The football program has reached an inflection point.

[Howie'81]

Many here were upset about the close game in Baltimore. I was not among them. I felt it was a good tough win where we grew a lot in the 4th quarter. That was the kind of game where you learn how to win a tight ball game, which is very important. The team leveraged that into their best performance of the season by far. None of this, "It's only Illinois baloney," either. Illinois played decent ball coming into that game and it's a team that beat us last season. PSU carved them up in what should have been a 41 - 0 score. Sorry Joe the toe.

I will be very, very surprised if we lay an egg in Evanston. Could happen, but I truly believe this program turned a corner the last 2 weeks. Sometimes you just see the light bulb go off if you're watching closely enough.

 

[psuro]

We have had some closer than expected wins. Nebraska has had some closer than expected losses.

I will take our situation over theirs.

 

[bjf1984]

Many here were upset about the close game in Baltimore. I was not among them. I felt it was a good tough win where we grew a lot in the 4th quarter. That was the kind of game where you learn how to win a tight ball game, which is very important. The team leveraged that into their best performance of the season by far. None of this, "It's only Illinois baloney," either. Illinois played decent ball coming into that game and it's a team that beat us last season. PSU carved them up in what should have been a 41 - 0 score. Sorry Joe the toe.

I will be very, very surprised if we lay an egg in Evanston. Could happen, but I truly believe this program turned a corner the last 2 weeks. Sometimes you just see the light bulb go off if you're watching closely enough.

"Inflection point"....love it.
I use that phrase all the time in discussing particular games or seasons.

FWIW....I think you make a very good use of the term here.
There will most certainly still be ups and downs along the way.....and we very well COULD se a down on Saturday.....but the longer-term trajectory did (IMO) take one of those key inflection points last week.

 

[bdgan]

Many here were upset about the close game in Baltimore. I was not among them. I felt it was a good tough win where we grew a lot in the 4th quarter. That was the kind of game where you learn how to win a tight ball game, which is very important. The team leveraged that into their best performance of the season by far. None of this, "It's only Illinois baloney," either. Illinois played decent ball coming into that game and it's a team that beat us last season. PSU carved them up in what should have been a 41 - 0 score. Sorry Joe the toe.

I will be very, very surprised if we lay an egg in Evanston. Could happen, but I truly believe this program turned a corner the last 2 weeks. Sometimes you just see the light bulb go off if you're watching closely enough.

I hope so. The win over Illinois was certainly the best and most balanced performance of the year. Hack looked confident and decisive. He stepped up in the pocket, stepped into his throws and even hit crossing patterns in the middle of the field (I wonder if better field position gave Donovan more confidence). I like that we're finally throwing screens to the RB. That adds a whole new dimension. The defense was more decisive too. That makes 5 consecutive good quarters of defense after a pretty rough stretch.

But keep in mind that our 4 B1G wins are against teams that are a combined 2-15 in conference. It will be interesting to see how this team plays this week against a somewhat better team on the road.

 

[VaNtyLion]

Learning how to win is not as simple as a lightning bolt striking a team and flipping a switch one day. In team sports, this is a process (that can be pretty painful). Young teams being carried by one unit lose close games. Maturing teams becoming more consistent on both sides of the ball win them. That's progress.

There's been entirely too much attention paid to the opponent than the result and reality of our roster still being dominated by the underclass. This is a team that should be apologizing for nothing on the way to its 6-2 record.

 

[step.eng69]

Many here were upset about the close game in Baltimore. I was not among them. I felt it was a good tough win where we grew a lot in the 4th quarter. That was the kind of game where you learn how to win a tight ball game, which is very important. The team leveraged that into their best performance of the season by far. None of this, "It's only Illinois baloney," either. Illinois played decent ball coming into that game and it's a team that beat us last season. PSU carved them up in what should have been a 41 - 0 score. Sorry Joe the toe.

I will be very, very surprised if we lay an egg in Evanston. Could happen, but I truly believe this program turned a corner the last 2 weeks. Sometimes you just see the light bulb go off if you're watching closely enough.

