JonDMiller
Publisher/Founder
Sneak Peek 2010: Penn State | Hawkeye Nation
KEY LOSSES (courtesy of NationalChamps.net)
OFFENSE: Daryll Clark-QB, Andrew Quarless-TE, Mickey Shuler-TE, Dennis Landolt-OT, Ako Poti-OT
DEFENSE: Jerome Hayes-DE, Jared Odrick-DT, Sean Lee-OLB, Josh Hull-ILB, A.J. Wallace-CB, Knowledge Timmons-CB, Jeremy Boone, Navorro Bowman-OLB (NFL)
SPECIAL TEAMS: Jeremy Boone-P
Jon’s Point Spread Prediction: Iowa -7.5
Before Penn State plays Iowa: The Iowa Hawkeyes will be opponent #5 for the Nittany Lions in 2010, and they will have played Temple the week before in Happy Valley. However, Penn State will have played Alabama on 9/11, a day that is shaping up as one of the best football weekends the 2010 season has to offer (Miami at Ohio State, Iowa State at Iowa, PSU at Alabama, Oregon at Tennessee, Florida State at Oklahoma, Michigan at Notre Dame, etc).
That topic takes me in to why, one year ago, I felt Penn State would be one of the most overrated teams in the nation. We knew they were going to be a preseason Top 10 team, and they were. We also knew they would be replacing three first team All Big Ten offensive linemen, every pass catcher of note, two NFL defensive ends and their entire starting secondary. They didnt play anyone to speak of, although Temple did make it to a bowl game.
When Iowa came to town, the Nits were not battle tested and while they threw a haymaker early on, a deep pass that beat Amari Spievey, that would be the lone touchdown the Nits would score and Iowa would dominate the final two and a half quarters for a 21-10 win. PSU lost to Iowa and Ohio State last year, two teams that won BCS bowl games and finished the season ranked in the Top 10. I can’t rail on them too hard for that, and they did win their bowl game against a ranked LSU team on a horrible track. It was close on the scoreboard, but the Nits dominated the game for the most part. So while Penn State didn’t look like a Top 10 team to me at any point in the season, with how things ended up last year in college football and there being a dearth of elite teams, they wound up finishing above my preseason expectations for them.
So what about 2010?
You start with the key departed figure, which is quarterback Darryl Clark. He finished with a record of 22-4 as a starter; two of those four losses were to Iowa, one to Ohio State an the other to USC. Each of those teams finished the season ranked with three of those four teams finishing their season ranked inside the Top Ten. Yet just two of Clark’s 22 wins as a starter came against ranked opposition; then #22 Illinois in 2008 (Illinois did not make a bowl game) and then #9 Ohio State in 2008. Yet Clark goes down as one of the better Penn State quarterbacks in recent memory. On a side note, Rick Stanzi is 18-4 as a starter with wins against teams ranked 3rd, 5th and 9th in the nation the time he played them, and each of those teams finished the season ranked inside the Top 15. In fact, Stanzi has never lost to a ranked opponent as Iowa’s starting quarterback.
Back to Clark; he is the only PSU QB to ever throw for at least 3,000 yards in a season, he leaves as the school’s third all time leading passer and 2nd all time at the school in total offense. Needless to say (but I will anyway) they lose a lot. The players that will compete for the job do not possess Clark’s skill set and the ‘Spread HD’ offense that PSU has put on the field the past two years will be…well, it could be close to the same because they didn’t run much of a spread offense, IMO. They just gave it a fancy name and ran some spread formations two seasons ago with all of their receiving talent and in 2009 they ran mostly a conventional pro style attack. Kevin Newsome has speed, while Matt McGloin has a passing pedigree.
RB Evan Royster returns & he will split carries with the speedy Stehphon Green. The offensive line could turn out to be one of the best units in the Big Ten this year which will give their new quarterback time to adjust. However, the two early road games at Alabama and Iowa could turn to be cruel crucibles. Nearly all of their pass catchers on the outside return, but they will have to find a new name at tight end.
Penn State loses every one of its linebackers, and while they have talent on the roster to be more than just competitive on that side of the ball, losing Sean Lee, Navarro Bowman and Josh Hull will be a challenge. It will be all the more challenging due to the fact that DT Jared Odrick will be plying his trade in the NFL; he was a beast the past two seasons. However, Ogbu, Crawford and Latimore return, giving them a solid core to work with. Their entire secondary returns, but gone is Jeremy Boone, one of the best punters in the league.
While I was not willing to give Penn State’s offensive line the benefit for the doubt for early season reloading last year, I am willing to give the Nits the benefit of the doubt in plugging four of the holes they have in their front seven. They have done this too many times in the past to ignore and they are on a roll as it relates to defensive line play the last several years.
Iowa will be the team that is trying to find its way along the offensive line, and the Nittany Lion front will provide them their stiffest test of the season to that point. NationalChamps.net has PSU at #13 in their early bird while ESPN’s Mark Schlabach has them at #22. I think Schlabach is closer to the mark, given some of the holes they have to fill. But they have the talent, and while I was not sold on the 2009 preseason press clippings for the Nits, I think the 2010 version can certainly grow into a Top 25 team by years end. I see them losing at Alabama, at Iowa City and at Ohio State. Outside of that, I think Penn State can win their remaining nine games as they get Michigan, Northwestern, Illinois and Michigan State at home and play one of their conference ‘road games’ in Landover, Maryland against Indiana. (The Hoosiers need the cash).
I think this will be another low 20’s for the Hawks to low to mid teen’s score for PSU, the way last year’s game was. Iowa’s defense will be the difference. Then again, I could say that 11 more times in looking at next year’s schedule.
