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!
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