No. 12 Penn State using killer instinct to put teams away

“I’ve said it before”, tight end Mike Gesicki said. He then cut the run back to the inside to beat a host of defenders.

The Nittany Lions have a mighty sweet spread offense with crafty run/pass quarterback Trace McSorley and running back extraordinaire Saquon Barkley. The Longhorns’ 250-pound bruiser has got to be on the Heisman short list after he ambushed Texas Tech for 341 yards and three touchdowns on 33 carries. However, the difference in the games was how the Lions responded to the more aggressive offense. “None of us are very happy with it…” Tackle Curtis Cothran, who was suspended for the first four games for a rules violation, made his first start alongside Parker Cothren, who was injured last week.

All in all, the Lions racked up 599 total yards of offense, a ridiculous notion for those who watched Penn State struggle on that side of the ball in the first couple seasons under James Franklin. The Nittany Lions yardage was the second-most the Hawkeyes have given up in the Kirk Ferentz era.

Those penalties helped keep drives alive for the Hawkeyes and put them in position for their first touchdown. You know, the one that Penn State linebacker Jason Cabinda jumped up at the line of scrimmage to meet Iowa quarterback C.J. Beathard on 4th-and-1 at Penn State’s 34-yard line on the Hawkeyes’ first drive? “Once Saquon gets 200-yard games, when he gets his big runs, it puts a smile on my face and the rest of the offensive linemen”. The running back continued his dynamic last month, rushing for 167 yards and a touchdown to top 1,000 for the second consecutive season. Heck, all of Beaver Stadium knew it was coming. Wadley and LeShun Daniels had shared reps with good results.

Iowa lives to run the ball but gained only 30 on the ground. The way the defensive line reacted, along with the linebackers shooting the right gaps, so numerous Hawkeyes’ plays were busted up before they could begin. And that run game in turn set up the pass, weakening the push of the Hawkeye defensive front. Save for a late 39-yard touchdown pass to Jerminic Smith, the highlights would end there for the Hawkeyes. However, the number itself is what is a bit of a shocker. As a team, the Hawkeyes rushed for 1.2 yards per carry.

After tying the score at eight, middle blockers Tori Gorrell and Thelen and Frantti brought the Lions into the lead with four kills before the Lions and the Hawkeyes then exchanged points. It has the talent to topple inferior opponents and the wherewithal to not play to their level of competition nor to perform just well enough to win, which is a pretty killer combination to possess. “You can always do stuff to improve yourself, a lot of it is just execution things”.

Barkley, the sophomore from Whitehall High, had his third huge game in four weeks, joining a Penn State defense to dismantle Iowa 41-14 on Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

DUELING ‘BACKERS: Both defensive fronts are led by stalwart linebackers and this game will feature two of the conference’s best tacklers.

It’s a much different team than the one that took the field earlier this season. However, the Lions played together and, like libero Kendall White said the previous night, kept fighting to finish the game. Iowa has to work with what it has. It’s the nutrition bar that we’ve installed because we had some issues in the past where, as the season went on, we lost weight.

“And when the opportunities have come, him and Paris have really stepped up big time for us”.

IN OR OUT: Penn State’s top deep threat DeAndre Thompkins is probably for this game after he suffered an upper body injury against Ohio State. The Wolverines will more than likely be a double-digit favorite in that game. “We have to give it our all these last three weeks”.