Bowl Awards

It's New Year's Eve 2014, I'm watching the Fiesta Bowl between Boise State and Arizona.  College football continues, but the Penn State Nittany Lions are done for the year.  Fittingly this is my last post of 2014.  From here on out we're only concerned with the 2015 season and our quest for a Big Ten Championship!  For now, however, let's get back to the task at hand.  Let's roll out the last set of awards for Pinstripe Bowl!

I'd be remiss if I disagreed with the bowl committee here.  So the final Beast Mode Award of the year goes to Pinstripe Bowl MVP Christian Hackenberg who went 34/50 for 371 yds and 4 TDs to 4 different WRs.  Those stats were good enough to break no less than 3 Penn State bowl records!  Unfortunately, the dreaded "sophomore slump" label definitely applied to Hack's 2014 season, but there were many other factors at play which Hack could not control.  It's great to see him go out on such a high note!

The Transformer Award goes to LB Nyeem Wartman.  Penn State is known as Linebacker U for a reason.  This year, we saw the emergence of Mike Hull as the next great player in a very long line at the position in Happy Valley.  But in the Pinstripe Bowl, it was Nyeem Wartman who transformed himself into the presumptive 2015 leader of a young but promising group.  His 11 tackles led the defense on a night when even Mike Hull disappointed.  The tradition looks safe under Wartman's tutelage and that's great news for Penn State fans everywhere.

This week, the Matrix Award goes to a player who shockingly hasn't won it yet this season.  True freshman WR Chris Godwin had 7 catches for 140 yds and a TD en route to his best game of the season.  Next year he'll fight for a starting spot in a suddenly crowded wide receiver corps bursting with young talent.  James Franklin might have his ideal offense sooner than we think with all the SEC speed he's ever dreamed about.  Now about that offensive line...

My final In Disguise Award of the season is a split title between TEs Jesse James and Kyle Carter.  The duo were key pieces in Penn State's overtime drive to win the Pinstripe Bowl.  Jesse James ran over a DB for a critical 1st down, and Kyle Carter caught his 3rd pass of the day in the back of the endzone for a TD that more or less sealed the deal.  They didn't get as much attention as the receivers but they were certainly as vital.  This unit will be one man stronger and another year wiser next season, so expect big things.

Finally, the Megatron Award for biggest pain in Penn State's butt goes to Boston College QB Tyler Murphy who went 11/19 for 97 yds and 2 TDs passing and ran for 111 yds and a 3rd TD on 11 carries rushing.  He made the nation's #1 rushing defense and #3 overall defense look foolish all night.  That kind of performance should be an anomaly next year as an already terrific defense brings back nearly everyone.  Should be fun!

Well, that's the end of the season, and the end of 2014.  I'm looking forward to a very exciting 2015 season and it will all kick off with National Signing Day on Feb 4th, and we'll get our first glimpse of the new team on April 18th for Blue/White.  Then things officially kick off on Sept 5th at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA as the Nittany Lions take on Temple.  I plan to be at that game by the way.  In the meantime, keep it here on the blog for all the latest news and notes on Penn State football.  Head on over to my Facebook page and give it a like or a share if you're a fan of what I'm doing.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus.  And may all of you have a very Happy New Year!  Enjoy 2015, and as always, go State!!!

Bowl Grades

We've reached my last grades post of the season!  Today, in addition to giving out the grades and my rationale, I'll also attempt to give you an idea about the future of each position on the team, factoring in graduation and recruiting.  That means this will probably run a little long.  Hopefully you don't mind too much.

Offense
QB: (A-) Sure, Hackenberg put up impressive stats (34/50, 371 yds, 4 TDS), and his late game heroics were exciting, but he gets the minus thanks to his 2 bobbled snaps and more than a couple bad throws.  Still, he was the MVP and put together arguably his best performance of the year so I can't dock him too much.  The good news is the sophomore slump is officially over and we should be able to expect big things from him next year... like, record shattering kinds of things.  On the recruiting front, 3-star Indiana native Tommy Stevens will enroll early and join Trace McSorely as Hackenberg's backups for 2015.

OL: (B+) Even with the loss of Miles Deiffenbach, the offensive line gave one of their best performances of the year.  The running game was still lacking, but most importantly, Hackenberg finally had time to make his reads and get the ball where it needed to be.  Plus they only allowed 2 sacks!  Thankfully, reinforcements are on the way for this depleted group, with 4 freshmen coming off their redshirt season, JUCO transfer Paris Palmer coming to town, and 4-star OT Sterling Jenkins enrolling early.  Even so, the losses of Deiffenbach to graduation and Donovan Smith to the NFL will hurt, let's just hope not too much.

RB: (C+) It wasn't nearly as ugly as some games this season, but Akeel Lynch only managed 77 yds on 17 carries, and almost half of those yds came on one 35 yd run.  Worse still was Bill Belton only gaining 9 yds on 3 carries.  Of the three original starters from this season, only Lynch returns in 2015, but with an entire offseason to get better and behind a hopefully improved O-line I expect him to have a breakout year.  There's also ample talent behind him if it's discovered that he can't get the job done.

WR: (A+) Wow.  This group probably best exemplifies the youth movement at Penn State (although CB has a case as well).  3 different receivers had 7 catches and a TD in this game.  True freshman Chris Godwin led the way with 140 yds, Geno Lewis was next with 82 yds, and redshirt freshman Daesean Hamilton finished the day with 51 yds.  The other true freshman WR, Saeed Blacknall, only had 1 catch for 15 yds, but his presence was felt all season long.  Things get scary next year as none of the current receivers are leaving, De'Andre Thompkins is coming off his redshirt season, and 4-star talent like Juwan Johnson, Brandon Polk, and Irvin Charles are all joining the mix.  Hack should like his options for the foreseeable future.

TE: (A+) That overtime drive alone is all the evidence you need for this grade.  Jesse James running over a poor DB for a clutch 17 yd 1st down and then Kyle Carter’s TD catch were as responsible for Penn State’s win as Ficken’s extra point.  All told, they each pulled in 3 catches and combined for 57 yds on an impressive day.  Like the WR position, none of the current starters (James, Carter, and freshman Mike Gesicki) are leaving, but Adam Breneman will be back from injury and recruit Jonathan Holland will be arriving in the summer to create an embarrassment of riches unlike any other team in the country.

Defense
DL: (C)  Anthony Zettel and Austin Johnson both had decent games combining for 13 tackles and 3 for a loss.  CJ Olaniyan and Deion Barnes added 7 more tackles.  But I just can't get over the 305 rushing yds they allowed, nor the 2 rushing TDs.  Our once elite rush defense was exposed in a big way on a big stage and there's no way these guys will get anything above a C from me because of it.  However, Boston College really is that good at running the ball and the D-line played lights out for the rest of the season, so they get a pass.  CJ Olaniyan is the only senior of the group and he'll be replaced by 3-star recruit Ryan Buchholz, along with a bevy of backups and redshirts.  In other words, I'm not concerned about this group at all.

LB: (C+) See the BC rushing stats above if you're questioning this grade.  The good news is that although Mike Hull under-performed with only 6 tackles, his counterpart Nyeem Wartman led the team with 11 tackles and looks like the clear candidate to replace Hull (the only senior) as the next Linebacker U disciple.  Like the D-line, we'll chalk this up to a rare bad game and instead focus on the future as Ben Kline returns from injury, Troy Reeder comes off his redshirt, and recruits Jake Cooper and Manny Bowen enter the fold.

DB: (B+) The secondary was the lone bright spot on an otherwise disappointing day for the defense.  Adrian Amos and Jordan Lucas led the way with 7 tackles a piece, but it was Lucas's sack and tackle for a loss that gives him the edge.  Freshman Marcus Allen added another 6 tackles while Trevor Williams and Jesse Della Valle combined for 5.  Still, no one had an interception on BC's QB whose passing skills are suspect to say the least.  In fact, they allowed Tyler Murphy to go 11 of 19 for 97 yds and a TD.  Not elite numbers by any measure, but more than I was expecting.  Amos and Della Valle (along with the injured Ryan Keiser) are all seniors and all safeties, so the middle of the defensive backfield will take a big hit.  But none of the CBs (Lucas and Williams) are leaving and on top of freshmen Grant Haley and Christian Campbell (who received significant playing time this year) Penn State brings in possibly the best CB duo in the country with John Reid and Garrett Taylor.  I wouldn't be surprised if the bulk of any transfers this offseason come from the secondary.

