaeding wore the Black and Gold, and current K’s Austin Signor and Daniel Murray failed to connect on either of their attempts last week. UI needs a kicking game, fast.

C – HC Ferentz is too good at what he does to let this team go down the tubes. Turnovers killed UI last week, and IU is a much improved team over what it was years ago. Watch for Ferentz and his staff to add a few wrinkles against PSU. They may be as bland as simplifying the game plan to what UI always won with: avoid mistakes! That’s easier said than done, but again, this team is more talented than its record shows, and could come up with a win this week.

Interesting Stat: UI total points allowed in first four games: 35; points allowed against IU: 38.

School: The Pennsylvania State University (PSU), Nittany Lions
Conference: Big Ten
Head Coach: Joe Paterno, 42nd Year, 366-123-3
Last Game: Lost to Illinois, 27-20
Record Last Five Years (sans 2007): 36-25; 1-1 in bowls; 7-4 non-conference

Key Players, Defense: LB Dan Connor, The Front Four, CB Justin King

Key Players, Offense: QB Anthony Morelli, TE Andrew Quarless, WR Derrick Williams

What to look for: D – It’s been a long time since the defense tackled as poorly as it did last week at Illinois, at least that was Jack Ham’s opinion, and we trust Jack Ham. As bad as the offense was, it was the defense (many of whom also cover kickoffs, more on that later) that allowed 21 first-half points, highlighted by Illinois WR Benn breaking about 30 tackles on his way to the end zone. This is the time when LBs Connor and Lee need to step in and hold their unit accountable, including themselves. CB King had a good game, like the rest of the secondary (in pass coverage only, again, not tackling), and has to stay on their assignments this week. UI was killed by IU’s blitzing, and there will be no excuse if PSU doesn’t do the same. UI isn’t a spread offense, and isn’t as talented as UM, so if PSU can hold down the run for the first time in two weeks, this one should be a breeze. That is, of course if…

O – The excruciatingly inconsistent offense can get its act together. There hasn’t been a game in recent history when the offense has fallen apart so badly. A look at the stats would indicate a sure win, but turnovers cost PSU at least 17 points. Like the defense, this week there is no excuse for a loss at home. While UI’s defense is good, they’re not great. QB Morelli has to use this as an opportunity to show he can handle adversity and win when it counts, and no game means more to this program right now than this one. TE Quarless had one of his worst moments (on the field, that is) ever when he dropped the TD pass last week, and has to make the most of every ball that comes his way this week. The running back situation is worse than it’s been since 2003, and if a go-to back doesn’t emerge quickly against UI, PSU will again have problems. The O-line wasn’t horrible last week, but will see better talent in UI. Getting a good push and exploding off the ball is not an option for PSU, it is critical.

ST – P Jeremy “Boom” Boone has been a rock for PSU, and if the offense gets into trouble again, he will have to bail them out, again. But everything will depend on kick coverage and tackling. I don’t’ see that as a problem this week, as UI doesn’t have a playmaker like Illinois’ Benn. KR AJ Wallace looked timid last week, but should return to form with a big return. KR/PR Williams has done his best to break free, but every return can’t be a big one. PSU may not have to rely on special teams as much this week.

C – There’s way to much to bitch about here. So I’ll keep it short. HC Paterno has to let ICOO (“In Charge Of Offense” as PSU calls it) Galen Hall do his thing. It won’t happen. Last week, the offensive staff moved the ball well, but first down runs landed them in long situations this team is not designed for. ICOD Tom Bradley probably ran his defense into the ground this week after such a poor outing, and he’ll have his unit back to form.

Interesting Stat: PSU total rushing yards allowed first three games: 53; total rushing yards allowed last two: 382

GAME PREDICTION: This is the game PSU shows up on time. Look for the first play from scrimmage to be a pass. Long, short, medium; it doesn’t matter. Even if it’s incomplete, it will make the crowd happy. If PSU comes out and runs the ball to set up the pass, PSU will lose. UI will score first, but on its first possession, which will piss off the PSU defense. QB Morelli will look average again, but not make as many mistakes, allowing his receivers to do more of the work. PSU scores 13 unanswered in the second quarter. 13-7 at halftime. UI comes out, nails a FG. But then WR Williams takes a PSU reverse for a big gain, setting up another Kelly FG. 16-10 PSU going into the fourth. Each team moves the ball, but UI settles for a FG, while PSU gets a clinching TD with five minutes left. It’ll be a boring win, but an important one.

PSU 23, UI 13

VEGAS:

PSU (-9) UI

ACTUAL SCORE:

PSU 27, UI 7

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