Monday, September 21, 2015

Stripe Out Recap

Running back Saquon Barkley showed he has
what it takes to be an every down back. 
Big games can bring out the best in players. While Saturday’s contest with Rutgers wasn’t a “big game” per say, it was a game Penn State had to win and it did bring out the best in some players. On the offensive side the player of the game was without a doubt the true freshman running back Saquon Barkley. It’s tough to follow the stats throughout the game unless you’re continuously looking at your phone after every play, and we all know Beaver Stadium’s cell phone service isn’t the best, but when I left the game I got a text saying Barkley had racked up 195 yards on 21 carries. Not too bad for a true freshman. Another name that is going to be important for Penn State going forward is punter Chris Gulla. Gulla took over the punting duties for Daniel Pasquariello and did a spectacular job against Rutgers; he had five punts with an average of 41 yards. Rutgers return man Janarion Grant was supposed to be a game changer because of how bad Penn State’s punting situation was but with the change to Gula, Grant was held to -1 yard of return yards. Well done Gulla, well done.

Safety Troy Apke causing one of the three
Penn State turnovers. 
Once again Penn State’s offensive line was able to keep quarterback Christian Hackenberg clean while not allowing a sack. But once again, Hackenberg’s numbers were subpar. He was just 10/19 for 141 yards and no touchdowns. It’s imperative going forward that the passing game comes alive, as teams will load up the box to stop Barkley and Akeel Lynch (who had 10 carries for 120 yards).  The next two games are against San Diego State and Army, who are ranked 79th and 96th respectively in pass defense, so if the offense wants to start putting up some real numbers in preparation for Big Ten play, these two games will be great starting points.

The defense of Penn State was again dominant, giving up just 294 yards of total offense and allowing just 43 rushing yards, and caused 3 turnovers. Safety Marcus Allen led the way with 11 tackles and defensive end Carl Nassib added another sack to his total, which puts him at 5. Freshman cornerback John Reid is continuing to break out in the early part of the season having an interception and a fumble recovery against the Scarlet Knights. It was another all-around great performance by Bob Shoop’s defense.
 
I’ve been stumped as to why the offense hasn’t opened up and why head coach James Franklin isn’t letting Christian Hackenberg throw the ball deep. It might be because the weather over the last two-week’s hasn’t been ‘deep ball’ friendly with the rain, but with the next two opponents being poor in pass defense, let’s hope Franklin allows his NFL-style quarterback to play like it. That means let’s stop with the quick slants and bubble screens. LET IT RIP!


By the way, the Stripe Out looked pretty awesome. Good job fans.  

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