Special Teams
K: (A+) He didn't have to do much, but Sam Ficken finished his collegiate career in the best way possible.  He hit a 45 yarder to send the game into overtime, and finished it off with an extra point that won the whole thing.  No team will miss their departing kicker more than Penn State; not just because of his skill, but also because he's an all around great person and an even better story.  We wish Ficken the best of luck as he tries to make an NFL roster and hopefully win over yet another fan base with his awesomeness.

P: (B) Dan Pasquariello had another rough day averaging only 34 yds on 6 punts.  Either he or Chris Gulla will need to step up in the offseason to solidify their spot as the starter.  The loser of that battle has a good chance at replacing Ficken for placekicking duties.  There might also be some recruits coming in, but they generally don't get scholarships (at least not initially) so I can't really speak with any authority on this position.

Today's bonus grade is an A+++ to the Pinstripe Bowl for a classy production from start to finish.  The teams were a great match, the venue was brilliant, and somehow getting an announcer from each school to handle the broadcast worked out perfectly.  Even while watching on TV from home it was obvious that the entire bowl experience was damn near magical in its execution.  Thank you bowl officials!

Well that will just about do it.  Stop back in tomorrow as I write my last post of 2014 on the last day of 2014.  Funny how that worked out, huh?  Head on over to my Facebook page and give it a like or share if you're a fan of what I'm doing.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!

Bowl Wrap Up

Spoiler alert: the Penn State Nittany Lions are officially your 2014 Pinstripe Bowl Champions!  In a hard fought battle that went into overtime and included a lot more offensive production than anyone could have predicted, Penn State managed to squeak out a 31-30 win on the arm of Christian Hackenberg and the leg of Sam Ficken.  As anticipated, the crowd skewed heavily in favor of the blue and white and if ever so briefly, transformed Yankee Stadium into Beaver Stadium.  Those in attendance were treated to a tremendous contest which, along with the opener in Ireland against Central Florida, provided signature wins in exotic locations at the bookends of a season that was equal parts frustrating and satisfying.  In the end, the players and coaches flipped a metaphorical middle finger to the NCAA by doing the only thing they could do… they won.  Over the past 3 years they won in the classroom with exceptional graduation rates, they won in the community with record breaking efforts at Lift for Life, and most importantly, they won on the field compiling a 22-15 record across 3 winning seasons capped off with wins in all 3 season finales: 1 at home, 1 on the road, and 1 in a bowl game.  More importantly, they gave themselves a springboard towards a VERY exciting 2015 season.  It was glorious, so let's get to what happened.

As the game kicked off, and through the first quarter, I felt a strange sensation rush over me.  The entire bowl experience just seemed perfect.  Two vintage teams playing in an historic venue.  A place where the Yankees (much like the Paterno-led teams of yore) were as famous for their clean cut image and lack of facial hair as they were for their championships and hall of fame players.  Northeast football and doing things "the right way" were on full display and I began to feel as if I would be content with any outcome, win or lose… almost.  Nevertheless, there was suddenly no animosity, just respect.  And so, I felt safe to just sit back, relax, and if only for this game, enjoy the purity that is supposed to be college sport.

The first quarter went about as well as Penn State fans could have reasonably hoped.  The offense showed it could move the ball with Hackenberg throwing for 158 yds including a highlight worthy pass to Chris Godwin who made a defender miss and took it 72 yds for the first TD of the game.  Godwin would end the day with his first ever 100+ yd performance.  Meanwhile, the running game struggled as expected.  One group no one expected to struggle, however, was the Penn State defense.  Everyone knew about Boston College's explosive rushing attack, but in a classic match up of unstoppable force meets immovable object, the unstoppable force won convincingly.  In particular, the Golden Eagles hit on two big running plays, one of which went for a TD.  Thankfully, that was where the scoring stopped and the quarter would end tied at 7 a piece.

Alas, this is where things started to go horribly wrong.  First, Miles Deiffenbach, only recently back from injury, was seen on the sideline being worked on by multiple trainers.  Although he tried to walk off his injuries, eventually he was ruled out for the remainder of his final collegiate game.  Then, to top things off, Hackenberg bobbled a snap from Angelo Mangiro and turned the ball over.  Right around this time I began to lose track of how many times Matt Millen kept saying some variation of “that one’s on Hackenberg.”  Indeed, Hack was getting flustered and everyone knew it.  Lucky for him, both defenses buckled down and the teams combined for four straight 3 and outs.  On one of the resulting punts, Penn State’s Brad Bars was rather blatantly blocked in the back, and that illegal block allowed the Boston College return man to gain significant yardage.  However, there was no flag on the play.  It was an objectively bad no-call by the officials.  An avalanche of boos descended upon the referees, demonstrating to anyone who didn't already know just how one-sided this crowd really was.  The announcer would come to call the scene “Happy Valley East.”

The second half started out a lot like the 2nd quarter.  Boston College’s QB Tyler Murphy continued his impressive day with a methodical drive down the field that culminated in a rather nice TD pass.  Then he took it 40 yds by himself for another TD on their very next possession – a possession coincidentally set up by the second bobbled snap and turnover of the night from Penn State’s QB.  That’s when Christian Hackenberg, who had ironically been the cause of nearly all the offensive miscues in the first half, seemed to wake up and remember - he’s Christian freaking Hackenberg!  On Penn State's next drive, he completed a 32 yd pass to Geno Lewis to go along with a 15 yd facemask penalty for a 47 yd play.  Then Lewis capped off the drive by reeling in a circus catch in the endzone as the quarter came to a close.  Heading into the final period, we suddenly had a game again.

At the start of the 4th quarter, the teams exchanged a few punts before RB Akeel Lynch found a hole and popped off a huge 35 yd run that looked like a TD to anyone with eyes.  But the officials didn't see enough to award the TD and added insult to injury when they flagged OG Brian Gaia for a very suspect personal foul, taking the Nittany Lions from the 1 yd line to the 16 yd line.  It was too late, though.  Hackenberg had his groove back and nothing was going to stop him now.  He drilled an absolute strike to Daesean Hamilton for a TD!  Now we were all tied up at 21.

Skeptical officiating continued but this time it favored Penn State, forcing Boston College to kick a 20 yd FG and once again take the lead.  With 2:05 left on the clock and only 1 timeout, Hackenberg proceeded to complete 5 straight passes to 3 different targets, then scrambled 6 yds to set up a 45 yd FG attempt by none other than Sam Ficken.  As if there was any doubt, Mr Automatic effortlessly sailed it through the uprights.  This one would be decided in overtime.

Boston College got the ball first and on their third play, Tyler Murphy found WR Dave Dudeck, who broke a few tackles and scored on his first catch of the game.  Remembering what I wrote in my prediction post about BC’s kickers, I literally said out loud, “watch them miss this extra point”… 

NO GOOD!

Now it was Penn State’s turn.  Never ones to make it easy on themselves, they started things off with a false start to make it 1st and 15.  On 3rd down Jesse James made a short catch on the outside and found his 6’7” frame starring down a poor defensive back.  Both of them knew how this would end; 1st down and more.  On the subsequent 3rd down, Hackenberg found Kyle Carter in the back corner of the endzone for the beleaguered QB’s school record 4th TD pass in a bowl game.  Even more impressive, all 4 TDs were delivered to different receivers.  But it wasn't over yet.

In my prediction, I was purposefully vague about how the game would end.  Everyone was calling for Sam Ficken to hit a game winning FG, but I knew the football gods had something else in store for him.  So I simply wrote, “he will be the last player to score.”  Never have my words been more prophetic.  The once raucous crowd came to a complete hush as the senior co-captain lined up for a routine extra point that was anything but routine…

IT’S GOOD!

