Penn State walks into Ann Arbor with a lot of questions and not many good answers.
The Lions have dropped 9 of their last 12 Big Ten games, and the slide has been even uglier this season with an 0-3 start in conference play. That’s the backdrop for today’s matchup with Michigan, a team that may be 0-2 in the Big Ten but has still made life miserable for Penn State at home, going 10-4 against the Lions in Ann Arbor.
Michigan’s conference losses have been narrow, by a combined seven points. Penn State’s have not.
The Lions have been outscored by 33 points in Big Ten play, and their only road conference game ended in a 21-point loss. If there’s a desperate team on either sideline, the question is whether it matters when both sides have plenty to fix.
One of the biggest problems for Penn State is obvious: John Henry Daley.
The Michigan edge rusher could be the most dangerous player on the field Saturday. The 6-5, 252-pound Daley was listed as questionable on Wednesday’s availability report, though Michigan is coming off a bye week. If he’s anywhere close to full strength, Penn State’s offensive line has to account for him every time the Lions get into long-yardage situations.
Daley was a first-team All-American at Utah last year, and he also earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors for his performance against Oklahoma, when he finished with eight tackles, three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. Penn State’s job is simple in theory and difficult in practice: keep him from wrecking the game.
Michigan has shown it can live in tight games. Four of its five games have been decided by seven points or less, and the Wolverines also have a notable win on their résumé, a 17-10 home victory over Oklahoma on Sept.
- Penn State, by contrast, has only played one close game and let a 17-0 lead slip away against Wisconsin in a 24-20 loss at Beaver Stadium.
If the Lions are going to hang around, they need more than just possession football. They need chunk plays, and those have been hard to find.
Penn State has only seven explosive plays of 20 yards or more in Big Ten games. With Koby Howard out the last three games because of an undisclosed injury, Chase Sowell has accounted for four of them.
That puts even more pressure on Michigan’s secondary, because if Sowell gets taken away, where does Penn State turn?
Third down could be another telling battleground. Michigan ranks 73rd in FBS in third-down conversion rate at 40.7 percent, while Penn State sits 97th at 36.6 percent. The Lions have been especially poor lately, converting just 7 of 26 third downs over their last two games, a meager 26.9 percent.
And then there’s the ground game, which has not given Penn State much to build on. James Peoples leads the team with 232 rushing yards, followed closely by Carson Hansen with 227. But the last two games have brought almost nothing on the ground: Peoples has 15 carries for 33 yards, and Hansen has 47 yards on 18 attempts.
That’s a major problem against a Michigan defense that ranks No. 3 in FBS in fewest yards allowed per game at 241.4. If Penn State can’t get the run game moving, and if the big plays keep disappearing, beating Michigan on the road becomes a very steep climb.
In Other News...
Penn State Fans Got A Court Decision They Will Have Strong Feelings About
A Centre County judge has declined to ease a parole restriction that keeps Braeden A. Phillips away from Penn State football games and wrestling matches, a decision that will resonate with plenty of fans who have followed the case. Judge Brian Marshall denied Phillips request to loosen the condition, which bars him from attending those events as part of the terms tied to his release.
Phillips pleaded guilty to making violent threats against State College Area High School and must stay at least 100 feet away from Penn State and other schools under his parole conditions. Marshall did leave the door open to a future request for a modification, but for now the restriction remains in place. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Fans Just Got A New Twist In The Kayne Clary Saga
Kayne Clarys legal fight with Penn State has come to an abrupt halt, at least for now. The former Nittany Lions basketball captain has discontinued his federal defamation and unjust enrichment lawsuit against the university, coach Mike Rhoades and others, ending a case that had accused the program of intimidation, retaliation, slander and illegal use of his Name, Image and Likeness.
The move comes during the discovery stage, before the case had reached a courtroom test of those claims. Clary was suspended and dismissed from the team before moving on to Mississippi State and then Oklahoma State, and the latest development leaves Penn State with one less off-court issue to navigate even as the circumstances around his departure still linger in the background. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Gets Encouraging Sign Before Tough Michigan Trip
Penn State heads into Ann Arbor with a familiar challenge in front of it, and the latest injury report at least gives both sides a clearer picture of who will be available for a game with real weight. The Nittany Lions are still dealing with several players sidelined, including some season-ending injuries, as they prepare for a matchup at the Big House, where their recent track record has not been kind.
Michigans report adds another layer of uncertainty, with two defensive ends listed as questionable ahead of kickoff. For Penn State, any edge matters on a trip that has not gone well lately, and the availability of a few key players could help shape whether this becomes another tough afternoon in Ann Arbor or a chance to finally change the feel of the series. [Read more 🡒]