Thank you fellows, I learned something today. I’m so narrow minded that I didn’t realize the term “I.P.” had other applications

 

[fairgambit]

Many here were upset about the close game in Baltimore. I was not among them. I felt it was a good tough win where we grew a lot in the 4th quarter. That was the kind of game where you learn how to win a tight ball game, which is very important. The team leveraged that into their best performance of the season by far. None of this, "It's only Illinois baloney," either. Illinois played decent ball coming into that game and it's a team that beat us last season. PSU carved them up in what should have been a 41 - 0 score. Sorry Joe the toe.

I will be very, very surprised if we lay an egg in Evanston. Could happen, but I truly believe this program turned a corner the last 2 weeks. Sometimes you just see the light bulb go off if you're watching closely enough.

I'm going to reserve judgment. We have 7 wins, but only 1 of those came against a team with a winning record, San Diego State. I agree with others who say this week's game is pivotal. If we lose, we may lose the final 2. If we win, we may win out. I'm cautiously optimistic.

 

[Obliviax]

Totally agree. I feel like the team showed good improvement against Indiana but shot themselves in the foot with dropped passes, key penalties and some poor throws by Hack. Then, vs MD, it was more of the same but felt like a couple of MD guys played out of their minds good (running QB who threw the ball well). We finally put it together against a decent, but not good, Ill team. You can feel the self confidence improving (noted that CJF took a shot at the naysayers in his opening statements discussing "the power of possitivity".).

Regardless, I see a competitive team against an upper middle class B1G team in NW. If we beat NW, going into the bye week, who knows against UM (who looked very beatable by Minny) and Michigan State.

 

[hagberg]

I'm going to reserve judgment. We have 7 wins, but only 1 of those came against a team with a winning record, San Diego State. I agree with others who say this week's game is pivotal. If we lose, we may lose the final 2. If we win, we may win out. I'm cautiously optimistic.

Ya know, it was only a few weeks ago that you had a run of being wildly (or at least optimistically) optimistic. Time to turn that frown back upside down.....

 

[dawgduice]

I have to say I have two concerns going forward.
One: will the OL that played against Illinois (there was actually a "pocket") be the one we see at NW? If so, then we are on to something. For me THEY have been the entire "problem" with the offense. Certainly Barkley is so talented he can play behind (despite) this OL. He has been a big boost to the OL.
Two: For the DEFENSE, it is all about LB play. Can they contain a "mobile" QB? Well, we will see that on Saturday. Have to take better angles and protect the edges. Middle LB has to make plays.

If both of those happen we win 28-17. AND if that happens - look out Michigan!!

 

[tboyer]

I think it was Hayden Fry who was asked in the mid-90s what worried him most about playing Penn State -- and he answered, unhesitatingly, "the players."

What he meant was that PSU had dangerous athletes, not just a few but all over the field, so mismatches were inevitable and over the course of the game

This Penn State team finally has that. They have athletes everywhere, and as they get experience they're making few mistakes and making more plays. Now that the OL is settling in, there's no easy way to defend PSU. You can even play a very good game, as Maryland did, and PSU has enough resources to pull out the win.

Northwestern is the perfect measuring stick. High quality B1G team, extremely tough in front of their home crowd. PSU obviously put together their most complete 4 quarters of the season this past Saturday, and they'll need to play another 4 quarter game away from home to win at Evanston.

It is VERY within the realm of possibility that the team will take a step back playing away from home -- it is a team largely of freshman and sophs -- and Pat Fitzgerald's team will blow them out.

But it's also possible that PSU takes ANOTHER step forward and puts together a solid performance for the second week in a row. If they can be solid and not lose their composure early, then "the players" start to become more and more of a problem for NW.

