2006 Penn State Nittany Lions Season, Game Recaps, Scores and Reviews
Jan. 1
Outback Bowl
Penn State 20 ... Tennessee 10
In a 10-10 game in the fourth quarter, Tennessee appeared to
have all the momentum after a 53-yard pass to Chris Brown, but on the next play,
Arian Foster lost a fumble, Penn State's Tony Davis picked it up, and he was
gone going 88 yards for what would turn out to be the game-winning touchdown.
The Nittany Lions iced it on a 22-yard Kevin Kelly field goal with just over
three minutes to play. The Volunteers scored first on a 44-yard James Wilhoit
field goal, and got a 42-yard LaMarcus Coker touchdown run after Penn State
scored on a 34-yard Kelly field goal and a two-yard touchdown catch from Anthony
Quarless. Player of the game ...
Penn State LB Dan
Connor made ten tackles and forced the game-changing fumble. Stat Leaders: Tennessee- Passing: Erik Ainge, 25-37, 267
yds, 1 INT Rushing: Arian Foster ,12-65 Receiving: Jayson Swain, 7-84 Penn State - Passing: Anthony Morelli, 14-25, 197 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Tony Hunt, 31-158 Receiving: Jordan Norwood, 4-35 Thoughts & Notes ... It was a near-even game with the
one big Arian Foster fumble changing everything. Each team was able to move the
ball a little bit, but it was the running of Tony Hunt that settled down the
Penn State offense, and the play of the Nittany Lion secondary to keep the
Tennessee passing game in check that made all the difference. ... Three Kevin
Kelly missed field goals kept the game close, but they were bombs missing from
45, 54 and 50 yards out. ... Considering the competition, Anthony Morelli played
better than he had all season long. He kept his composure under pressure and
didn't make mistakes. ... Tennessee has to do something this off-season to get
more of a running game. The backs rarely had room to move even with the PSU
linebackers spending most of their time worrying about the passing game. ...
Erik Ainge threw it 37 times for just 267 yards with 53 coming on one play. The
offense just couldn't break free.
Nov. 18
Penn State 17 ... Michigan State 13
With Joe Paterno coaching from the press box,
Penn State overcame four turnovers and a 10-0 deficit to get
Anthony Morelli touchdown passes to Andrew Quarless and Jordan Norwood, and
finally put the game away with a 45-yard Kevin Kelly field goals. MSU had its
chances but Brett Swanson missed two field goals, along with hitting kicks from
45 and 29 yards, and got a 11-yard scoring grab from Kerry Reed, but sputtered
in the second half with its final drive stalling on the Penn State 38. In
his final home game, Penn State LB Paul Posluszny led the the team with eight
tackles with two broken up passes. Player of the game ...
Penn State RB
Tony Hunt had 130 yards rushing on 29 carries and 19 yards rushing on a pair of
receptions. Stat Leaders: Michigan State- Passing: Brian Hoyer, 30-61,
291 yds, 1 TD Rushing: Jerramy Scott, 4-11 Receiving: Matt Trannon, 8-86 Penn State - Passing: Anthony Morelli, 17-37, 220 yds, 2
TDs
Rushing: Tony Hunt, 29-130 Receiving: Andrew Quarless, 4-87, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... It wasn't
a pretty performance by Penn State, but it came away with the win over Michigan
State to finish with a semi-strong eight-win season on the way to an almost
certain New Year's Day game. This is a shadow of last year's team with Anthony
Morelli still not progressing despite getting a full season of starting
experience. He still isn't making all the right throws or the right decisions,
and he's not making the players around him better. On the plus side, Tony Hunt
closed out a marvelous season with his seventh 100-yard game of the year.
Nov. 11
Penn State 47 ... Temple 0
Penn State outgained Temple 411 yards to 74, with 16 rushing
yards, and allowed just two first downs. Tony Hunt ran for a career-high
167 yards with touchdown runs from 22, 26 and 11 yards out, and he
caught an 11-yard touchdown pass. Derrick Williams had the game's top
highlight with a 75-yard punt return for a score in the first quarter. Player of the game ... Penn State RB Tony Hunt ran 16
times for 167 yards and three touchdowns and caught two passes for 25
yards and a score Stat Leaders: Penn State- Passing:
Anthony Morelli, 12-22, 159 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT Rushing: Tony Hunt, 16-167, 3 TD. Receiving:
Jordan Norwood, 4-33 Temple - Passing: Adam DiMichelle, 7-17,
52 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Tim Brown, 14-21. Receiving: Mike Holley,
2-25 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The team
was more than fine with the boss out, but it was Temple. With Joe
Paterno recuperating from the broken leg suffered against Wisconsin,
everything was more than fine with Tony Hunt having a career day and
Derrick Williams finally, finally, finally coming up with a big play.