Iowa vs ISU Sneak Peak
Iowa vs Arizona Sneak Peak
KEY LOSSES (courtesy of NationalChamps.net)
OFFENSE: Daryll Clark-QB, Andrew Quarless-TE, Mickey Shuler-TE, Dennis Landolt-OT, Ako Poti-OT
DEFENSE: Jerome Hayes-DE, Jared Odrick-DT, Sean Lee-OLB, Josh Hull-ILB, A.J. Wallace-CB, Knowledge Timmons-CB, Jeremy Boone, Navorro Bowman-OLB (NFL)
SPECIAL TEAMS: Jeremy Boone-P
Jon’s Point Spread Prediction: Iowa -7.5
Before Penn State plays Iowa: The Iowa Hawkeyes will be opponent #5 for the Nittany Lions in 2010, and they will have played Temple the week before in Happy Valley. However, Penn State will have played Alabama on 9/11, a day that is shaping up as one of the best football weekends the 2010 season has to offer (Miami at Ohio State, Iowa State at Iowa, PSU at Alabama, Oregon at Tennessee, Florida State at Oklahoma, Michigan at Notre Dame, etc).
That topic takes me in to why, one year ago, I felt Penn State would be one of the most overrated teams in the nation. We knew they were going to be a preseason Top 10 team, and they were. We also knew they would be replacing three first team All Big Ten offensive linemen, every pass catcher of note, two NFL defensive ends and their entire starting secondary. They didnt play anyone to speak of, although Temple did make it to a bowl game.
When Iowa came to town, the Nits were not battle tested and while they threw a haymaker early on, a deep pass that beat Amari Spievey, that would be the lone touchdown the Nits would score and Iowa would dominate the final two and a half quarters for a 21-10 win. PSU lost to Iowa and Ohio State last year, two teams that won BCS bowl games and finished the season ranked in the Top 10. I can’t rail on them too hard for that, and they did win their bowl game against a ranked LSU team on a horrible track. It was close on the scoreboard, but the Nits dominated the game for the most part. So while Penn State didn’t look like a Top 10 team to me at any point in the season, with how things ended up last year in college football and there being a dearth of elite teams, they wound up finishing above my preseason expectations for them.
So what about 2010?
You start with the key departed figure, which is quarterback Darryl Clark. He finished with a record of 22-4 as a starter; two of those four losses were to Iowa, one to Ohio State an the other to USC. Each of those teams finished the season ranked with three of those four teams finishing their season ranked inside the Top Ten. Yet just two of Clark’s 22 wins as a starter came against ranked opposition; then #22 Illinois in 2008 (Illinois did not make a bowl game) and then #9 Ohio State in 2008. Yet Clark goes down as one of the better Penn State quarterbacks in recent memory. On a side note, Rick Stanzi is 18-4 as a starter with wins against teams ranked 3rd, 5th and 9th in the nation the time he played them, and each of those teams finished the season ranked inside the Top 15. In fact, Stanzi has never lost to a ranked opponent as Iowa’s starting quarterback.
Back to Clark; he is the only PSU QB to ever throw for at least 3,000 yards in a season, he leaves as the school’s third all time leading passer and 2nd all time at the school in total offense. Needless to say (but I will anyway) they lose a lot. The players that will compete for the job do not possess Clark’s skill set and the ‘Spread HD’ offense that PSU has put on the field the past two years will be…well, it could be close to the same because they didn’t run much of a spread offense, IMO. They just gave it a fancy name and ran some spread formations two seasons ago with all of their receiving talent and in 2009 they ran mostly a conventional pro style attack. Kevin Newsome has speed, while Matt McGloin has a passing pedigree.
RB Evan Royster returns & he will split carries with the speedy Stehphon Green. The offensive line could turn out to be one of the best units in the Big Ten this year which will give their new quarterback time to adjust. However, the two early road games at Alabama and Iowa could turn to be cruel crucibles. Nearly all of their pass catchers on the outside return, but they will have to find a new name at tight end.
Penn State loses every one of its linebackers, and while they have talent on the roster to be more than just competitive on that side of the ball, losing Sean Lee, Navarro Bowman and Josh Hull will be a challenge. It will be all the more challenging due to the fact that DT Jared Odrick will be plying his trade in the NFL; he was a beast the past two seasons. However, Ogbu, Crawford and Latimore return, giving them a solid core to work with. Their entire secondary returns, but gone is Jeremy Boone, one of the best punters in the league.
While I was not willing to give Penn State’s offensive line the benefit for the doubt for early season reloading last year, I am willing to give the Nits the benefit of the doubt in plugging four of the holes they have in their front seven. They have done this too many times in the past to ignore and they are on a roll as it relates to defensive line play the last several years.
Iowa will be the team that is trying to find its way along the offensive line, and the Nittany Lion front will provide them their stiffest test of the season to that point. NationalChamps.net has PSU at #13 in their early bird while ESPN’s Mark Schlabach has them at #22. I think Schlabach is closer to the mark, given some of the holes they have to fill. But they have the talent, and while I was not sold on the 2009 preseason press clippings for the Nits, I think the 2010 version can certainly grow into a Top 25 team by years end. I see them losing at Alabama, at Iowa City and at Ohio State. Outside of that, I think Penn State can win their remaining nine games as they get Michigan, Northwestern, Illinois and Michigan State at home and play one of their conference ‘road games’ in Landover, Maryland against Indiana. (The Hoosiers need the cash).
I think this will be another low 20’s for the Hawks to low to mid teen’s score for PSU, the way last year’s game was. Iowa’s defense will be the difference. Then again, I could say that 11 more times in looking at next year’s schedule.
Iowa vs ISU Sneak Peak
Iowa vs Arizona Sneak Peak
