Week 3 Grades

Monday's post went a little long, so I'll try to keep this one shorter.  It's just that I was so excited to finally have something good to talk about regarding Penn State football!  The Nittany Lions played their most complete game of the season against Rutgers and today's post will reflect that.  Speaking of which, I won't waste anymore time.  Let's roll out some grades!

Offense
QB: (C+) Hackenberg went 10/19 for 144 yds and no TDs but 1 INT.  Once again I find myself saying, that's not the best stat line.  Part way into his third year as a starter, Hack hasn't lived up to expectations.  However, he did a good job of managing the game and seemed more intent on letting his RBs do most of the work.  This was probably a good strategy on yet another rainy Saturday in State College.  If the weather improves this week, we should see better numbers from the former 5-star recruit.

OL: (B+) Yes, they still need to work on pass protection so that Hackenberg can find a way out of his slump and the passing game can catch up with the running game...BUT after their second consecutive week not giving up a single sack (this time against a defense with an actual pulse), they deserve a lot of credit for making big improvements since the week 1 sackfest.  Now they just need to keep improving or all that progress will have been for naught.

RB: (A+) Akeel Lynch and Saquon Barkley are a special tandem.  I hope people are appreciating what we are witnessing here.  A combined 31 carries for 315 yds and 3 TDs is not a stat line you're going to see all that often.  Every website and publication that matters has heaped praise on the duo since Saturday's epic performance, and rightfully so.  The defenses get tougher moving forward.  We'll see how they adjust and whether or not they can keep the insane numbers coming.

WR: (B+) Hamilton and Godwin are decent together.  Thompkins and Polk are unfortunately used more like RBs on the jet sweep.  But overall, this unit might be coming together.  At his weekly press conference, James Franklin mentioned that the staff hasn't been able to take shots down field yet because Hack simply hasn't had time in the pocket.  Once he gets that and the WRs learn to get open faster, this group has the talent to make a big impact on offense.  I will say I miss Saeed Blacknall and Geno Lewis.  However, with a limited number of attempts and a plethora of young talent at the position, their disappearance is understandable.

TE: (F) Mike Gesicki had another bad game.  Once again he lined up wrong on special teams, this time getting flagged for an illegal formation penalty.  So far this season, he hasn’t really added much to the offense except dropped passes, although he did have one catch in this game for 6 yds.  Kyle Carter has also been conspicuously absent, and Adam Breneman hasn't been seen all year (presumably due to a lingering injury).  A highlight of Bill O'Brien's offenses, the TE position is a shell of what it used to be.  Hopefully the staff can figure out a way to bring them back.

Defense
DL: (A) Obviously, these guys are outstanding.  I've been confused, though, with the lack of production by Anthony Zettel.  It might be due to all the attention he received during the offseason.  Teams have clearly focused on taking away his impact in games.  He's not sneaking up on anyone this year.  However, this in turn has opened things up for his linemates.  Austin Johnson and Carl Nassib are an absolute wrecking crew combining for 10 tackles, 3.5 for a loss and 2 sacks!  Watch out opposing RBs, these guys will hurt you.

LB: (A+) And to think where they would be if they still had Nyeem Wartman-White!  Brandon Bell returned from injury and teamed up with the young duo of Jason Cabinda and Troy Reeder to dominate Rutgers all night long.  They were numbers 3, 4, and 5 on the team in tackles, combining for 23 total and they always seemed to be swarming to the ball.  LinebackerU is alive and well!

DB: (A-) I spoke last week about the need for this group to generate turnovers.  Well, how does 2 interceptions sound?  Grant Haley and John Reid were magnificent in coverage and had nearly identical stats with 2 tackles, and one of the INTs each.  The rest of the secondary isn't too shabby either.  Jordan Lucas is the clear cut leader in both number of starts and overall skill.  He had 9 tackles on the day, a forced fumble, a pass breakup, and a sack!  Marcus Allen plays completely out of his mind, leading the team with 11 tackles... although sometimes he gets too excited and lets up a big play.  Trevor Williams, Christian Campbell, and Troy Apke are all solid contributors as well.  This unit is slowly becoming a strength for the whole team.

Special Teams
K: (A) Joey Julius wasn't relied upon for any FGs because the offense was actually playing pretty well.  But he did hit all of his extra points and pinned Rutgers deep on kickoffs.  A funny moment came when Franklin nearly had Big Toe try a 57 yarder before deciding to punt instead.  I honestly think he could have made the distance, just not the accuracy.

P: (A+) I don't want to jinx anything, but Gulla completely outplayed Pasquariello and looks to be the hope of the future at punter, or at least the rest of the season.  Nothing against the Aussie but he just wasn't cutting it.  Gulla's stats don't look all that much better than Pasquariello's; you had to see him in person to notice the drastic difference.  For example, after deciding not to try the previously mentioned 57 yarder, Franklin called out the punt team.  This was a very short punt, however, and Gulla put right it right on the goal line (with a little help from Jordan Lucas)!  It was brilliant, but looked like a shank on the stat sheet because it was so short.  So you'll just have to trust me, he was really good!

That will do it for this week and my coverage of the Rutgers game.  Penn State continues its home stand this week against San Diego State.  Look out for my Prediction post sometime on Friday.  In the meantime, head on over to my Facebook page and give it a like or a share.  Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @PSUOptimus, and as always, go State!