Even with the big performances, this day belonged to the defense which
shut down everything Temple wanted to do. The one downside was a passing
game that wasn't needed. This was the game Anthony Morelli and the air
attack should've used to get on track. It might have been a cupcake
game, but it was much needed after the loss to the Badgers. Now an
eight-win regular season is possible with another layup against Michigan
State up next.
Nov. 4
Wisconsin 13 ... Penn State 3
Wisconsin's defense held Penn State to 201 yards of total
offense and only 36 rushing yards while giving up just a 39-yard Kevin Kelly
field goal in the second quarter. The Badger offense rumbled with the running
and short passing game controlling things from the start. Two Taylor Mehlhaff
field goals and a 14-yard Paul Hubbard touchdown catch were all the Badgers
would need. Joe Paterno got knocked out of the game when he was rolled up on the
sidelines. Player of the game ... Wisconsin RB P.J. Hill ran 31
times for 148 yards Stat Leaders: Penn State- Passing:
Anthony Morelli, 19-35, 165 yds, 1 INT Rushing: Tony Hunt, 11-35. Receiving:
Andrew Quarless, 5-62 Wisconsin - Passing: John Stocco, 15-25,
172 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: P.J. Hill, 31-148. Receiving: Travis Beckum,
6-39 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The Penn
State lines got manhandled by the Wisconsin lines, while the running game
couldn't handle the speed of the Badger linebackers. Anthony Morelli might not
had had a great game, but he erred on the side of not making mistakes and didn't
force his passes. The play calling left a lot to be desired failing to account
for all the Badger blitzing, but things should be much easier and smoother next
week against Temple. Paul Posluzny became the school's all-time leading tackler
after making 14 stops this week.
Oct. 28
Penn State 12 ... Purdue 0
Penn State got Tony Hunt rolling for 142 rushing yards and a
two-yard score and Kevin Kelly connected on field goals from 29 and 44
yards out, but it was the defense that controlled the game holding
Purdue to just 240 yards. Hunt and the offense kept the chains moving
holding on to the ball for 35:22, converting ten of 19 third down
chances, and running 18 more plays than Purdue. Dan Connor made 12
tackles and an interception for the Nittany Lions. Player of the game ... Penn State RB Tony Hunt ran 31
times for 142 yards and a touchdown and caught two passes for 36 yards Stat Leaders: Penn State- Passing:
Anthony Morelli, 14-31, 182 yds Rushing: Tony Hunt, 31-142, 1 TD. Receiving:
Andrew Quarless, 3-36 Purdue - Passing: Curtis Painter, 22-39,
178 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Jaycen Taylor, 7-34. Receiving: Dustin
Keller, 5-48 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
The Penn State defense has slowly started to
play up to the level of recent seasons coming up with its best game of
the year in the shutout win over Purdue. Dan Connor and Paul Posluszny
destroyed the Boilermakers flying all over the field to combine for 21
tackles. Fine, so Anthony Morelli continues to struggle with his
accuracy, but he got some big plays and was helped by Tony Hunt carrying
the offense. Wisconsin's P.J. Hill and Michigan's Mike Hart will win the
First Team All-Big Ten running back honors, but Hunt has to at least be
in the team photo.
Oct. 21
Penn State 26 ... Illinois 12
Penn State had a lousy day offensively, but the defense came
through with a Tony Davis fumble return for a touchdown, a safety, and
an onside kickoff return for a touchdown from Anthony Scirrotto. The
Illini offense outgained Penn State 363 yards to 184, but only managed
four Jason Reda field goals. Penn State's offense got in the end zone on
a three-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Darling. Player of the game ... Penn State P Jeremy Kapinos
kicked it eight times for a 45.5-yard average pinning four inside the 20 Stat Leaders: Penn State- Passing:
Anthony Morelli, 18-34, 144 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT Rushing: Tony Hunt, 19-52. Receiving:
Deon Butler, 5-65 Illinois - Passing: Isaiah Williams,
13-32, 156 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Rashard Mendenhall, 14-161. Receiving:
Kyle Hudson, 3-40 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Yuck.