The way things go with NW, PSU needs to hang in there and not get blown out early, and then they can start to establish some things. If NW wins the game, they will probably win it early. If PSU can go into halftime with a 1-TD game either way, I like PSU's chances. If the OL can keep Hack in one piece, they will find some things they can do offensively by the 3rd quarter. That's been the pattern. If the Lions can just keep their heads and be patient, size, speed and depth will matter in the 2nd half.

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Don't get too excited after the Illinois win.

That was one of the worst, most vanilla defensive schemes I've ever seen a team put up.

 

[fairgambit]

Ya know, it was only a few weeks ago that you had a run of being wildly (or at least optimistically) optimistic. Time to turn that frown back upside down.....

True. Then I was into optimism. Now I am into reality.

 

[Obliviax]

Don't get too excited after the Illinois win.

That was one of the worst, most vanilla defensive schemes I've ever seen a team put up.

Have to agree....and NW's got a really good coach with a great D mind. Having said that, I've noticed the offense's improvement coincidentally tracks with Barkley's getting healthy again. How about that? Its tough to defend a balanced offense!!!!

 

[Judge Smails]

"We didn't start out the season the way any of us would have liked, a lot of people wanted us to panic, we're not going to, we are going to stay positive, we're going to love these kids, we're going to stick together as a family, we're going to keep coaching, we're going to get better, and I think that is what we are doing."

 

[NewEra 2014]

Good points, Howie. I was thinking the same thing after this week's game. I have coached a few youth teams in multiple sports over the years. What is most gratifying to see at that level is when a kid finally "gets it". A light bulb comes on and a kid who was previously one of your weaker players suddenly becomes someone you can totally trust with the game on the line. Instead of being passive out on the field, they make a play. Then, they make another play, and all of a sudden, they become really good. Their whole demeanor on the field changes, and they contribute consistently.

I think we saw some of that yesterday. It doesn't necessarily mean that improvement will continue on a straight line upward, but the overall trend is very encouraging.

Also, dare I say, the team looked very well-coached on Saturday, on both sides of the ball. We have to remember that many players have seen the field weeks too early, rather than a week too late. As a result, growing pains showed up all over the field early this season. These coaches didn't just learn how to coach all of a sudden--the players are just catching up to what they are being taught.

 

[Obliviax]

Good points, Howie. I was thinking the same thing after this week's game. I have coached a few youth teams in multiple sports over the years. What is most gratifying to see at that level is when a kid finally "gets it". A light bulb comes on and a kid who was previously one of your weaker players suddenly becomes someone you can totally trust with the game on the line. Instead of being passive out on the field, they make a play. Then, they make another play, and all of a sudden, they become really good. Their whole demeanor on the field changes, and they contribute consistently.

I think we saw some of that yesterday. It doesn't necessarily mean that improvement will continue on a straight line upward, but the overall trend is very encouraging.

Also, dare I say, the team looked very well-coached on Saturday, on both sides of the ball. We have to remember that many players have seen the field weeks too early, rather than a week too late. As a result, growing pains showed up all over the field early this season. These coaches didn't just learn how to coach all of a sudden--the players are just catching up to what they are being taught.

I call this "The Barkley Affect". Amazing what can happen when the D-line can't just rush the QB and the S have to worry about someone busting through the line for a long gain.

 

[bdgan]

I call this "The Barkley Affect". Amazing what can happen when the D-line can't just rush the QB and the S have to worry about someone busting through the line for a long gain.

The staff got Barkley to the outside a few times and threw a few screen passes. I think that helped.

 

[lionroar88]

This team has won close, tough games (something they really didn't do last year), and they finally blew out a team they shouldn't have blown out. Illinois is a much better team than the team that got handled on Saturday. UMD was a pivotal game in that we lost to them at home last season and we had to step up and win that game. The fact that they did win the game, and they won it the way they did (back and forth, missed FG, defense going into shut-down mode) was impressive. Then to follow that up with the Illinois blow-out. These last two wins were huge for confidence.

Yes NW is a better team than either UMD or Illinois - but they are NOT OSU, and I do not think NW would beat Temple this season either. No this coming Saturday is a tough road game (a bit tougher than UMD), but it is a must win game. We cannot go into Evanston and lay an egg.