Yes, the “storybook” career of Sam Ficken is a wonderful tale, one which I have already attempted to tell.  But it would seem that others have decided to tell this chapter much better than I can.  So check out their work if you’re interested.  However, what I will say is that Ficken’s story provides an incredible life lesson for us all.  It is only because his worst game was so historically bad that his best game could be this epically triumphant.  Without those hard times, Ficken may have become just another throw-away kicker lost to history, instead of a team captain who inspired a school.  In life, it is important to persevere and know that it will get better.  Who knows, you may even grow to become a hero.  Congratulations Ficken!

Congratulations also go out to your game MVP, Christian Hackenberg.  All told, he went 34 of 40 for 371 yds and 4 TDs, all Penn State bowl records.  And while people like the announcer working with Matt Millen spent almost the entire first half questioning Hack's production this year, the sophomore was putting on a clinic, not unlike what he did against heavily favored Wisconsin last year.  It would seem that Hack always saves his best for last.  Given that he might go pro after next season, I can’t even imagine what he has in store for next year’s bowl game.

So how was my first ever bowl prediction?  Well, we won, but I wasn't even close on the final score.  The offense definitely had their best performance since the UCF game like I called.  Hackenberg did break 300 yds passing, but he had 4 TDs instead of just 1.  Lewis and Hamilton broke out in a big way (along with true freshman Chris Godwin); all three receivers had 7 catches and a TD.  And much of that success was due to an offensive line that held together as well as they have all season, even after losing Deiffenbach early.  Defensively, our guys let me down.  Only Jordan Lucas registered a sack and no one got an interception, so I blew it there.  However, my Sam Ficken end-game scenario more than makes up for it!

*Update - we’re essentially halfway through bowl season.  For those participating in the Prime Pick Em Challenge, it looks like “LandotheDrummer” has jumped out to a decent lead while I’m tied for 3rd.  There's still plenty of games to go, though, including 3 today.

That will wrap things up for the 2014 Pinstripe Bowl.  Per usual, life got in the way of this posting on Sunday, so grades will be out tomorrow.  Head on over to my Facebook page to keep up with all things Penn State football.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!

Bowl Prediction

The Penn State Nittany Lions make their glorious return to the postseason with a selection to the New Era Pinstripe Bowl in New York City, the old stomping grounds of their late coach Joe Paterno.  They'll take on the Boston College Golden Eagles in a battle of white helmets with a blue stripe vs gold helmets with a red stripe.  Classic.  The game will kick off at 4:30pm and Penn State's own Matt Millen will have the call, adding to what will most certainly be a very Penn State friendly environment.  This should be a really great match up, so let's get to the final breakdown of 2014!

The Good:
With the game being played in New York City, and both student and alumni tickets selling out in near record time, I expect a very favorable crowd for James Franklin and Co that borders on home-field advantage.  The atmosphere will probably be reminiscent of the 2005 Orange Bowl, which also came after a 2-year bowl hiatus, and saw an overwhelming majority of the spectators decked out in blue and white despite the relative proximity of the bowl site to the opposing team's campus.

The importance of the 15 extra bowl practices can't be overstated, especially for a team that hasn't been able to benefit from them the last two years.  Besides giving the freshmen and backups plenty of extra reps, it also gives the injured players like LB Brandon Bell a chance to heal up.  Thanks in large part to James Franklin's injury policy, there's no way to know who else was banged up down the stretch, but Hackenberg may very well have fallen into that category.  If that's the case, the nearly one month long break could do wonders for his game and help him show flashes of his former self.

From a football perspective, Boston College is a running team plain and simple, which will definitely work in Penn State's favor given that they bring the nation's top ranked rush defense to the Big Apple and will look to send their seniors out with a dominating performance and hopefully a win.  On the other sideline, the Golden Eagles have a stout front seven of their own, but a rather pedestrian secondary.  This is good news for Hackenberg... if he has time to throw.  However, if BC is able to take advantage of our weak offensive line (as plenty of other teams have successfully done) Hack might be in for another long day of pulling himself up off the ground.  As for special teams, BC's kickers definitely aren't the best.  Since most people are expecting a close game, it could come down to a FG and I like the chances of Sam Ficken hitting a game winner to polish off an already exceptional college career.

The Bad:
Unlike Penn State, which doesn't really have a "quality" win on their schedule this year, Boston College already beat USC as heavy underdogs and came as close as anyone to beating reigning national champ Florida State.  They're a tough, no nonsense, blue collar team with a solid coach that would be a challenge for just about any squad right now.

Despite the loss of Andre Williams to the NFL, James Franklin admits that the Eagles' ground attack, which ranks #15 in the country, will be a challenge to contain.  Even with our outstanding rush defense, they'll most likely do some damage and hit on a few big plays.  In addition to their RBs, Boston College has at their disposal former Florida QB Tyler Murphy (originally recruited by their head coach, Steve Addazio while an assistant at Florida).  Murphy is very productive in a dual-threat capacity, something Penn State is not the best at defending.  Just to give you an idea of what he's accomplished, so far this year Murphy led the country in rushing for a QB and broke the ACC record for rushing yards by a QB.  Yeah, I would call that pretty good.  As Franklin said in his bowl game press conference, "we've been pretty good all year stopping the run, but we haven't really faced that before."

On defense, the Eagles don't have any real stand out players (like Mike Hull or Anthony Zettel), but they play well as a unit and can be quite formidable.  Combine that with how our offense has played this year, and this particular match up could get ugly.  As it has all season, I expect the game to come down to PSU's O-line.  They don't have to be anything spectacular, but if they can just give Hackenberg some time to pick apart a suspect BC secondary, it could get interesting.

The Story:
This game will effectively represent a battle of Philly/Pittsburgh vs Boston in New York City... how much more Northeast can you get?!  In fact, the Golden Eagles and Nittany Lions are long time Northeast rivals, going back to their days as Independents.  Along with other NE teams like Pitt, Syracuse, West Virginia, and Rutgers, Boston College used to be a member of the now defunct Big East Conference before they joined Miami and Virginia Tech in bolting for the ACC back in 2003.  As such, they compete annually for the Lambert Trophy which Penn State has won a record 29 times to BC's 5.  All told, the teams have met a total of 23 times with Penn State holding a commanding lead in the series 19-4.  However, Boston College did win the two most recent games in 2003 and 2004.

But the biggest story of this game, at least in my opinion, comes from the coaching realm.  BC Head Coach Steve Addazio rose to prominence as the Offensive Coordinator at Florida during their dominant run a few years ago that resulted in 2 BCS National Championships in only 3 years.  In 2011, he took his first collegiate head coaching job at Temple in place of the departed Al Golden (a PSU alum).  Addazio went 0-2 against Penn State as leader of the Owls, but his teams always played tough.  Either way, he is a familiar foe for this Nittany Lion team.  After only two years with Temple, he made the move to Chestnut Hill in 2013 to take over for Frank Spaziani who had been on the Boston College coaching staff since 1997.

The Prediction:
Vegas is currently giving the slight edge to Boston College, and given how Penn State has played this year, and especially towards the end, I completely understand that thinking.  Still, I firmly believe a lot of that was simply the result of fatigue from a undermanned team limping to the finish line.  With time to rest up and heal up, I expect the Nittany Lions to look more like they did against UCF in week 1 than they did against MSU in week 12.  Christian Hackenberg gives us a preview of what he plans to do in 2015 by throwing for 300 yds and a TD behind an offensive line that gives their best performance of the season.  The RBs can't get much done against a stiff BC defensive front, but Daesean Hamilton and Geno Lewis reunite the law firm and have a breakout day.  On defense, I hope to see more of what we've already had the privilege of watching all season long.  Boston College will get to "witness the firepower of this fully armed and operational" rush defense as Mike Hull leads the team in tackles, Anthony Zettel and CJ Olaniyan both record a sack, and two different members of the secondary grab interceptions.  Sam Ficken may not hit his game winner in the closing seconds, but he will be the last player to score, and it should be just enough to propel the Lions into the offseason, where a top 10 recruiting class awaits on Signing Day.  Penn State wins in typical 2014 fashion, 16 - 13.  #DominateTheEmpireState

That will do it for my 2014 prognostications.  Be sure to check back in on Sunday for my Bowl Wrap Up and early next week for the Bowl Grades and Awards.  Head on over to my Facebook page and give it a like or even a share if you're a fan of what I'm doing.  Send your questions and comments to PSUOptimus@gmail.com and maybe you'll be featured in one of my offseason posts.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!