Penn State got the homecoming win over Illinois, but it was hardly a
thing of beauty with the offense coming up with an awful day and the
defense giving up way too many yards. To be fair, it was a strange week
of practice with Anthony Morelli still trying to overcome problems from
the concussion suffered against Michigan, but that's no excuse for Tony
Hunt and the running game to not get going. Purdue's offense wasn't able
to get going against Wisconsin this week, but the Nittany Lions will
allow big points next week against the Nittany Lions unless there isn't
an improvement on both sides of the ball.
Oct. 14
Michigan 17 ... Penn State 10
Michigan came up with seven sacks and knocked out two
quarterbacks on the way to the tough win. Adrian Arrington caught a perfect
strike from Chad Henne for a 25-yard touchdown and Mike Hart ran for a one-yard
score on the way to a 17-3 lead, but Penn State made it interesting late with a
43-yard catch-and-run for a score from Tony Hunt. Penn State had one last
chance, but third-string QB Paul Cianciolo couldn't get the offense moving. The
Nittany Lions finished the game netting -14 rushing yards. Player of the game ... Michigan DE LaMarr Woodley made
five tackles, two sacks, and forced a fumble Stat Leaders: Penn State- Passing:
Anthony Morelli, 11-18, 133 yds Rushing: Tony Hunt, 13-33. Receiving:
Derrick Williams, 6-67, 1 TD Michigan - Passing: Chad Henne, 15-30,
196 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Mike Hart, 26-112, 1 TD. Receiving: Adrian
Arrington, 5-83, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Penn
State doesn't have the overall firepower to beat the better teams, but the
defense is starting to play up to the high level set over the last few years.
Even though Michigan got its rushing yards, and finished with 312 overall, it
was a struggle to move the ball consistently with the linebackers making plays
all over the place. Now the question is whether or not there's a quarterback
ready to run the offense. Paul Cianciolo struggled outside of the one big play
for a score, which was all Tony Hunt, and Daryll Clark and Anthony Morelli each
will be watched this week before seeing any time against Illinois. It'll be
Hunt, Hunt and more Hunt while hoping for the defense to be even better.
Oct. 7
Penn State 28 ... Minnesota 27 OT
Penn State took advantage of a questionable pass interference
call to get a two-yard Tony Hunt touchdown in overtime, and won the game
on Kevin Kelly's extra point. Minnesota got a one-yard Amir Pinnix
touchdown run to force overtime, and then scored on a 25-yard pass to
Eric Decker, but Jason Giannini's extra point attempt hit the upright.
The Gopher defense appeared to have Penn State stopped, but Trumaine
Banks was flagged for a pass interference call on fourth down to keep
the Nittany Lion drive alive. Hunt scored three times on the day and
Anthony Morelli threw two touchdown passes, but the defense had a hard
time with the Minnesota passing game with Bryan Cupito throwing for 347
yards and two touchdowns. Player of the game ... Penn State RB Tony Hunt ran 31
times for 144 yards and two touchdowns and caught a pass for a 15-yard
score. Stat Leaders: Penn State- Passing:
Anthony Morelli, 20-34, 281 yds, 2 TD Rushing: Tony Hunt, 31-144, 2 TD. Receiving:
Deon Butler, 6-67 Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 25-36,
347 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Amir Pinnix, 26-76, 2 TD. Receiving: Matt
Spaeth, 6-99, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Penn
State took advantage of the new life from an overtime, fourth down pass
interference call against Minnesota to punch it in and come away with a
tough win. All the momentum was on the Gophers' side after the way the
overtime had started and the way regulation ended, but the Nittany Lions
still got the job done. Tony Hunt has established himself as a steady
runner able to take the offense out of Anthony Morelli's hands, while
the passing game finally got a little bit of something going with
Derrick Williams. Now the team has to use this tough win to play its
best game of the year against Michigan to stay in the Big Ten title
hunt.
