Week 2 - Penn State at Virginia

Week 2 CFN Fearless Prediction - Penn State at Virginia

Penn State (0-1) at Virginia (1-0) Sept. 8, 12:00, ABC

Here’s The Deal:Now that Penn State was unable to defeat Ohio in front of an emotionally-charged Beaver Stadium crowd, what does it do for an encore away from home soil? The Nittany Lions, racked with scandal and turmoil during a tumultuous offseason, got the full support from the home crowd, yet shot blanks against the Bobcats after jumping out to a 14-3 halftime lead. How the team plays this week will say a lot about its intestinal fortitude and ability to compete effectively the rest of the season. Virginia took care of business in ho-hum, having no problems with cross-state foe Richmond. The Cavaliers actually dominated, an encouraging result for a program that begins the season with wholesale changes on defense and a lack of consistency on offense. With a 2-0 start, Virginia can start realistically thinking that it’s on the verge of reloading instead of rebuilding.

Why Penn State Might Win: The team has issues, but the defense is still pretty good. Yeah, the Nittany Lions ran out of gas in the face of Ohio and QB Tyler Tettleton, but the front seven, in particular, will stand up to the UVA offensive line. DT Jordan Hill will penetrate against the rebuilt interior of the Virginia, while the linebacker trio of Mike Mauti, Gerald Hodges and Glenn Carson will help contain RB Perry Jones. The Cavs are still evolving on defense with a young group of players that failed to get to the Spiders quarterbacks in the opener.

Why Virginia Might Win: With the development of QB Michael Rocco in the offseason, the Cavaliers are finally on the verge of rolling out a more balanced offensive attack. Okay, so maybe Jones and Kevin Parks have to fight for yards on the ground, but Rocco is now in a position to exploit a Nittany Lions secondary that played horribly in the opener. With tackles Oday Aboushi and Morgan Moses sealing off the flanks, the junior will get the time he needs to locate receivers Tim Smith and Darius Jennings, and keep the chains moving. Penn State is light on offensive playmakers who’ll unnerve the Virginia D, especially if RB Bill Belton is hobbled from last week’s injury.

What To Watch Out For: Virginia needs to locate a source of pressure now, or else it’s going to haunt the defense once league play starts. No sacks against a Richmond team that threw the ball 43 times is a troubling sign, especially since the secondary has weaknesses as well. Penn State is young and vulnerable in the trenches this year. The onus falls on ends Bill Schautz and Jake Snyder to impact the integrity of the pocket, because a flushed Matt McGloin is a candidate to put passes up for grabs.

What Will Happen: It’ll be physical, it’ll be low-scoring and at times it will be very ugly. What will Penn State have in the tank after last week’s loss in Happy Valley? Not enough to handle a decent team on the road, even if Bill O’Brien is able to keep his troops focused and motivated. Virginia has a few more weapons on offense, including a pair of running backs, Jones and Parks, capable of controlling time of possession. The Lions will once again succumb to their tenuous depth situation, fading in Charlottesville over the final 20 minutes.

CFN Prediction: Virginia 26 … Penn State 17
ATS Consultants Line (Click for more lines and picks) Virginia -5 O/U: 44
Must Watch Rating (5 – Phineas & Ferb, 1 – Steve Harvey): 2.5