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Thoughts after watching the replay

  • Screen passes killed us in the first half. PSU routinely sells out to create pressure. USC was expecting it led to way too many explosive plays.
  • The low block on Carter saved us before halftime. USC had 1st and goal but that penalty forced USC to accept a FG. 6-24 at halftime might have been insurmountable.
  • Passes to Singleton were nice. He had 4 catches with a TD.
  • I thought (hoped?) PSU would take control of the game after tying it 20-20 with 4:40 left in Q3. No such luck. Carter dropped a likely pick 6 that might have sealed the game.
  • PSU kept getting beat when they blitzed. We only got 1 sack and 1 turnover. The turnover was the pass intercepted by Reed at the end of regulation. Moss just missed it. It wasn't created by our pressure. I continue to think we pressure/blitz too much. The reward vs risk hasn't been in our favor. We're 9th/10th in the BiG with 14 sacks but 7 of those came late vs Illinois. We simply haven't had a good consistent pass rush. a lot of that is because we bring the heat so often that opponents have countered with screens and quick release passes.
  • PSU's last drive with 5:30 remaining was an adventure. Some great runs and passes but Allar was almost intercepted again. We relied on two 4th down conversions to Fleming (4th and 7, 4th and 10). It was good to finally see Fleming make some plays.
  • Warren was incredible but how was he allowed to be so wide open on several catches?
  • PSU got lucky in OT. Tracy definitely grabbled jersey. It wasn't horrible but it was enough to call. Miller definitely arrived early but announcers didn't mention that Carter was held by #79 on that play.

***Ask The Staff -- Wednesday Edition***

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We will check in on the thread all day long to answer whatever questions you have!

Does anyone else get 1986 vibes from this team?

Sometimes it takes a game like we saw against USC to reveal the character of a team. I was a Senior at Penn State in 1986 and I remember Penn State needing a big 4th down conversion against Cincinnati to win that game at home. We know what happened with that 1986 team, which later went on the road and beat #2 Alabama and ND in a close game later in the season before beating Miami in the Fiesta Bowl.

The USC win was one of the best wins in the CJF era, and arguably the best true road win CJF has had since he has been at Penn State. I couldn't believe that he went for those 4th downs. I'm glad they worked out, and I'm very happy for him and for the team. Here are just a couple of other observations:

Drew Allar, regarding his interview after the game. My impression is that Allar is right in the midst of rapidly maturing as a person and a leader, and he seems like a great kid. He took a big leap in so many ways in that USC game. We may find that Allar plays at a different level for the remainder of his college career as a result of this game.

Coach AK: Enjoy this guy now, because he is going to be a very successful head coach somewhere soon. His creativity is off the charts, and he really seems to figure out ways to tailor his gameplan to the specific talents of his players. The drive early in the game reminded me of when Penn State overwhelmed Arizona in the opening game of 1999. That early USC drive only ended in a FG, but you could see the team feeding off of AK's playcalling. I expect this team to continue to get better on offense over the final few weeks of the season.

I don't expect this team to win a championship this year, but Penn State has something special going on right now. I'm going to sit back and enjoy the rest of this season unfold.

As an NFL fan, which surprises you the most?

Which of the following facts do you find the most surprising as an NFL fan?

Atlanta zero Super Bowl wins
Buffalo zero Super Bowl wins
Cincinnati zero Super Bowl wins
Cleveland zero Super Bowl appearances
Dallas zero Super Bowl appearances the past 30 years
Detroit zero Super Bowl appearances
Miami zero Super Bowl wins the past 50 years
Minnesota zero Super Bowl wins
New York Jets zero Super Bowl appearances the past 50 years
The Chargers zero Super Bowl wins
The Raiders zero Super Bowl wins the past 40 years

Which surprises you the most?

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Alex Tatsch

From a 10/6 TribLive article:

....' Alex Tatsch’s high school career is suddenly finished because the senior will have shoulder surgery Monday.

The senior Penn State linebacker commit has missed the last two-and-a-half games with pain in his shoulder, the same shoulder he had surgery on last year to repair a torn labrum.

“He has to get it done immediately,” Latrobe coach Ron Prady said. “It’s really tough for our guys. (Injuries) are part of football. The most important thing is Alex’s health and future. He is a great teammate.”.....

.....Tatsch was averaging 12.3 yards per carry. He has 724 yards rushing and eight touchdowns and has 56 tackles — eight for loss — a sack and an interception.

He said having the previous surgery makes the process less daunting.

“Definitely,” Tatsch said. “I know what to expect, and will be able to be more proactive. I will be back stronger than I’ve ever been.”.....'

Full Article

Football When the Nittany Lions Needed it Most, Their Special Teams Units Stepped Up

There have been some ups and downs with Penn State's special teams units this season, but Saturday afternoon in LA the entire group stepped up in a big way


House v. NCAA NIL settlement & related fallout

Big news today:
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A LOT more at Dellenger's tweeter feed. This looks like far bigger news than even a $2.8B settlement.

Gut tells me the Power 5 Conferences' approvals is probably leveraging this as a power grab over the smaller conferences. (More likely than benevolent agreement.) Also, the schools are gonna need to find new revenue sources -- private capital coming?

@tikk10, your thoughts on all of this?
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Sonos "Sound Motion"

Sonos bought this mystery company in 2022 for $100m which seemed to be crazy. today, they released the first product from that acquisition.

Anyone know anything about this?


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