Prime Pick Em Challenge!

Hello everyone, and Happy Holidays (albeit a little early) to all of you from PSUOptimus!

It's bowl time, and that can only mean one thing... Bowl Mania!  And it's even better this year now that Penn State is finally back in the post season!  For the second year in a row I've set up a group on ESPN.com to house the Prime Pick Em Challenge.  You will need to sign up for ESPN.com if you haven't already.  Don't worry, it's free.  Click here and you'll be taken to the homepage for the group.  Then, fill out your picks and click submit.  The first bowl game will be the New Orleans Bowl between the Nevada Wolfpack and the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns on 12/20 at 11am.  At that time your entry will lock, so all submissions must be complete.  However, I believe you will be able to edit your selections all the way up to kickoff of each individual game.  Good luck to all!

Feel free to check out my Playoffs/Bowl post from last week for everything you'll need to know about Bowl Season.  Finally, to get you in the mood for Penn State's bowl game, here's a quick recap of Pinstripe Bowl Media Day from GoPSUSports.

Get those entries in, and as always, go State!

We're Talking Playoffs? and We Are...Going Bowling!

The ballots have been cast, the votes have been tallied, and the Playoff Committee has made their final judgment.  Your first ever Top 4 are (in order): Alabama, Oregon, Florida State, and Ohio State!

We're talkin about playoffs?!

Now some people are upset with the inclusion of Ohio State in the inaugural College Football Playoff, especially over Big 12 teams Baylor and TCU.  I say get over it.  Frankly, I don’t have an issue with these 4 teams making the cut, in fact I think the Committee got it exactly right.  Look, this was the first one of these ever, and no one knew exactly how it would turn out.  The only certainty was that someone was going to be left on the outside looking in, and they would probably handle it poorly (I’m talking to you Art Briles).  Whatever criteria the Committee ultimately chose to use when analyzing each team was going to be controversial, but it was also their prerogative.  Personally, my only demand is that they stay consistent moving forward.  They can start by admitting that they wanted to send a message to the entire college football world with this decision, and from what I observed, that message was clear and threefold.  In the future, teams wishing to earn a coveted spot in the Playoffs will need to keep the following in mind:

1. Conference Championships matter.  And no, we’re not talking about split championships (like the Big 12 decided to do with Baylor and TCU).  We’re talking about outright championships won on the field.  Oh, your conference doesn't have enough teams to play a championship game?  Too bad, better luck next year.  Since you’re all so enamored with playing SMU, bring them into your conference (along with Houston) and then you can have a championship game.  Problem solved.

2. Your non-conference matters.  This might have been the most clearly delivered message.  You don’t necessarily have to play a tough non-con, but every team now has a decision to make if they hope to control their own destiny – go undefeated, or play someone with a pulse.  Period.

3. Extenuating circumstances matter.  Ohio State’s lone loss of the season was to Virginia Tech, who isn't very good.  But, that loss came at the beginning of the year while the Buckeyes were breaking in a new freshman QB who was replacing their injured Heisman-candidate QB with only 2 weeks notice.  Because of this, they were given the benefit of the doubt for that loss, especially considering how they played down the stretch.  Conversely, if Ohio State had struggled behind their now 3^rd string QB in the Big Ten Championship Game (instead of blowing out Wisconsin in epic fashion, 59-0), they probably would have been penalized accordingly.  This is why we have real live people in charge now instead of computers, and personally, I love it.

So, without further ado, here are the 6 supposedly “best” bowl games (dubbed the “New Year’s Six”), as selected by the Playoff Committee:

#9 Ole Miss vs #6 TCU                      Peach Bowl                 Atlanta, GA                Dec 31

#20 Boise State vs #10 Arizona          Fiesta Bowl                 Glendale, AZ              Dec 31

#7 Miss State vs #12 Ga Tech           Orange Bowl                Miami, FL                   Dec 31

#8 Michigan State vs #5 Baylor          Cotton Bowl                Arlington, TX               Jan 1

#2 Oregon vs #3 Florida State            Rose Bowl                   Pasadena, CA            Jan 1

#1 Alabama vs #4 Ohio State             Sugar Bowl                 New Orleans, LA         Jan 1

Overall, I think this is a great lineup and it will give fans some very compelling matchups over the holiday.  It will also most likely give ESPN the kind of ratings that their TV executives could only dream of before.  The only thing I’m disappointed in?  They weren't able to matchup Ohio State and Oregon in the Rose Bowl for a traditional Big Ten/Pac-12 showdown.  Oh well, maybe next time.

Ok, that’s all well and good, but those bowl games are between other teams and will be dissected ad nauseum by anyone with a mouthpiece in the coming weeks.  If you read this blog with any kind of regularity, all you should care about is WHAT BOWL GAME IS PENN STATE GOING TO?!  Well my lovely under-a-rock-dwellers, the Nittany Lions will be taking on the Boston College Golden Eagles in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl on Saturday, Dec 27^th at 4:30pm in Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY.  It's an interesting pairing, and should be a good game.  Since it will take place on a Saturday, I think I’ll simply follow my normal posting schedule: Friday Prediction, Sunday Wrap Up, Monday Grades, and Tuesday Awards.

Time for some particulars.  James Franklin and Athletic Director Sandy Barbour were on hand at the Pinstripe Bowl's introductory press conference on Tuesday and had some interesting things to say; namely, that Joe Paterno being from New York (specifically Brooklyn) gave Penn State a connection to the game which was "not lost" on them.  Another more apt connection might have been discussing Penn State's surprisingly storied history of playing in New York City, but we'll let them slide on that this time.  The two were also in town to meet up with former Nittany Lion linebacking great, Shane Conlan, for his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.  Conlan also invited the man he credits with recruiting him to Penn State, former defensive coordinator (and interim head coach) Tom "Scrap" Bradley.  Congratulations to Shane on this incredible honor and thank you for upholding the proud tradition of Linebacker U!  We Are!

Meanwhile the PSU media machine has already kicked in to full gear as a hype video celebrating the Nittany Lions' recently acquired "New York state of mind" has already started making its way around the interwebs.  With the amount of press surrounding Penn State's glorious return to bowl season, it's no wonder the official Penn State allotment of tickets has already sold out.  Don't worry, there are still plenty of tickets available, you'll just have to get them directly through the bowl game, not through Penn State.

Finally, what bowl related post would be complete without arguably my favorite aspect of bowl season - the complete list of this year's bowl swag!  Predictably (given the sponsor), the Penn State and Boston College players will receive a "variety of New Era products."  Compared to what's being handed out at some of the other bowl games, that's not the best gift package in the world, but hey, it's better than nothing.

Alright Penn State fans, that will wrap up the bulk of my bowl coverage, assuming there's no more major news in the coming days.  Please do stop back the day after Christmas for my first ever Bowl Prediction.  Feel free to send your questions and comments about anything Penn State football to PSUOptimus@gmail.com.  Check out my Facebook page and give it a like to show your support (come on, I do this for free).  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!

Week 12 Awards

Believe it or not, we've reached the end.  This will serve as both my final awards post of the year and my final regular season post.  It was an exciting, and many times frustrating season.  The team went all the way to Ireland to start things off, and now we're headed to a bowl game!  Throughout the year, inexperience gave way to more than a few rookie mistakes from the plethora of freshmen, but when all was said and done, it was the seniors that we'll remember.  As the last full class that Joe Paterno recruited, their graduation signifies the end of an era.  Yet it is their loyalty to Penn State, through Paterno's death, 2 new coaches, scandal, and sanctions, that will forever be their legacy.  THANK YOU SENIORS!  Unfortunately, the team wasn't able to pull out the victory against Michigan State so that those seniors could ring the victory bell one last time.  However, there is still the previously mentioned bowl game, and more importantly, this week's awards!

Oh, that's just me outside the greatest stadium in college football, NBD

The final Beast Mode Award of the year goes fittingly to DT Anthony Zettel who had an All-Big Ten caliber season after switching over from DE.  His freakish athleticism was apparent from the very first game and allowed him to accrue 3 INTs as an interior lineman!  Besides helping to pressure opposing QBs, he was an integral part of the nation's #1 rush defense which made elite backs like Ezekiel Elliott and Tevin Coleman look silly.  And as a junior, we get Zettel back for another year!