Sept. 30
Penn State 33 ... Northwestern 7
Deon Butler caught 11 passes for a school-record 216 yards and
Tony Hunt ran for three touchdowns as Penn State rolled over Northwestern. The
Wildcats stayed alive early with a one-yard Tyrell Sutton touchdown run
following three Nittany Lion field goals, and then the floodgates opened. Hunt
scored from one, 14, and six yards out, and Kevin Kelly ended up hitting field
goals from 34, 22, 33 and 36 yards out. The Penn State defense also got into the
action thanks to LB Sean Lee, who came up with sack and an interception to snuff
out back-to-back Wildcat drives. Player of the game ... Penn State WR Deon Butler caught
11 passes for 216 yards Stat Leaders: Penn State- Passing:
Anthony Morelli, 19-33, 288 yds, 1 INT Rushing: Tony Hunt, 28-137, 3 TD. Receiving:
Deon Butler, 11-219 Northwestern - Passing: Andrew Brewer,
13-30, 157 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Andrew Brewer, 17-41. Receiving: Ross
Lane, 4-66 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Penn
State bounced back nicely from the loss to Penn State with a great performance
from Anthony Morelli and a second straight wonderful game from Tony Hunt. Now
the offense has legitimate balance with opposing defenses needing to focus on
stopping the run and opening things up even more for the passing game. The only
beef is with the inability to turn early drives into touchdowns. PSU should've
been up 21-0 early on, but failed to click and had to go for three field goals.
To beat Michigan in two weeks, and maybe even at Minnesota next week, there
can't be any missed opportunities.
Sept. 23
Ohio State 28 ... Penn State 6
Penn State had the ball with just over two minutes to play and
down eight points in a tight defensive game, and then the Buckeye secondary took
over as Malcolm Jenkins stepped in front of an Anthony Morelli pass for a
61-yard score. Antonio Smith rubbed salt in to the wound taking another Morelli
pass 55 yards for a touchdown. The Buckeye offense had a few good moments with a
12-yard Antonio Pittman touchdown run in the third quarter, and Troy Smith came
up with a Heisman highlight play in the fourth scrambling out of danger before
throwing a 37-yard strike to Brian Robiskie for a touchdown. Penn State only
managed two Kevin Kelly field goals. Player of the game ... Ohio State RB Antonio Pittman
ran 20 times for 110 yards and a touchdown Stat Leaders: Penn State- Passing:
Anthony Morelli, 16-25, 106 yds, 3 INT Rushing: Tony Hunt, 24-135. Receiving:
Jordan Norwood, 5-30 Ohio State - Passing: Troy Smith, 12-22,
115 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Antonio Pittman, 10-110, 1 TD. Receiving:
Brian Robiskie, 3-51, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
It might not seem fair to Anthony Morelli, but Penn
State would've beaten Ohio State with a more experienced, steadier quarterback.
The defense kept the high-powered Buckeye offense under wraps, and RB Tony Hunt
had a magnificent game averaging 5.6 yards per carry. Morelli played like a
rookie starter in a huge game and did next to nothing to get the ball down the
field. Where's Derrick Williams? Three catches for 22 yards isn't going to get
it done against a team as good as Ohio State. The coaching staff has to do more
to get the ball in his hands.
Sept. 16
Penn State 37 ... Youngstown State 3
It took about a quarter to get rolling, but Penn State
eventually blew up cranking out 568 yards of total offense with a 76-yard A.J.
Wallace touchdown run the highlight of a 20 -point second quarter. The Nittany
Lions finished with 389 rushing yards with all four touchdowns coming on the
ground. Kevin Kelley hit three field goals. YSU's only points came in the third
quarter on a 33-yard Brian Palmer field goal. Player of the game ...Penn
State RB Tony Hunt ran for 143 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. Stat Leaders: Youngstown State- Passing: Tom Zetts, 12-20,
95 yds, 1 INT Rushing: Justin Reams, 8-28 Receiving: Demetrius Ison, 5-35 Wisconsin - Passing: Anthony Morelli, 11-27, 154 yds Rushing: Tony Hunt, 18-143, 1 TD Receiving: Matt Hahn, 3-33 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Penn State needed to get its running game on track,
and it did that against Youngstown State, but it also needed to get Anthony
Morelli more in tune with his receivers after struggling against Notre Dame.
That didn't happen. Even with time to throw, he failed to complete close to half
of his passes and basically let the running game carry the attack. He'll have to
do a lot more next week if Penn State is going to have any shot at Ohio State.
