Week 8: Penn State at Iowa (7:00 PM, Peacock) Game Thread
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LionDeNittany
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Kaytron was spent. But yes,run anyne but
LionDeNittany
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At that point you want them to score.
You won't stop them 4 times.
Get the ball back for the win
I don't have Peacock so listened to the radio call on the Internet, which is OK but makes it harder to get a feel for the game.
Anyway, the good news is the guys showed up to play after a crazy week.
The bad news is that as usual, we found a way to lose. D can't get a stop in crunch time. O can't manage a drive with the game on the line.
This season is one for the history books. I truly wonder how long it will take the program to recover from it.
Anyway, the good news is the guys showed up to play after a crazy week.
The bad news is that as usual, we found a way to lose. D can't get a stop in crunch time. O can't manage a drive with the game on the line.
This season is one for the history books. I truly wonder how long it will take the program to recover from it.
LionDeNittany
Well-known member
The guys did show up and we played a good game.
The QB scramble at the end by Iowa was really unacceptable.
They used Singleton sparingly. I wish they ran him out for passes more though.
Although people were ripping on the OC, there were drastic improvements week over week. Especially with a first game starting QB.
I think the rest of the season will be tough. But I expect the team to improve each week.
I can't believe this untalented team was picked to win the NC. That's truly amazing.
LdN
You know, I'm not so sure about the untalented part though, yes, it does seem a couple guys picked as preseason All-Americans were overrated.
Still, Allar and Singleton are highly talented...but they regressed to mediocrity, which is not a great advertisement for the Penn State football program.
Kaytron Allen is highly talented but his talent was not adequately exploited...until last night.
Our WRs get a bad rap but all three showed a lot of talent in managing 1000 receiving yards last season. Until they transferred to Penn State at which time their talent magically disappeared and they became run-of-the-mill. You might say there's a pattern here.
Here's the bitchin' fact of the matter: we contained Oregon's explosive offense and had an OT lead on the Ducks even though saddled with coaching that can only be called, well, mysterious. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that if Kaytron Allen had been the featured back on the night of September 27, we would have defeated Oregon and still be unbeaten this morning...looking forward to our annual lose against Ohio State.
It's never one thing that can explain a disaster of the magnitude of this season. It's a lot of things...a lot of different people screwing up in a lot of different ways.
The QB scrambles and other big runs have occurred repeatedly for 3 straight games. Imaleava ran for 128. Gronowski ran for 130. It seems like our DEs are more focused on rushing the QB than sealing the edge. It also seems like our LBs are very weak without Rojas. I don't know if any of the backups have talent but Knowles seems to insist on a 4-2-5 defense but the question is why? I understand that's the defense he likes and that PSU has more depth at DB than at LB but there have been no adjustments. Gronowski passed for 68 yards so I wouldn't have worried about him beating us in the air. Why not get more guys at the LOS and the middle of the field?
It was nice to see Allen as the go to RB but in the biggest possession of the game we went with Singleton on 3rd down and 6. He only gained 1 yard which put Grunk in a pressure situation on 4th down,
LionDeNittany
Well-known member
Allen subbed himself out prior to this play. He was spent.
But Singleton is not a Div 1 back. I'd rather see us run the QB. Just a wasted play with Singleton.
LionDeNittany
Well-known member
This comment is pretty funny, because it's what I've been saying and now it's being told to me.
Of course our receivers are more talented than they are playing this season. Even the announcers were talking about Troy and how our top receiver burned Iowa last season.
But, what's the issue? The receivers? The QB? Or the scheme.
I'd say it's the third part. The scheme. And, as much as we bash the OC, he couldn't install an entirely new offense in under a week.
Receivers have been an issue the entire Franklin era, with some bright spots of guys who were just SO fast they could get the deep ball even when coverage was there.
Let's see how the receivers progress in two weeks.
Our concerns about DT were legit. Ford hasn't done anything.
LB lacked depth and losing Rojas was huge. We win the last 3 games if we had Rojas.
DE coaching at DE is a mystery. The focus is on rushing the QB and not sealing the edge.
Knowles has no answers and hasn't made adjustments.
I think Franklin was too loyal to players who returned but are now struggling.
I think Allar was overcoached. Everything was mechanical and not instinctive. How long can he look at the wristband?
Penalties might have lost us 2 games.
Clock management at the end of the half vs UCLA was possibly the worst I've seen.
The players might have let their preseason rankings and paychecks go to their heads.
Not to mention that our WRs who left have done better at other schools.
KeAndre Lambert-Smith pretty much disappeared from the game plan during the last several games of 2023, and nobody ever explained why. They just stopped throwing to him.
So he transfers to Auburn where he gains almost 1000 yards receiving and is selected 2nd-team all-conference.
Go figure.
Fortunately, we didn't need KeAndre as we had so many other productive WRs on the team.
Oh wait...
LionDeNittany
Well-known member
Harrison Wallace is Ole Miss leading WR. He already has 400 receiving yards.
Giving that run to Singleton is completely unacceptable. If Kaytron is gassed, run on of the other backs. I think that should have been a pass
GregInPitt
Well-known member
I agree with you 100% on Allen vs Singleton. But on PSU's last posession Iowa really stacked the LOS and I don't believe Allen would have done much better. PSU needed to pass the ball but insisted on running plays. It didn't seem like there were many pass attemps over the middle in the 2nd half but with Iowa crowding the LOS something should have been open on short crossing routes or to the TE's over the middle.
GregInPitt
Well-known member
Wallace is as good or better than any of the 3 transfer WR's that have gotten the majority of playing time this season. And we may find that Howard and Denmark are better as well, if they ever get a chance to get targeted regularly as the season goes along.....
You're probably correct but Allen got 4yds, 6 yds, 1 yd, and 3 yds on his previous 4 carries on that drive. Singleton got 1 yd. Even 3 yds would have keep the defense honest on 4th down. Singleton getting stopped put Grunk into an obvious passing situation.