 

[rudedude]

I hope so. The win over Illinois was certainly the best and most balanced performance of the year. Hack looked confident and decisive. He stepped up in the pocket, stepped into his throws and even hit crossing patterns in the middle of the field (I wonder if better field position gave Donovan more confidence). I like that we're finally throwing screens to the RB. That adds a whole new dimension. The defense was more decisive too. That makes 5 consecutive good quarters of defense after a pretty rough stretch.

But keep in mind that our 4 B1G wins are against teams that are a combined 2-15 in conference. It will be interesting to see how this team plays this week against a somewhat better team on the road.

You do realize that the teams we beat played some stiff competition don't you? Don't just spew stats out there they are meaningless!:

Rutgers losses: Ohio State Wisconsin MSU
Indiana losses: Ohio State MSU
Maryland losses: WVU Michigan OSU Iowa
Illinois losses: North Carolina Iowa Wisconsin

 

[bmw199]

Defense should control the game. Put together a few solid drives and strike on a few big plays and we win this one in good game.

 

[T J]

Sometimes you just see the light bulb go off if you're watching closely enough.

Think how much better it could be when the light bulb comes on!



Good points Howie'81

 

[royboy]

I call this "The Barkley Affect". Amazing what can happen when the D-line can't just rush the QB and the S have to worry about someone busting through the line for a long gain.

Agree. And we're seeing what the passing attack can do with a little offensive balance.

Hack is spreading the ball around to a number of capable receivers; Chris Godwin and DeSean Hamilton catch the deep ball really well, and Blacknall is not far behind. They also run well after the catch, not easy to bring down at all. We've got Gesicki (knock on wood) showing some signs of figuring it out. And passes to Barkley out of the backfield.....that's a terrific weapon that is just starting to emerge.

Hack seems to have better and better command and pocket presence, plus throwing more accurately. 12 TDs and 0 picks in last several games is terrific.

I've said this elsewhere....PSU has more talented offensive weapons with Hack, Barkley, and a deep receiving corps, than nearly anyone. It's a talent level that Northwestern, for example, does not have.

 

[bmw199]

Agree. And we're seeing what the passing attack can do with a little offensive balance.

Hack is spreading the ball around to a number of capable receivers; Chris Godwin and DeSean Hamilton catch the deep ball really well, and Blacknall is not far behind. They also run well after the catch, not easy to bring down at all. We've got Gesicki (knock on wood) showing some signs of figuring it out. And passes to Barkley out of the backfield.....that's a terrific weapon that is just starting to emerge.

Hack seems to have better and better command and pocket presence, plus throwing more accurately. 12 TDs and 0 picks in last several games is terrific.

I've said this elsewhere....PSU has more talented offensive weapons with Hack, Barkley, and a deep receiving corps, than nearly anyone. It's a talent level that Northwestern, for example, does not have.

Godwin is looking like he will most certainly be playing on Sundays someday.

 

[bvillebaron]

Don't get too excited after the Illinois win.

That was one of the worst, most vanilla defensive schemes I've ever seen a team put up.

Yes that's it oracle, PSU won 39-0 because the other team sucked. You epitomize one of my pet peeves in 5 decades of being a fan. You know the guy who claims BEFORE the game that Penn State is going to get beat or have an extremely difficult game and then after PSU blows their doors off comes out with stuff like well the other team wasn't really that good any way, they played the most vanilla defense [you've ever] seen and yada yada yada.

How about if you go on the record before the Northwestern game. Is Northwestern a good team or not?

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Yes that's it oracle, PSU won 39-0 because the other team sucked. You epitomize one of my pet peeves in 5 decades of being a fan. You know the guy who claims BEFORE the game that Penn State is going to get beat or have an extremely difficult game and then after PSU blows their doors off comes out with stuff like well the other team wasn't really that good any way, they played the most vanilla defense [you've ever] seen and yada yada yada.