Sept. 9
Notre Dame 41 ... Penn State 17
Notre Dame's offense put up 397 yards and took advantage of
every opportunity to blow out Penn State in a game that wasn't as close as the
final score might indicate. The Irish scored the first 27 points highlighted by
two Brady Quinn touchdown passes and a 25-yard Tom Zbikowski fumble return for a
score. Quinn connected with Darius Walker for a 15-yard score and Travis Thomas
ran for a one-yard touchdown after running 43 yards on a fake punt. The Nittany
Lions scored 14 points in the final six minutes on a two-yard Deon Butler
touchdown catch and a five-yard Daryll Clark run. Player of the game ... Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn
completed 25 of 36 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns. Stat Leaders: Notre Dame- Passing: Brady
Quinn, 25-36, 287 yds, 3 TD Rushing: Darius Walker, 20-56. Receiving:
Darius Walker, 7-72, 1 TD Penn State - Passing: Anthony Morelli,
21-33, 189 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Tony Hunt, 12-74. Receiving: Jordan
Norwood, 6-91 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Give
Notre Dame credit for coming up with a great performance against Penn State, but
it's not like the Nittany Lions didn't have their chances early on. It seemed
like every big pass just barely failed to click, and every chance to pick off
Brady Quinn in the first half seemed to be fumbled away. Veteran teams make
those plays, Penn State didn't. Outside of a couple of nice runs, Tony Hunt
wasn't able to get the running game going, while the passing game couldn't find
was to get the ball in the hands of Derrick Williams. The Youngstown State game
needs to be used as a big-time tune-up or the trip to Columbus to face Ohio
State will be just as ugly.
Sept. 2
Penn State 34 ... Akron 16
Anthony Morelli threw three touchdown passes starting off with
a perfectly thrown 42-yard strike to Deon Butler less than five minutes in. Down
17-0, Akron scored the next nine points with a four-yard touchdown run from
Dennis Kennedy, but Matt Domonkos missed the extra point. Morelli answered with
a 20-yard touchdown pass to Derrick Williams to open up the floodgates on the
way to a 34-9 lead before the Zips finished off the scoring with a 27-yard David
Harvey touchdown catch. Player of the game ... Penn State QB Anthony Morelli
completed 16 of 32 passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns. Stat Leaders: Akron- Passing: Luke Getsy,
22-42, 160 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT Rushing: Dennis Kennedy, 25-59, 1 TD. Receiving:
Dennis Kennedy, 8-50 Penn State - Passing: Anthony Morelli,
16-32, 206 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: A.J. Wallace, 1-42. Receiving: Jordan
Norwood, 7-61, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Anthony
Morelli had a wonderful debut, but he wasn't under any pressure for most of the
game from the Akron defense. The Penn State offensive line didn't allow a sack,
but it didn't get much of anything going for the running game netting only 76
yards. To beat Notre Dame next week in South Bend, the Nittany Lions have to get
more balance and can't just rely on Morelli to be as accurate. His deep ball on
a touchdown pass to Deon Butler was a thing of beauty. LB Dan Connor was all
over the field making several good plays to keep the Zip ground game in check.
It's not 2003, it's not 2003, it's not 2003, it's not 2003, it's not
2003, it's not 2003 ...
Keep saying it over and over again Penn State fans, and maybe there
won't be a repeat of the last time your program had to fill several
major holes from a senior dominated team.
The long time knock on what had turned into a bit of a stodgy
program was that it geared up for the big season. It took a year or
two to develop the talent into the type of upperclassmen that Joe Paterno could put his full faith and trust in, and then there would
be a nice campaign where Penn State was Penn State again, and then it
was back to square one.
The Larry Johnson-led 2002 team went 9-4, and then things fell off
the map going 3-9 in 2003 and 4-7 in 2004. Last year's team was full
of veterans and had everything come together on offense when Michael
Robinson, who was everything but a decent quarterback before his
senior season, turned in a brilliant, defiant performance becoming
the league's most valuable player. He's gone now, along with the
entire secondary, 3/4th of a great defensive line, and all but one
starter on the offensive line. This would've been cause for panic
sirens to go off in 2003, but yeah, it's not 2003.
Start with the much-ballyhooed
influx of young talent over the last few seasons. Penn State stepped up
its recruiting game getting players like wide receiver Derrick Williams
and cornerback/wide receiver/now full-time corner Justin King to help
prevent a slide back to mediocrity. Of course, it helps to have the
nation's best linebackers to keep everything in check.
