Two historic programs will meet on Saturday at 12 pm in Columbus. The winner will most likely represent the East in the Big Ten Championship game for the fourth year in a row. For both teams, everything is on the line as they know the implications.
Over the past two seasons, the score has been separated by one point as Ohio State has been victorious in 39-38 (2017) and 27-26 (2018) scores. Both losses stung, but last year's loss still lingers as the fourth and 5 running play was the nail in the coffin after the Nittany Lions blew a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter. That spurred the infamous post-game press conference where James Franklin wanted the Lions to be "elite" and said that they were close to reaching that level. Franklin has only beaten Ohio State once and it was during the historic 2016 season on a play that PSU fans will never forget. Marcus Allen blocked a Tyler Durbin 45-yard field goal and the ball fell right into Grant Haley's arms as he took it all the way to the house. Penn State won 24-21 and went on to win the Big Ten Championship and made an appearance in the Rose Bowl. Since then a lot has changed for the Penn State program, but the competitive nature with the Buckeyes hasn't. Whether the game is played at "The Shoe" or Beaver Stadium, the intensity is there.
For the third straight year, it is a top ten match up between these two teams. Ohio State comes in with a 10-0 record and is the No. 2 team in the nation. Former Penn State commit and now OSU quarterback Justin Fields is having an unbelievable season. Initially committed to the Lions in 2017, Fields decommitted for fear of former offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead leaving for a new job. That led Fields to commit to in-state Georgia where he was the backup to Jake Fromm for a year and then transferred to, you guessed it, Ohio State. Since becoming a Buckeye, Fields has had video game numbers as he has 31 passing touchdowns to just one interception with 2,164 yards passing. Fields' is also a dynamic runner as he has tacked on 377 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 4.5 yards per rush. Ohio State would not be a prolific team if they did not have a good supporting cast to surround their superstar. Enter J.K. Dobbins, a three year running back from La Grange, TX who's a force in the backfield as he's already rushed for 1,289 yards and has 13 touchdowns. Dobbins' is averaging 7.0 yards per carry on the season. On the defensive side of the ball, the Buckeye's are experienced and talented at every level. They are led by pass-rusher Chase Young, who is back from his two-game suspension, and boy is he effective. Even with the two games he's missed, Young has 13.5 sacks and five forced fumbles. For anyone who doesn't know, that is scary good. It will be a key match up this weekend as Young takes on a good Penn State offensive line. If the Nittany Lions want to stop Young, they're going to have to double team him for the majority of the game.
On the Penn State side of the ball. The Nittany Lions are looking to get two key players back from injury. The first is Noah Cain, the freshman running back from Louisiana. Cain is a downhill runner for PSU as they have turned to him when they need yards in key situations. Cain did not play last week against Indiana even though he was close to 100%. Assuming there's no setbacks, expect him to be in the lineup and get meaningful carries alongside Journey Brown. The other player the Nittany Lions hope to get back is KJ Hamler who was knocked out of the game last week against the Hoosiers and did not come back as he was tested for a possible concussion. It is still unclear whether Hamler will play on Saturday and if he doesn't, it will be a big loss for the PSU passing game. Hamler is the clear number one target for Sean Clifford as he leads the team with 46 receptions for 791 yards and eight touchdowns. He is also a force in the return game as it only takes one juke for him to get going up field and make a big play to swing momentum. The Penn State defense is also going to be a point of focus this week. Over the past two games against Indiana and Minnesota, Brent Pry's unit has allowed a season high in points, 58 points combined, 31 against Minnesota and 27 against Indiana. If the Lions want to succeed on Saturday, it's going to come down to two impact players, Micah Parsons and Yetur Gross-Matos. Parsons leads the team in tackles with 75 (37 solo) and has also added two sacks and a forced fumble to another impressive year for the Harrisburg native. Parsons' is going to have to make key plays against the Buckeyes in order of the defense to have success as they run on "Micah's motor". Another player that needs to get going is Yetur Gross-Matos. He has had a good year but recently has been quiet as a result of teams changing their blocking schemes to counter the talented PSU D-Line. Gross-Matos will need to be in the backfield consistently with Shaka Toney, Robert Windsor, and PJ Mustipher if the Lions want any chance to stifle Fields and Dobbins.
On a more serious note this week, Sean Clifford recently deleted his social media accounts as a result of receiving death threats after the loss to Minnesota. This is not the first time a Penn State player or any college/pro player has received this type of response from fans after a loss, but regardless it still is absolutely awful. Clifford has thick skin but he's also a player who wears his emotions on his sleeves and you could tell that it bothered the 21-year-old, and rightfully so. The fans that had the hatred to do this should be ashamed of themselves. All we can do is support players like this and lift them up because we don't know how hard their lives really are on a daily basis. It will certainly interesting to see how this affects Clifford as he returns to his home state of Ohio. Regardless, emotions will be running high for the redshirt sophomore, for more reasons than one.
Overall, Penn State has a shot to win this game. Even though they are close to three touchdown underdogs and the odds are stacked against them, this team still has a fighter's chance. James Franklin said in his press conference this week that Ohio State is going to get yards and make big plays. He compared the match up to a heavy weight boxing fight and said that it is how his team responds that will make or break the game. Penn State has to play their best football if they want to keep pace with Ohio State. Don't be surprised if this game is close and comes down to the wire for the fourth straight year. It's going to be an uphill battle, but if there's anything we've learned this season, the Nittany Lions are up for the challenge.
Comments