Know the Foe: State Penn
Right: Kanye West once said, “Yo! Darryl Clark, I’mma let you finish, but Troy Smith was the best of all time. Of all time!” (AP Photo)
Penn State and legendary head coach Joe Paterno did something last season that the Nittany Lions have only accomplished twice before since joining the Big Ten in 1993, and that was winning a conference title.
In 16 years as a league member, Penn State has only won one outright Big Ten title (1994), and shared the crown on two different occasions (2005 & 2008).
This season, the Nittany Lions are trying to do something they have never done before, which is to win back-to-back Big Ten titles, though they are going to need some help in the final weeks of the regular season.
Overall, Penn State has a 7-1 record and is 4-1 in Big Ten play, but the Nittany Lions have yet to face a ranked opponent all season, until this Saturday. Penn State’s lone loss was a 21-10 setback at home to Iowa, who was unranked when the Hawkeyes visited Happy Valley back in September.
The Nittany Lions have also played about the lamest non-conference schedule on record, defeating Akron (31-7), Syracuse (28-7), Temple (31-6) and FCS member Eastern Illinois (52-3).
Last week against Northwestern, Penn State trailed the Wildcats 13-10 at halftime and the game was tied at 13-all heading into the final period before the Nittany Lions scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter for a 34-13 victory.
Penn State’s other three Big Ten wins have come against Illinois (35-17), Minnesota (20-0) and Michigan (35-10).
The Nittany Lions are led on offense by senior quarterback Daryll Clark (6-2, 233) and junior tailback Evan Royster (6-1, 209).
Clark has throw for 2,158 yards while completing 63.1 percent of his passes with 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions. His best game, arguably, came against Michigan when he was 16-of-27 passing for 230 yards and four touchdowns without an interception. Against Iowa, though, Clark was just 12-of-32 passing for 198 yards with one TD and three picks. So far, Clark was thrown for more than 200 yards six times and has three or more TD passes in four contests.
Royster, meanwhile, has toted the rock 145 times for 859 yards, tops in the Big Ten, and has scored five TDs. Royster is averaging 95.4 yards per game and 5.9 yards per carry. He has rushed for 100 or more yards in five games so far this season. Royster also has 11 receptions for 145 yards and another score.
Clark’s favorite target is sophomore wide receiver Derek Moye (6-5, 195), who has 39 receptions for 648 yards and five touchdowns.
Three others have caught 25 or more passes and that includes junior wide receiver Graham Zug (6-1, 178) with 29 receptions for 344 yards and five TDs, sophomore wide receiver Chaz Powell with 25 catches for 352 yards and three scores, and senior Andrew Quarless (6-5, 253), who’s hauled in 25 balls for 340 yards and a TD.
On the defensive side of the ball, senior inside linebacker Josh Hull (6-3, 240) leads the team with 82 total tackles while senior outside linebacker Navarro Bowman (6-1, 230, is second on the roster with 53 stops. Senior defensive tackle Jared Odrick (6-5, 206) has a team-high six sacks.