Butkus Award winner Paul Posluszny, Tim Shaw, and Dan Connor are
seasoned veterans who could form the best linebacking corps in Penn
State history, which means it might turn into one of the greatest
linebacking corps in college football history. Now that Connor has
stopped crank calling old coaches and Posluszny's injured knee appears
to be close to healthy and Shaw can play in the middle for an entire
season, these three will clean up all the messes left by all the
inexperience elsewhere on the defense. But defense wasn't necessarily
the problem for the Nittany Lions during the tough times.
Williams, Deon Butler, and Jordan Norwood give the offense an exciting
young receiving corps that's as talented as any the program has had in
over a decade. Tony Hunt and Austin Scott are veteran backs who can
carry a reliable running game, and quarterback Anthony Morelli appears
ready to deliver on his prep hype. But if the line can't rebuild in a
big hurry, and/or if injuries strike up front, all bets are off on what
this team can do.
This isn't last year's team, but it's certainly not going to slip enough
to be lousy again. If everything can come together right away and all
the new starters can play like consistent veterans, things could get
interesting because of ...
The Schedule: Are
there two tougher September road games for an elite team than at
Notre Dame and at Ohio State? The Buckeyes have rebuilding issues of
their own, while Notre Dame, despite what most preseason pundits
might say, isn't the end-all-be-all team that'll just walk all over
these Nittany Lions. A split is very, very possible, and even two
losses wouldn't be a killer. Survive those two road games, and it's
all there for Penn State to be right in the hunt for a BCS game.
While battles at Minnesota and Purdue won't be walks in the park,
the toughest road game the rest of the way will be at Wisconsin; all
three are winnable. Michigan and Michigan State have to come to
Happy Valley, and there's no Iowa on the slate. Unfortunately,
there's no Indiana.
Best
Offensive Player: Senior OT Levi Brown.
Publicity-wise, he'll suffer a bit from not being Wisconsin tackle
Joe Thomas, but he's worthy of All-America hype and needs to come up
with a huge season as the only returning starter to the line. He's a
sure-thing early draft pick who'll be the road grater for the
running game.
Best
Defensive Player:
Senior LB Paul Posluszny. O.K., O.K., so Ohio State's A.J.
Hawk was the best linebacker in America last year, and Iowa's Chad
Greenway, Alabama's Demeco Ryans and Mississippi's Patrick Willis
had better seasons, but Posluszny was the heart-and-soul of a
tremendous defense and was claimed by some to have turned into the
best Penn State linebacker ever. If he's back to his old self after
injuring his knee against Florida State, he should be a near-lock to
win the Butkus again.
Key
player to a successful season: Junior QB Anthony Morelli. He has
been around long enough to know what he's doing and turn into the
type of poised, cool veteran quarterback that Paterno likes so much.
If he becomes a 65% passer with the interceptions kept to under
double-digits, Penn State will turn out to be in the mix for the Big
Ten title.
The
season will be a success if ... the Nittany Lions finish second in the Big Ten
race. It's asking way too much for a team with so many holes to fill
to get through the conference season unscathed, especially with
games at Ohio State and Wisconsin as well as a home battle with
Michigan, but there's no reason a 6-2 Big Ten record can't be had.
Key
game: Sept. 23 at Ohio State. A loss in the Big Ten opener against
Ohio State won't mean the end of the dream, but a win would make the
Nittany Lions the team to beat.
2005
Fun Stats:
- Penn State opponent scoring: 1st, 2nd and 3rd quarters: 107 - 4th
quarter: 90
- Rushing yards per game: Penn State 212.8 - Opponents 93
- Sacks: Penn State 41 for 272 yards - Opponents 14 for 99 yards
The Last Time Penn State…
…played in a bowl game…2005 (Orange Bowl vs. Florida State)
…missed a bowl game…2004
…pitched a shutout…2002 (Northwestern)
…was shutout…2001 (Michigan)
…scored 50 points…2005 (Illinois)
…went undefeated…1994
…won a conference title…2005 (Big Ten)
…had a 3,000-yard passer…never
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2005 (Tony Hunt)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…1995 (Bobby Engram)
…had a first-round draft choice…2006 (DE Tamba Hali)