I've never pinned down a criteria for the Transformer Award, but I think LB Mike Hull would fit nearly any interpretation.  He transformed into the Butkus-Fitzgerald Big Ten Linebacker of the Year, and made First Team All-Big Ten!  Adhering to the greatest linebacker tradition in all of college football, Hull not only led the team in tackles this year, he led the entire conference!  The fact that he was left off the list for the actual Butkus Award (given to the nation's best linebacker) is a damn joke.  But we'll always love him!  Now ride off into the draft!

With the second youngest team in the country, it was pretty easy to find an impact freshman each week.  But the final Matrix Award goes to the punter from down under, Daniel Pasquariello!  Improving his average in each game he started, Pasquariello finally got up to a respectable 40 yds per punt and even nailed a 63 yarder against MSU to showcase his potential.  His job is probably safe moving forward as fellow freshman Chris Gulla will most likely take over kicking duties from the graduating Sam Ficken.  That should hopefully solidify our special teams for the foreseeable future.

All season long an outstanding player has been forced to lurk in the shadows.  That's why the final In Disguise Award goes to LB Nyeem Wartman whose consistent play has remained hidden behind Mike Hull's heroics all year.  On Saturday he added a decent 8 tackles, including 1 for a loss to his totals for the season.  With Hull gone, he'll take over as the leader of the defense in 2015 and he'll be expected to uphold the Linebacker U tradition.  Something tells me he'll do just fine.

Last, and most certainly least, the final Megatron Award goes to Michigan State RB Jeremy Lanford.  The Nittany Lions were able to avoid facing Melvin Gordon and Ameer Abdullah, but they couldn't escape Langford who carried the rock 30 times for an impressive 122 yds and 2 TDs.  Along with QB Connor Cook and WR Tony Lippett, the Spartan offense scored more points on Penn State than any team managed to this year, even potential Big Ten Champions Ohio State!  More power to them, at least we don't have to take home the Land Grant Trophy.

Alright, that about wraps up my posts for the regular season!  I'll be spending the next few days thinking up something special to do for the bowl game.  One thing's for sure, just like last year we'll be having the second annual Prime Pick 'Em Challenge!  So keep an eye out for that.  Always feel free to send questions or comments to PSUOptimus@gmail.com.  You can keep up with all things Penn State football, including the imminent bowl announcement, by liking my page on Facebook.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!

Week 12 Grades

Going into the Michigan State game, I, like many of you, was fairly certain that Penn State was going to lose.  Losing never feels good, but at least we were able to take solace in the fact that with 6 wins, we were going to a bowl game anyway.  Well if the college football gods hadn't already done enough to our poor school, a very strange but important announcement was made today that could potentially keep the Nittany Lions out of a bowl game, despite qualifying.  It's out of our control, unfortunately, so it's probably best not to think about that right now.  Instead, we turn our attention back to a bitterly cold Senior Day loss to Sparty.  Let's roll out some grades!

Offense
QB: (D) Oh Hackenberg... yet again the franchise QB failed to even reach the .500 mark going a dismal 21-45, including an INT and 3 sacks which were almost entirely his own fault.  All the excuses became tiresome weeks ago.  Something else is going on here.  Either Hack doesn't like the coaching staff, the coaching staff is inept at developing QBs, or, dare I say it, Hackenberg just isn't very good.  I'm not sure which one is true right now, and we'll probably have to wait until Sept 5, 2015 to get anything remotely close to a definitive answer.  What I do know is that next year's offensive success hinges solely on whether or not he can get it together in time.

OL: (C-) They keep getting better, even if only by a little bit.  Much like the offense as a whole, there are flashes where Hackenberg has all day to throw and running lanes are big enough to drive a truck through... but they're just flashes, and quite rare.  With an outstanding coach, an entire offseason to gel, and some big time talent coming in, I expect to see marked improvement with this group in 2015.  In the meantime, they just need to be competent for the bowl game.

RB: (C) After starting the season as the 3rd string option, Akeel Lynch was the featured back in this one, getting 14/17 carries.  He even managed to score the lone TD of the game for Penn State!  However, all of that work netted a paltry 52 yds.  Lynch ran hard and seemed to hit the few holes that were open with confidence, but until we see dramatic advances along the line, no running back is going to succeed in this offense.

WR: (B+) Although they weren't always open when Christian Hackenberg needed them the most, overall, the receivers had a decent game.  Daesean Hamilton led the way with 6 catches for 55 yds, followed by Geno Lewis with 3 catches for 29 yds.  Saeed Blacknall was the only other receiver to register on the stat sheet with 1 catch for 9 yds, as Chris Godwin was only used twice all game, on a running play called a "jet sweep."  This is one of the youngest positions on the PSU roster.  They will grow up and they will get better.  Oh, and there's even more talent coming in behind them next year.

TE: (A-) The TEs were probably my biggest surprise of the day.  After criticism began to creep in, partly because of decreased production, all 3 starting TEs finally decided to show up.  Despite a couple of early drops, Kyle Carter got his act together and ended up leading the unit with 3 catches for 28 yds.  Jesse James was next with 3 catches for 25 yds, and freshman Mike Gesicki pulled up the rear with 2 catches for 33 yds.  All told, that's 86 yds of production; not too shabby.  None of the TEs are graduating and Adam Breneman will return to the lineup in 2015, so this is one of the biggest positions to keep an eye on for next year.

Defense
DL: (B+) It was all Anthony Zettel in this one.  He may have only had 5 tackles, but he had 3 for a loss, a sack, and his 3rd INT of the year!  The junior would go on to earn First Team All-Big Ten honors and set up a ridiculous senior season next year.  Speaking of seniors, C.J. Olaniyan was second on the line with 4 tackles, while his DE partner Deion Barnes came in third with 2, including 1 for a loss.  Conspicuous in his absence on the stats page was Austin Johnson, which might explain how Michigan State's Jeremy Langford managed 122 yds on 30 carries and 2 TDs.  Let's hope they clean that #1 rush defense up before the bowl.

LB: (B) Much like it has been all season long, the linebacker position was all about one player: Mike Hull.  Hull led the team in tackles every single game this season, only tying for the lead once.  More to the point, he led the entire Big Ten in tackles and earned the Butkus-Fitgerald Linebacker of the Year Award while also receiving First Team All-Big Ten honors.  His leadership and impact on this defense cannot be overstated.  Against the Spartans he racked up another 13 tackles, 2 for a loss, and a pass breakup.  His second in command, Nyeem Wartman, also played well, accruing 8 tackles of his own with 1 for a loss. The third member of the unit, Brandon Bell, was still injured and replaced primarily by Gary Wooten who added 3 tackles.  Still, the defense gave up their highest point total of the year and were gashed on the ground by Langford.  You can't get an A for an effort like that.

DB: (C+) When the game began, I had a lot of hope for this group.  All told they combined for 4 pass breakups, and I believe they all came in the first half.  Things were going well and the DBs played their part in limiting MSU to mostly FGs.  By the end of the game, though, it started to get ugly and QB Connor Cook seemed to be connecting on everything he threw.  Everyone has a bad game (except Marcus Allen apparently, who had another 9 tackles) and the secondary has otherwise played quite well for most of this season.  Let's hope they clean it up for the bowl game.  Otherwise, there's a boatload of talent coming in that would love the chance to take over.

Special Teams
K: (C) Sam Ficken broke the Penn State single-season record for most FGs made!  But against the Spartans he also had his first non-blocked miss of the year and his kickoffs left much to be desired.  Not the best way for the senior to go out on Senior Day.  Grant Haley also didn't do anything special in the return game.

P: (A-) Daniel Pasquariello has cemented himself so firmly as the starting punter that I actually went through the hassle of memorizing how to spell his last name.  The freshman from "down under" continued his trend of increasing his average every week and had his best game yet, averaging 40 yds per punt for the first time this season.  He even bombed one for 63 yds at one point!  Jesse Della Valle only managed to return 1 punt for a respectable 7 yds.

