I want to sit here and tell you that I believe that this Penn State team is different. I can sit here and feed myself – and you – numbers that prove that point.
But I don’t know if I’ve seen it yet.
Saturday’s game with USC will be the proof to see if this Penn State football team has the killer instinct it needs to solve every wish you’ve wanted this off season.
Through its first five games of the year, Penn State has been very much fine. Particularly when you watch the games in person – and there’s been a lot of that with four straight at home for most Penn State fans – it hasn’t always been the most comfortable of experiences. You probably squirmed in your seat that night against Illinois and certainly grumbled in the middle of that Bowling Green game.
I did too. At no point in those games did it feel like Penn State was going to steamroll the opponents. I felt as if they were going to win but even last Saturday, it seemed like if you were there in person, Penn State wasn’t going for the final blow, the knockout punch or whatever cliched metaphor for coup d’etat you’d like to use.
Then, when you watch the game back on TV, Penn State looks in command. Penn State looks in control – even in that more-stressful-than-it-should-have-been matchup with Bowling Green. Part of that stems from the collective group think that can cloud judgement inside a stadium. Another part of that is also the hindsight of knowing the outcome of what you’re watching, all while having a clearer conscience.
But if you go back and watch that Illinois game, aside from the evening’s opening drive by the Illini, at no point did Penn State seem in any grave danger that night. In the win over West Virginia, sure the first quarter was sloppy, but even after the rain delay ended, Penn State looked like it had taken a serious step forward.
Against UCLA, Penn State looked poised – even without their star running back – in part because the “backup” is barely a “backup.” The Nittany Lions effectively owned the entire afternoon against the Bruins.
Even specific individuals look different.
Drew Allar is a matured, better quarterback this year so far. As promised, Andy Kotelnicki has truly unlocked the quarterback’s potential so far and you can see that in the way Allar has started wearing his confident emotions on his sleeve.
The questions that lingered in the offseason around who would catch a ball has now turned to who else is going to catch a ball. Harrison Wallace, Tyler Warren, Omari Evans and even Liam Clifford have been what Penn State has needed, individually all having big games of 100 or more yards thus far.
On defense, Abdul Carter, who you were probably frustrated with thanks to his litany of offside penalties, has finally settled into his hybrid edge rushing, sometimes-linebacking role as the leader of the defense. Players like Zakee Wheatley and Jaylen Reed have matured in real time due to KJ Winston’s injury.
But there still seems to be the “it” factor hasn’t made its debut this year.
Penn State seems to be in an even-keeled gear that’s not loud enough to provide proof it can find a higher one.
Each of Penn State’s starts haven’t been as quick as you’d like. In fact, they’ve put up just 21 points in the first quarter all season. Kent State game aside, the scores have been maybe a hair tighter than what the effort on the field has shown. Additionally, the lack of a knockout punch between the Illinois and UCLA games haven’t been visible. Part of that lies in the fact an unnecessary block in the back took both points and that moment off the board against Illinois, but it’s a fair assessment to say Penn State is just winning football games.
That’s not a complaint. That’s just what it seems. It’s not for a lack of confidence, it’s not for a lack of skill and it’s not like there haven’t been opportunities. Yet it’s all just enough to make you wonder how, when and if Penn State is going to find it.
Saturday will be Penn State’s second true test of the season. The trip to Morgantown in both planned and unplanned ways provided that and the Nittany Lions handled it confidently.
Though, for the last few seasons, we’ve seen this team handle situations like that West Virginia game (sans rain delay) confidently. Last year’s Iowa showdown had some of the same hype of this weekend – all before Penn State smacked the Hawkeyes with a stout defense. Then on a much-shorter-than-this-weekend trip to Columbus, Penn State fell flat. Those issues – or it may just be a singular issue – were supposedly corrected and fixed this offseason in a myriad of ways.
But there’s been no real proof the problems have been solved as opposed to addressed. A win over the Trojans shows you they have.
A loss conversely shows you Penn State is still looking for that “it.”
This Saturday in Los Angeles, facing a better-than-their-record-shows team, Penn State can’t just play football like it has. It has to solve those problems it’s supposedly fixed. It’s got to confidently go for that knockout punch. It’s got to show you it can find that next step forward, particularly now as the meat of the schedule begins.
It’s got to show you some proof.
vs. 
Time: 3:30 p.m.
TV: CBS
Announcers: Brad Nessler, Gary Danielson, Jenny Dell
Radio: Penn State Sports Network
Announcers: Steve Jones, Jack Ham, Brian Tripp
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