Gopher Football
Penn State Update . . .
Penn State comes into this game at 3-2, and is a little bit like the Gophers in that most of their games have been blowouts one way or the other. The Lion’s wins have come against Akron, Youngstown State (1-AA) and Northwestern, and their losses have come in large fashion to Notre Dame and Ohio State. In their most recent game the Lions got back on the winning track with a 33-7 whipping of hapless Northwestern. Sophomore wideout Deon Butler set a Penn State single game record with 217 yards receiving. Throw in Tony Hunt‘s 137 yards rushing and the Lions displayed a very balanced offensive attack. After giving up 41 points to Notre Dame, Penn State’s defense has allowed only 20 points in the last 3 games.
Minnesota Update . . .
The Gophers head into this game after being dominated 28-14 by Michigan. The Wolverines proved their defense was for real by forcing Minnesota to punt on 7 of its first 8 possessions. It wasn’t until Michigan went up 28-7 in the 4th quarter that the Gopher offense was finally able to do break through the Wolverine D and punch another touchdown in. After a horrid start to the game when they allowed 3 Michigan TD’s in their first 4 possessions, the Gopher defense tightened a little, forcing Michigan into two punts and a missed field goal. With the way Michigan is playing though the maize and blue could very well end up in the top 5 (or better) by season’s end and the Gophers performance against them won’t look quite as bad.
Penn State on Offense
Penn State’s offensive has been a little bit of a disappointment thus far this year, with the exception of last week against Northwestern. The big loss from last season was quarterback Michael Robinson, and so far the Lions have not been able to recover. Junior Anthony Morelli is the new starter, and unlike Robinson Morelli is a passer rather than a runner. Considering he’s a passer, Morelli has struggled a little. He’s thrown only four touchdown passes so far and thrown 5 interceptions. The two INT’s everyone remembers are the two that he threw late against Ohio State that sealed that game for the Buckeye’s. All in all though Morelli is a good passer and will do some damage if given some time.
*** (A late update this week is that Morelli hurt his knuckle in practice this week and his status for Saturday is uncertain. If he is unable to go, freshman Daryll Clark (4 appearances, 0 starts) would likely get the nod.)
That’s because he has a very good, and young group of receivers to throw to. As I mentioned above, Deon Butler is coming off a record setting week after receiving for 216 yards against Northwestern. He did the most damage receiving wise against Minnesota last year with 6 receptions for 83 yards. Lining up opposite of Butler is ultra-talented Derrick Williams, also a sophomore. Williams was a star last year as a true freshman before being injured half way through the season. So far this year Williams has been relatively quiet, and that’s exactly the reason why I’m nervous about him. I’m always concerned about really fast players that come to the Metrodome because of the ideal conditions provided on the inside (and of course because of the turf), and Williams is no exception to this. Williams is very fast, and I wouldn’t be shocked at all if he were to break one big play for a touchdown.
Penn State is also in good hands at running back. Senior Tony Hunt is the main guy and his well on his way to his second straight 1000 yards rushing season. At 6’2″ 230 Hunt is a tough guy to bring down. Last year against Minnesota he had 114 yards and 2 TD’s, so the Gopher defense should have no problem finding him this year. What is a concern for PSU in this game is the health of their offensive line. Senior All American candidate Levi Brown will miss the game with in injury, as may fellow senior guard Robert Price. If the Lions are indeed without both guys on the line, that may be enough to slow the Lion rushing attack and allow the Gophers to focus more on the pass. The big downer for Penn State offensively so far is that their red zone offense is last in the conference, which has led to 16 field goal attempts. That number leads the conference by a large margin.
Defensively, the Gophers will be presented with a lot of the same problems they had last week. Penn State is a well rounded team with a solid running game, fast receivers and a good passing quarterback. The difference between Penn State and Michigan is, in my opinion, PSU is about a notch lower than Michigan across the board. The big question will be again is whether or not the Gopher defense has the talent to keep up. It was clear against Michigan that we did not, but against Penn State I am not as convinced. As usual, the key for the Gopher defense will be for:
a) The front 7 to contain the run on their own
b) The front 4 to generate some quarterback pressure
c) Sound tackling
d) No mental breakdowns.
That’s a pretty basic to-do list, but those types of fundamental philosophies are exactly what the Gopher defense needs to improve in order to do well.
Penn State on defense
Though Penn State lost a ton on defense from last year, they have done a good job at replacing those losses and are slowly starting to become a force again. The one area where the Lions did NOT lose talent was at linebacker. Senior Paul Posluszny, junior Dan Connor and senior Tim Shaw all returned this season and continue to terrorize opposing offenses. Posluszny and Connor lead the team with 41 tackles, and Shaw has moved to defensive end and is doing well there. In Shaw’s place is sophomore Sean Lee, and he’s 3rd on the team with 33 tackles. The line and the secondary were the concerns heading into the season, but lately both areas have been improving. They’ve produced 15 sacks and 7 interceptions already this season. Super sophomore Justin King is now playing at cornerback and likely will be locked up against leading Gopher wide receiver Logan Payne. This could be the best matchup of the game.
On offense, the Gophers will once again be challenged when it comes to running the ball. Like Michigan, Penn State has a very good front 7 and seems to be well equipped to stop a good running game. The one area that does go in our favor is that Penn State is not as good as Michigan on the line. Last week against Michigan I felt like the Gopher line got bullied and pushed back more than they usually do, so this week if they can get the push on the line maybe they’ll see more success. But if that happens, then there’s always those linebackers to worry about”¦.
Whichever way the running game goes, I have a feeling that this is a game that could see the Gophers air the ball out a little more than we’re used to. All of the sudden, Logan Payne find himself tied for the nation lead with 7 touchdown receptions, and he seems to be gaining confidence by the week. I’d love the see us get the ball Logan’s way 10-12 times tomorrow. Despite my continued hopes for Ernie Wheelwright, #1 seems to be falling out of favor with just about everyone. He’s not seeing a lot of balls thrown his way, and when he does, he’s dropping way more than he should. Expect to see more of Eric Decker and Mike Chambers until Wheelwright finds his game again.
Special Teams
I haven’t talked a lot about special teams this year, because usually they’re only noticeable in close games. So far 4 of the 5 games the Gophers have played have been blowouts, and true to form the one game that was close was ultimately lost because of a blocked field goal. That one block was one of the few mistakes the Gophers special teams has made this season, and it’s an area where the Gophers have improved immensely since last year. Jason Giannini looks solid on his extra points, Joel Monroe is doing the unthinkable by booting kickoff after kickoff into the endzone, Dominic Jones is showing spark as a return man (with a kickoff return TD already), and the coverage games are doing well. In fact, right now the Gophers are ranked 1st in the Big Ten in punt coverage, 1st in kickoff coverage, 3rd in punt returns, and 2nd in kickoff returns. Penn State’s kicker, sophomore Kevin Kelly is perfect on his extra points and 12/16 on field goals.
Bottom Line
It all about Saturday for Minnesota. If they lose, hopes for a bowl game pretty much go out the window with 4 losses and Wisconsin, Iowa, Ohio State and Michigan State still left on the schedule. The Gophers will be challenged on both offense and defense and will need to play a clean, mistake free game. The one thing to watch between now and kickoff will be the injury situation, and Penn State’s possibility of not having 3 offensive starters. If they all miss the game I think Minnesota will win, but even if they do play I think it will be a really tight game. In the end I think the Gophers will sense the urgency of the game and they play well enough not to let it slip away at home.
Prediction: Minneota 24 ““ Penn State 20