Today's bonus grade is a big fat F- for the weather and parking.  First of all, it was incredibly cold, with day old snow everywhere, and a whipping wind.  However, that can't be controlled.  What can be controlled is the parking.  Now I understand not letting 2-wheel drive sedans on the grass tailgating lots.  But why were the gravel lots closed, especially for vehicles which could clearly handle it?!  I guess the University figures, once they have your ticket and parking money, it's not their problem if you're prevented from getting what you paid for.  Not cool!

That will do it for the grades.  Check back in tomorrow for the final awards post of the year.  Head on over to Facebook and give my page a like.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!

Week 12 Wrap Up

The grass and gravel lots were closed, making the parking situation a nightmare for the brave souls like myself who ventured into the frozen tundra that was State College this past Saturday.  However, an even bigger nightmare played out on the field as Penn State fell to the Michigan State Spartans, 34 - 10.  The Nittany Lions now drop to an even 6-6 record on the season, which thankfully still makes them bowl eligible.  Conference championships are yet to be determined so it will be a little while until we find out exactly which bowl will play host to Penn State.  In the meantime, I wanted to take a moment to recap the 2014 regular season.

Yes, it's true, since the NCAA announced their ridiculous sanctions in the summer of 2012, Penn State's record has gone thusly: 8-4, 7-5, and now 6-6.  That's one less win each year.  However, heading into this season most people saw the very real possibility that this would be the hardest of the so-called "sanction years."  In fact, Bill O'Brien predicted as much before bolting to the NFL.  Still, eternal optimists like myself thought that maybe, just maybe, Herb Hand would be able to put together a miracle with this young and inexperienced offensive line... he did not.  We thought Christian Hackenberg was just too talented to fall victim to the infamous "sophomore slump" even in spite of the coaching and scheme changes... he was not.  And after having relatively good luck in the injury department for 2 years, I guess we just figured this year would be more of the same... it was not.  When all is said and done, even with a disappointing 6-6 record (that in no way reflects the talent and potential of this squad) there is hope, mostly for the future.  Penn State can now officially say they've made it through the worst of the sanctions, and in relatively good shape.  Somehow, after the so-called "experts" predicted a severe 10 year (or more) drop off for the Nittany Lions, they stand with a record of 21-15 over 3 years.  That's 6 games over .500!  Now, I'll let someone with a lot more time on their hands dissect the actual numbers, but I'm willing to bet big money that's a better record than the majority of college football teams have had over the same time period, and they weren't under "crippling" sanctions!  So just take solace in the fact that we survived, even thrived at times, and came out on the other side with a team that TRUST ME is going to do some really special things sooner rather than later.  The word "potential" is thrown around a little too loosely these days, but in this case, it more than applies.

Now back to the actual game.  Things were awful from literally the opening kickoff, as MSU's R.J. Shelton took it back 90 yds to the house for a TD that immediately sucked the air out of Beaver Stadium.  The team was never really able to get things going after that as once again the referees became an issue, this time mostly through non-calls.  Remember that big pass downfield I predicated from Hackenberg to keep things close?  Well, despite the CB being draped all over Geno Lewis, the zebras chose to "let them play" so to speak and didn't call anything.  Look, it was pretty obvious that the Spartans were the better team and a lot would have to go Penn State's way if they hoped to pull out a victory.  But that's why crap like this hurts so much.  The refs' refusal to utilize their little yellow flags combined with the early deficit made it seem like the team was resigned to their fate from the opening whistle.

I'm starting to fell like a broken record by now, but Christian Hackenberg continues his downward spiral, going 21 of 45 for only 195 yds and the ever predictable interception.  He was also sacked 3 more times (that's 42 on the season, exactly twice as many as last year), and they were mostly his fault this time.  Being at the game I was finally able to see what announcers have been saying all year.  On many occasions when Hack didn't get rid of the ball quickly enough, he simply didn't have any open targets.  But for each time that happened, there was another play where the line gave Hack time, the receivers were open, and our "elite" QB still stood there like a deer in headlights.

Now just to play devil's advocate for a minute: Chris Godwin's only target of the day was on a Hail Mary to end the first half.  He bobbled the catch and it went right into the hands of MSU's Trae Waynes for an interception as the clock hit zero.  Had it not been for that, the game would have been much closer and Hack's TD/INT ratio would have flipped.  That's how close this team is!  Hopefully the time away from their studies and 15 extra bowl practices will inject a little more consistency into an offense that has too often showed flashes of brilliance only to immediately deflate.

Defensively, things were going well early on, especially in the secondary with lots of pass breakups that helped to hold Michigan State's offense to FGs instead of TDs.  By the end, though, things just seemed to fall apart.  Maybe they were tired, maybe they saw the writing on the wall when they looked up at the scoreboard, I don't know, but suddenly blown coverages became a big issue in the 2nd half.  Even the front 7 uncharacteristically allowed Jeremy Langford to run wild for 122 yds and 2 TDs before the night was through.  As they have all year, the defense put up a valiant effort, but also as has been the case all year, it wasn't nearly enough.

Don't let me get you down, though, because there was actually plenty of good news to go around!  The big story of course was that it was Senior Day and all the graduating players got a few minutes in the spot light with their families prior to the game.  That included injured players Zach Zwinak and Ryan Keiser.  This was the last class recruited by Joe Paterno, and would have been the least criticized for bolting following the sanctions in 2012.  Instead, their loyalty during the most difficult of times will be remembered forever in Happy Valley and their names will always remind us of what it truly means to be a Penn Stater.  Thank you Seniors!!!

However, there was one departing member of the Penn State family who received a bigger send off than all the rest.  Dr. O. Richard Bundy, the director of the Penn State Marching Blue Band, led his students for one final time on the hallowed turf of Beaver Stadium.  Earlier in the month, the band unanimously decided to forgo their usual "favorites" show in lieu of a special tribute to Dr. Bundy.  Selections included a fitting rendition of "You're the Inspiration" by Chicago and a James Bond number arranged by Dr. Bundy when he was just a graduate assistant and originally performed at the 1983 Sugar Bowl where Penn State won their first consensus National Championship.  The whole performance is up on YouTube for your viewing pleasure, although it doesn't really do justice to the emotion that was on the field.  How would I know?  Well, I just so happened to sneak down to the railing for the entire performance and I can assure you that everyone involved was a bit teary-eyed and some were barely holding it together.  Here's some evidence of how close I got.  We'll miss you Dr. Bundy; enjoy your much deserved retirement!

I'll admit, it was somewhat fortuitous that I caught a nasty bug and was unable to write this post until today because in the interim, the Big Ten announced the winners of its various season-ending awards.  Now I get the chance to say... Congratulations to Mike Hull and Anthony Zettel for being named First Team All-Big Ten!  Zettel had 15 tackles for a loss, 8 sacks, a forced fumble, and 3 interceptions this season as an interior lineman; that's insane!  Hull, on the other hand, led not only the team but the entire Big Ten in tackles and averaged an astounding 10.5 tackles per game, helping him more than carry on the tradition of Linebacker U.  His performance was so good, in fact, that he was also named the Butkus-Fitzgerald Big Ten Linebacker of the Year!  That's 2 wins for Penn State LBs in the 4 year history of the award (Mike Mauti won it in 2012).  But the accolades didn't stop there.  Senior kicking sensation Sam Ficken was named Second Team All-Big Ten by both the media and the coaches.  WR Daesean Hamilton was also named Second Team All-Big Ten by the media, although not the coaches.

Finally, I'll get you all out of here with some recruiting news!  Even after a loss on a cold, dark, snowy night, Penn State was still able to pick up 2 new recruits, one for 2015 and one for 2016.  First, 4-star CB Garrett Taylor switched his commitment from Michigan to the Nittany Lions in preparation of head coach Brady Hoke's imminent firing.  Taylor is now the highest rated recruit in the 2015 class and, along with John Reid, comprises arguably the best CB tandem for this cycle in the whole country!  Then there's 4-star QB Jake Zembiec, a long time target for the staff with talent to spare.  Zembiec's commitment means that all 3 prospects for the 2016 class carry at least a 4-star rating and are currently in the Junior 300.  Here's a complete run down of the recruiting situation for all you nerds out there courtesy of our friends at Black Shoe Diaries.