How about if you go on the record before the Northwestern game. Is Northwestern a good team or not?

Uhhhh, simmer down pardner.

Illinois hardly blitzed, hardly stacked the box, and didn't rush the gaps near the guards. PSU took advantage of it......and won 39-0. Illinois is a team without a head coach and solid athletes.

Don't count on another team being that stupid. Let me guess.....you think PSU is going to run the table and is the best team ever?

 

[lionroar88]

Uhhhh, simmer down pardner.

Illinois hardly blitzed, hardly stacked the box, and didn't rush the gaps near the guards. PSU took advantage of it......and won 39-0. Illinois is a team without a head coach and solid athletes.

Don't count on another team being that stupid. Let me guess.....you think PSU is going to run the table and is the best team ever?

Why game were you watching on Saturday? It certainly was not the PSU/Illinois game I watched. PSU did a poor job in the 1st half picking up the blitz, they did a much better job in the second half.

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Why game were you watching on Saturday? It certainly was not the PSU/Illinois game I watched. PSU did a poor job in the 1st half picking up the blitz, they did a much better job in the second half.

Watch it again.

Illinois almost never faked a blitz, regularly sent pressure, tried to stunt the DL, and played soft coverage the entire game.

 

[bdgan]

You do realize that the teams we beat played some stiff competition don't you? Don't just spew stats out there they are meaningless!:

Rutgers losses: Ohio State Wisconsin MSU
Indiana losses: Ohio State MSU
Maryland losses: WVU Michigan OSU Iowa
Illinois losses: North Carolina Iowa Wisconsin

Our 4 B1G wins have come against teams with a combined 2-15 record in conference. North Carolina and West Virginia were not considered. Our remaining opponents have a combined conference record of 9-3. I don't think that's meaningless. I think it gets more difficult from going forward.

 

[bvillebaron]

Uhhhh, simmer down pardner.

Illinois hardly blitzed, hardly stacked the box, and didn't rush the gaps near the guards. PSU took advantage of it......and won 39-0. Illinois is a team without a head coach and solid athletes.

Don't count on another team being that stupid. Let me guess.....you think PSU is going to run the table and is the best team ever?

Uhhhh, simmer down pardner.

Illinois hardly blitzed, hardly stacked the box, and didn't rush the gaps near the guards. PSU took advantage of it......and won 39-0. Illinois is a team without a head coach and solid athletes.

Don't count on another team being that stupid. Let me guess.....you think PSU is going to run the table and is the best team ever?

Never said that; read my post. Don't know about you but I was watching the game from the north end zone and Illinois blitzed effectively on several occasions right up the middle, some of which resulted in sacks. I also noticed that you ignored my simple request (designed I guess to give you plausible deniability depending on the outcome). Tell us on the record right now Oracle, is Northwestern a good team or not?

 

[Blueblood4eva]

I think it was Hayden Fry who was asked in the mid-90s what worried him most about playing Penn State -- and he answered, unhesitatingly, "the players."

What he meant was that PSU had dangerous athletes, not just a few but all over the field, so mismatches were inevitable and over the course of the game

This Penn State team finally has that. They have athletes everywhere, and as they get experience they're making few mistakes and making more plays. Now that the OL is settling in, there's no easy way to defend PSU. You can even play a very good game, as Maryland did, and PSU has enough resources to pull out the win.

Northwestern is the perfect measuring stick. High quality B1G team, extremely tough in front of their home crowd. PSU obviously put together their most complete 4 quarters of the season this past Saturday, and they'll need to play another 4 quarter game away from home to win at Evanston.

It is VERY within the realm of possibility that the team will take a step back playing away from home -- it is a team largely of freshman and sophs -- and Pat Fitzgerald's team will blow them out.

But it's also possible that PSU takes ANOTHER step forward and puts together a solid performance for the second week in a row. If they can be solid and not lose their composure early, then "the players" start to become more and more of a problem for NW.