Alright, so how did I do on my prediction?  Well, I got our score right, but I was off by 10 in the wrong direction when it came to the Spartans.  Hackenberg did indeed throw an INT, but didn't score a TD and the offense was just as ineffective as I predicted.  On defense, Anthony Zettel proved me right with his INT that wasn't nearly enough.  Overall, it was the blowout we all anticipated.

That will do it for today.  Check back tomorrow for the grades and Friday for the awards.  Also keep an eye out for my Bowl Spectacular sometime in the near future.  Check out my Facebook page and give it a like if you're a fan.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!

Week 12 Prediction

*Disclaimer: I fully admit that the only reason this post is going up so late is because I'm in State College and I just went out and partied at a bar with a bunch of former Blue Banders... sorry, not sorry.*

I know it’s hard to believe, but we've reached the conclusion of another season of Penn State football.  This week, the Michigan State Spartans come to town on Senior Day and battle the Nittany Lions for the Land Grant Trophy!  The weather will be chilly for the game, hovering in the 30s when things kick off at 3:30pm on ABC in the Northeast and Midwest, and ESPN2 in the South and West coast.  It will also serve as the 4th annual “Blue Out” game to help raise awareness for child sexual abuse.  So if, like me, you’re headed up for the game, make sure to wear your home blues over top of your layers in support of this important cause.  Ok, we have a lot to get through, so let’s get to the breakdown!

The Good

Penn State’s offensive line is at full strength, RB Akeel Lynch seems to be hitting his stride, we still have big time weapons like WR Daesean Hamilton and TE Jesse James, and of course, we have an absolutely elite defense.  These are things to keep in mind with a game like this as the Spartans are possibly the best team on Penn State’s entire 2014 schedule.  It’s easy to succumb to despair if you don’t remind yourself of the positives.

Last year, Bill O’Brien took his Nittany Lions, led by a true freshman QB, into Camp Randall Stadium to take on a highly ranked Wisconsin team.  Penn State was a 28 point underdog, and yet somehow, they dominated the game from start to finish and came out with a shocking victory to cap off the year.  However, if you’re hoping for a repeat of that performance, well, you’re a bigger optimist than I.  Still, Mark Dantonio is technically 2-3 against Penn State, so we live in hope.

How might the Lions actually pull this off?  Well, Michigan State’s defense has been dominant in recent years, helping them achieve unprecedented success for the program.  The last few seasons in particular saw the rise of CB Darqueze Dennard and his “No Fly Zone” style of defense.  But with Dennard’s graduation, Darian Hicks has stepped in at CB and has not played nearly up to standard.  If Hackenberg can get over his yips and get some deep balls to Hamilton or Lewis, things could get really interesting.  Defensively, Penn State should focus on getting pressure.  Michigan State’s QB Connor Cook is very good, but he’s been known to make mistakes when frazzled.  If the D-line can get in his face, and the secondary can pay attention, interceptions are a strong possibility.

The Bad

Pat Narduzzi is widely regarded as one of the best defense minds in the country.  Consequently, Michigan State’s defense has been notoriously good since he arrived in East Lansing.  This year’s unit is led by dominant DE Shilique Calhoun, and it not only averages 3 sacks per game (more than Ohio State) but leads the nation in turnover margin.  Let’s just be realistic here; Hack is going to get sacked, he’s going to get banged up, and he’s going to throw an interception.  Accept this now.

As for personnel, WR Tony Lippett is one of the best receivers in the country and has already passed the 1,000 yd mark for the year on just 56 catches.  That’s almost 20 yds per catch!  RB Jeremy Langford is also extremely talented, even though he doesn't get as much press as Melvin Gordon, Ameer Abdullah, or Tevin Coleman.  Penn State’s outstanding rush defense avoided Gordon and Abdullah this year, but did handle themselves quite well against Coleman and Ohio State’s Ezekiel Elliott.  Langford is in the same class as all of those backs, so it will be interesting to see if he’ll be able to break out or become just another victim of Anthony Zettel and friends.

Then there’s arguably the worst part about this game… the Land Grant Trophy.  This monstrosity is so bad it’s apparently on its way out.  Our friends over at Penn Live have the full story, along with pictures!

The Story

It’s Senior Day in Beaver Stadium!  There’s always a lot to discuss with Senior Day because it’s not just about the senior football players.  It’s an entire celebration of all the students who make gameday possible and will be contributing one last time.  Members of the cheerleading squad, dance team, and of course the Blue Band will all be honored in special ways throughout the weekend.  We’ll start, though, by discussing the football team.  Now, I’ll let Black Shoe Diaries do most of grunt work about these guys via their wonderful Film Room series (Part I and Part II).  But I did want to mention who received senior superlative awards as voted on by the team:

- S Ryan Keiser is beloved by teammates in large part because he has the most school spirit.

- K Sam Ficken, with his business degree and impressive internship resume, is the most likely to end up on Wall Street.

- LB Mike Hull is considered the best leader, despite his usually quite demeanor.

- RB Bill Belton's excellent fashion sense got him labeled best dressed.

- OL Miles Dieffenbach's outgoing personality earned him most talkative and most likely to end up on a reality show.

- DE Brad Bars narrowly beat Mike Hull for best fisherman.

The other big story (mostly because of my personal connection with it) is Senior Day for the Blue Band, and specifically their director, Dr. O. Richard “Dick” Bundy.  Dr. Bundy's last game is best summed up by the myriad articles already written on the subject, so I won't necessarily go into it.  Here, here, and here are three of the best I found to help those not in the know understand Dr. Bundy's incredible impact on the Penn State community.  I've mentioned before here on the blog that I was in the Blue Band for all 4 years of my collegiate experience.  Being in Blue band provided me with life long friendships, once in a lifetime opportunities, and of course, the chance to perfect my craft in front of 100,000 screaming fans 7 Saturdays each year.  It was, quite simply, one of the most incredible things I've ever done, and is almost single-handedly responsible for causing my current love affair with Penn State football.  You see, when your winter vacation plans hinge on how the football team is doing in a particular year, you start to pay attention more closely.  So please join me in congratulating Dr. Bundy on a great career and saying farewell one final time!

The Prediction

Michigan State are 13.5 point favorites, and that’s unfortunately accurate to what will most likely happen.  I really do hope we beat the spread, but I'm by no means anticipating a Penn State victory.  Christian Hackenberg will throw a TD but will offset it with an INT.  Somebody might even fumble as the offense isn't able to score enough points to keep things competitive.  The defense will play like they have all season, and I'm anticipating an INT of their own, but not nearly enough to eek out a victory.  Even with a freezing cold Senior Day crowd on hand, the Blue and White just can't get it done.  Michigan State wins, 24 - 10.

Alright, that will do it for my final prediction of the year.  Make sure to stop on over to my Facebook page if you like what I'm doing.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus to keep up with all things Penn State Football, and as always, go State!

Week 11 Awards

It wasn't exactly what you would call an award winning performance by the Nittany Lions in Champaign on Saturday, but we're here nonetheless.  Before we begin, though, I mentioned in my last post that there's been some chatter out there about the possibility of Christian Hackenberg transferring.  Make no mistake, that would be awful!  Thankfully his father, Erick Hackenberg, chimed in recently to address the rumors.  It wasn't exactly a firm "No" but I get the feeling he was trying to imply it. You can judge for yourself.

And now back to your regularly scheduled blog.  It's time to roll out some awards!

For the second week in a row the Beast Mode Award goes to RB Akeel Lynch.  Who could have guessed that at the beginning of the year?  After a horrendous start to the season, the running game has finally picked up with Lynch firmly in the feature role.  He went for a season long 139 yds and a TD against the Illini and was basically the only bright spot on offense for the entire game.  For this team, it seems like whenever one piece gets fixed, another breaks.  Now that the RBs and OL are doing better, we need to get the QB and TEs back on track.

On one of the wackiest plays I've seen from Penn State in some time, the Transformer Award goes to backup DE Brad Bars.  Bars plays primarily on special teams and during a fake punt in the 1st quarter, he took a direct snap and rumbled up the sideline for 32 yds and a 1st down!  That run actually made him second on the team in rushing yds behind only Akeel Lynch.  Now those are the kinds of trick plays I'm OK with!

Due in large part to an injury, the Matrix Award goes to LB Jason Cabinda.  The rookie was thrust into a starting role when Brandon Bell went down in practice earlier in the week.  He handled himself respectably recording 5 tackles including 1 for a loss.  The LB position is nearly as thin as the offensive line right now, and Mike Hull is graduating this year.  So it's good to see the freshman get some playing time to help build depth.

We've been talking about In Disguise Award winner Miles Dieffenbach for some time now, so he's not too hidden.  But after returning to full active duty on Saturday, it was made abundantly clear how important Dieffenbach actually is to this offense and how much the line missed him.  With the veterans both back on the left side, Hackenberg had time and running lanes magically opened up.  It was a revelation!  If we can just get the antidote for Hackenberg's yips, this offense might rise to mediocre status!

Finally, there should be no surprise here.  This week's Megatron Award goes to Illinois WR Mike Dudek.  The freshman looked like Allen Robinson out there grabbing 11 catches for 115 yds and countless clutch 1st downs.  He terrorized Penn State's depleted linebacking corps and secondary all day, but especially after backup QB Riley O'Toole came into the game.  We'll need to keep an eye out for this kid in the coming years.

Well, that will do it for Illinois week.  I'm going back to State College again this week to see Senior Day verses Michigan State for the Land Grant Trophy!  So check back here on Friday for my last regular season prediction of the year.  Facebook is still a thing, and they have a like feature you can use as much as you want.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!

Week 11 Grades

I really do hate writing about games like this.  Penn State should NOT have lost to Illinois and the calls for James Franklin's head, less than one full season into his tenure in Happy Valley, are already hitting a fever pitch.  Let's keep this in perspective, though.  Bill O'Brien lost his first 2 games ever to mediocre Ohio and Virginia teams.  It seemed like the sky was falling then too, but he turned it around and won 8 out of his last 10 that year.  I'm still very optimistic about Penn State next year and a full offseason with Franklin and his staff should fix most of the tiny execution errors that have cost them so far this season.  In the meantime, I say let's all just be happy that we're going to a bowl game and try to enjoy the little things as I roll out this week's grades!

Offense
QB: (D) Hackenberg technically played better than last week, but not by much.  He increased his passing back up to 50%, although that came on fewer pass attempts (16) as the coaching staff seemingly lost all trust in the young signal caller and his receivers.  On the bright side, Hack managed to finally get another passing TD and avoid an INT for the first time in forever.  However, his pocket presence and awareness appear to have disintegrated into nothing, and his accuracy has dropped off dramatically.  If things don't improve quickly, the once unthinkable scenario of a Hackenberg transfer may very well come true.

OL: (B) The offensive line continued to get better with the return of Miles Dieffenbach and Donovan Smith.  Sacks are down, and time to throw is up.  It's not their fault that Hackenberg still doesn't want to get rid of the ball even with more time.  More importantly, though, is that the big guys up front have been much better at opening holes for the running game allowing a 100 yd rusher in each of the last 3 games.  Keep it up!

RB: (B) Akeel Lynch's 28 carries for 139 yds and a TD were one of the few bright spots on offense against the Illini.  With Zach Zwinak out for the year, and Bill Belton suffering a shoulder injury early on Saturday, Lynch became the feature back sooner than he expected.  He narrowly avoids the "A" because of his costly fumble.  Nevertheless, it's good to know Penn State has a rushing attack again.

WR: (D) When you're watching a football game on TV, it can be difficult to see everything that is happening.  The camera tends to focus in on whoever has the ball.  So while you stare at Christian Hackenberg screaming "get rid of the ball!" you might not realize that downfield (and off camera) his receivers simply aren't open.  This is supposedly (if you believe the announcers) what is happening with Penn State's receivers right now.  They aren't getting enough separation from defenders to allow Hack windows in which to throw the ball.  Against Illinois, no receiver had more than 1 catch... just digest that statistic for a second.  That also includes all of the TEs and every RB except Lynch who had 2 catches.  When I say the coaches don't trust Hackenberg right now, this is what I'm talking about.

TE: (C-) Adam Breneman (who is out for the year with an injury) was featured on the PennLive Penn State Football Podcast recently.  He said that much of the supposed decrease in TE production this year is really just the result of 1. a different offensive scheme, and 2. a greater focus for the TEs on blocking (especially to help the struggling O-line).  That makes sense.  So with that in mind, the lone catch each for Jesse James and Mike Gesicki doesn't look quite as awful.  Why the "C-" then?  Because Kyle Carter couldn't catch anything and instead stunk up the place all afternoon.

Defense
DL: (C) A rare off day for a group that is usually guaranteed at least an "A-" grade.  Numerous missed tackles kept more than one Illinois drive alive.  But it was Anthony Zettel's offsides penalty on a punt which directly led to Illinois points and killed the group's grade.  The numbers were still relatively solid, but judging by the eye test, the pass rush just wasn't there and Riley O'Toole was able to make all the throws he needed in order to win the game.  Kudos to Austin Johnson who led this unit with 5 tackles, 1 for a loss, and a QB hurry.  Also to backup Brad Bars whose 32 yd scamper on a fake punt was arguably the most entertaining part of the entire game.

LB: (C-) For the second time this season, we were reminded that the linebacking corps just isn't the same without their starting 3 (Bell, Hull, and Wartman) in place.  When Nyeem Wartman was out against Northwestern, the defense struggled and Penn State ended up losing.  On Saturday, it was more of the same against Illinois as Brandon Bell was sidelined with an injury and the defense struggled again in a losing effort.  Mike Hull was his usual ridiculous self, wracking up another 10 tackles.  But all that does is make you wonder what will happen next year after Mike Hull graduates?

DB: (D) Plain and simple, the defensive secondary was absolutely torched by Illinois' Mike Dudek who had 115 yds on 11 catches.  Despite that, I'm still very impressed with the play of certain guys like Marcus Allen who was second on the team with 9 tackles.  However, overall this might have been the group's worst game of the season.  They recorded no turnovers and allowed a backup, dual-threat QB (with known accuracy issues) to go 18 of 25 and more than double our passing yardage.  I will say that the coaching staff's decision to switch from man-on-man to zone coverage played a key role in the downfall, but these guys also just needed to play better.

Special Teams
K: (D) Ficken didn't make a single FG for the first time since the Akron game (where Penn State scored 3 TDs instead).  He did attempt a FG, but new holder Chris Gulla bobbled the snap and it went into the books as a -8 yd run.  Meanwhile, in the return game, Grant Haley miscalculated a kick return (that, to be fair, changed course due to a sudden wind gust), effectively handing the ball back over to Illinois for an easy 3 points.  Not a good day for the kicking game.

P: (B) For once, I have very little to critique regarding the punting game.  Daniel Pasquariello continues to improve and had one of his best days yet, especially impressive considering the high winds in Memorial Stadium.  He averaged 39 yds, including an impressive 50 yarder and only 2 of his 7 punts were fielded for a mere 18 combined yds.  Jesse Della Valle only managed to return 1 of his punt opportunities, but did a decent job bringing it back for 11 yds.

For today's bonus grade, I'm giving the coaching staff a big, fat F!  First of all, the team came out ill-prepared and lacking any semblance of energy.  That's always the coaching staff's fault.  Then, the offensive staff in particular engaged in their usually terrible play-calling, sticking to the run and almost completely abandoning the pass by game's end.  For this game at least, the defensive staff wasn't much better as they switched to zone coverage and allowed Mike Dudek to eat the secondary alive.  Clock management has been an issue all year and Saturday's game was no exception.  Lastly, the conservative philosophy at the end of the game and the decision not to go for it on 4th and 1 served as the final nail in Penn State's coffin.  James Franklin rightly took on all the blame, but his coordinators shouldn't escape this fiasco that easily.

We're almost done sifting through the carnage of this embarrassing loss.  Check back tomorrow as I attempt to find a few diamonds in the rough worthy of my weekly awards.  My Facebook page gets better by the day, so be sure to go like and share that for all the latest Penn State football news.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!