The way things go with NW, PSU needs to hang in there and not get blown out early, and then they can start to establish some things. If NW wins the game, they will probably win it early. If PSU can go into halftime with a 1-TD game either way, I like PSU's chances. If the OL can keep Hack in one piece, they will find some things they can do offensively by the 3rd quarter. That's been the pattern. If the Lions can just keep their heads and be patient, size, speed and depth will matter in the 2nd half.

Agree with all of this. Would only add that the coaching staff is getting better too at knowing the kids, and gaining the needed experience against new teams in new venues. Fitz at home, with an extra week to prepare is going to be tougher than Michigan in Happy Valley. Sounds crazy but I believe that. We are going to give Harbaugh one hell of a game no matter what happens in Evanston, but if we win there and stay on this roll........oh boy will the fans be rocking the White Out! Our coaching staff is going to experience something else new. They haven't heard that special roar yet.

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Never said that; read my post. Don't know about you but I was watching the game from the north end zone and Illinois blitzed effectively on several occasions right up the middle, some of which resulted in sacks. I also noticed that you ignored my simple request (designed I guess to give you plausible deniability depending on the outcome). Tell us on the record right now Oracle, is Northwestern a good team or not?

Northwestern is a well coached team. Penn State is a young team. Anything can happen.

I've been on record with my thoughts about our team numerous times here. I can't help it you have your panties in a bunch and think we're going to beat the New England Patriots after beating a hapless Illinois team without a decent gameplan 39-0.

 

[Judge Smails]

Northwestern is a well coached team. Penn State is a young team. Anything can happen.

I've been on record with my thoughts about our team numerous times here. I can't help it you have your panties in a bunch and think we're going to beat the New England Patriots after beating a hapless Illinois team without a decent gameplan 39-0.

Strawman arguments are dumb.

 

[demlion]

Thank you fellows, I learned something today. I’m so narrow minded that I didn’t realize the term “I.P.” had other applications

Michigan, OTOH, with the Jabril Peppers story , may have reached an "infection point."

 

[ThePennsyOracle]

Michigan, OTOH, with the Jabril Peppers story , may have reached an "infection point."

Others would say they've climaxed.

 

[demlion]

Many here were upset about the close game in Baltimore. I was not among them. I felt it was a good tough win where we grew a lot in the 4th quarter. That was the kind of game where you learn how to win a tight ball game, which is very important. The team leveraged that into their best performance of the season by far. None of this, "It's only Illinois baloney," either. Illinois played decent ball coming into that game and it's a team that beat us last season. PSU carved them up in what should have been a 41 - 0 score. Sorry Joe the toe.

I will be very, very surprised if we lay an egg in Evanston. Could happen, but I truly believe this program turned a corner the last 2 weeks. Sometimes you just see the light bulb go off if you're watching closely enough.

How, if at all, does an inflection point differ from the apex? Is the inflection point always a good thing?

 

[adh110]

Penn State will donimate NW on saturday! I just don't think NW has enough offensive firepower to score many points on our Dfense. In addition, our offense is a confident bunch after putting up 80 points in the past 2 weeks.

This will be another blowout....mark it down.

 

[emrtmakesshiteup]

Honestly, it wasn't solely in gest but I did post after, I believe the Army game, (I paraphrase!) "Look at the bright side, this team plays so awful, it's developing character!"

 

[demlion]

Penn State will donimate NW on saturday! I just don't think NW has enough offensive firepower to score many points on our Dfense. In addition, our offense is a confident bunch after putting up 80 points in the past 2 weeks.

This will be another blowout....mark it down.

Well, if so then they are overly confident regarding arithmetic--31 plus 39 is 70.

 

[HazletonLion]

The same Illinois team that beat Nebraska by the same margin as Northwestern,and the same
Illinois team that lost to Iowa by 9 and Northwestern lost to by 30 is now a chump team by some
of your standards.
Wazzo played Stanford tight Saturday and lost their own game by passing in obvious running
and clock killing situations.
Sometimes you got to show up as an underdog and show who you really are,i believe now is the
time.