I believe the game against Minnesota will be a telling test. Can Franklin restore the team and produce an aggressive team that will win at home and for a whiteout. No excuses here. This is a must win.

Love when the Eagles and Steeler fans take over these Sun Belt stadiums - gotta love the Rust Belt diaspora

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Probably the best 3 teams in the B10 conference not called Penn State... it will be a HUGE TEST !! Ideally, you would want a week or two to prepare for EACH of those teams... but Penn Stare will have to take them on, on THREE (3) Consecutive weeks !! BAM, BAM, BAM !! Michigan at Ann Arbor! Minnesota (probably the best team in the West Conference), and Ohio State (Probably the best team in the B10)... It will be SUCH a tough pull, it's ALMOST unfair... but I don't think the B10 cares about "fairness'... THEY will have to Play their GUTS out against Michigan, and win or lose, THEN be ready for Minnesota, and THEN for Ohio State !! I HOPE that last year is kind of "Deja Vu all over again".. and they can STAY UP for EACH of those games...AND THEN, Possibly Indiana as well... the WEEK AFTER !!

It will be SOOO important to BEAT Michigan... BUT, WHAT if they don't ? Do we have a 2021 year... ALL OVER AGAIN? OR... will the DEPTH, YOUTH, and TALENT help us ? I was not expecting Minnesota to be as TOUGH as they appear to be... THIS is where the mental preparation for the 3-4 game stretch NEEDS to begin... WHATEVER they were doing last year didn't appear to work... and NOW, it might be that this year is setting up EXACTLY the same.. THEY need to just make their mindset COMPLETELY one game at a time... BUT, somehow take time each week during that stretch, to DECOMPRESS... and RE-SET !!

I'm HOPING for the best, but EXPECTING the worst !

Can this guy actually coach?

Worst AD in the History certainly of Penn State, & probably 1 of the Worst Ever, Honestly!

Surely all PSU fans are suffering a bad hangover this morning. I am. But I want to put this into perspective and hope to get a few sane responses. We have seen a pattern develop with CJF. I think I first noticed it when we played USC and lost at the end regardless of a great game by Saquon. We seem to lack the intensity, aggression, and that is seen most in the OL and DL. IF I am right, do we blame CJF? Of course. But I also blame the AD. Wisconsin fired a fine coach a few weeks back. Why? He could not compete with OSU and Michigan and win. Yet, like CJF, he was a very winning coach. We recruit well, but not on a par with the top teams. The best OL and DL prospects go elsewhere. Something is wrong. IF it is important to win and be on top, that falls on the AD to get the right people coaching and recruiting. I do think that 9-2 is possible but maybe not probable. I feel Sean should have moved on. We need to develop Allar for next year, and maybe creating a little damage this year. It is my thought that we need to develop realism on offense. That means screen passes, quick hits over the middle, etc. Throwing fades to end zone or long passes was OK when we had Dotson or Godwin or Robinson. And, we need to coach "NASTY." Paterno's legacy was one wherein the opposing players always felt beat up after playing PSU - win or lose. You will hate this thought - hire Urban Meyer! He is a proven winner in big games. Ouch, that hurt, I know.

I don't like Harbaugh and Michigan but kudos to them. Based on recruiting classes, their talent isn't much better than our recruits COMING IN. But they DEVELOP players.

Kudos to them knowing exactly how to attack us. They knew what to do and DESTROYED us. I know the 1st 5 games we played were against much weaker competition, but who saw this coming? Watching their offensive line operate like a well oiled machine straight ahead and on sweeps was awe inspiring.

I've tried to support CJF but no more. He can't run a program. Michigan should have beaten us but not like this. 2 weeks to prepare and we get this disaster! My God, we looked like Villanova!

Where the f**k do we go from here with his long term contract?

Besides me and Joe Bastardi

Maybe? Thought here?

That is all....

I understand the dark mood here after yesterday's game and many are down on this Nittany Lion team. I did a little digging, watched a few YouTube videos and have some thoughts.

A couple things about Michigan that may have been missed. I saw a lot of people reference their games/scores against Iowa, Maryland and Indiana. I think those games were a bit deceiving after looking a little closer.
1. Michigan dominated Iowa. They were more methodical in their approach and didn't have the big plays they did yesterday, but they led 20-0 and 27-7 before Iowa scored a garbage time TD with :08 left in the game. The 27-14 final score was deceiving as it wasn't that close.
2. Michigan started slow defensively against Maryland giving up some yardage to Taulia. But they took over in the 2nd half, controlling the ball. Maryland only had Five 2nd half possessions - Punt, Punt, TD, INT, TD. But they had a 2 score lead and Maryland's final TD with :45 left in the game that was already decided.
3. Indiana - Michigan definitely started slowly after scoring on their first drive. Indiana committed to stopping the run, loading the box. It's an excuse but you could they were shaken after RB Coach Mike Hart had a seizure on the sideline in the 1st, right in front of the team, and had to be carted off. They regrouped in the 2nd half and Indiana only had 29 yards of offense in the whole 2nd half. In 6 2nd Half possessions, they punted the first 4, lost a fumble and turned it over on downs, running just 28 plays. Indiana continued to overplay the run and Michigan ended up throwing 36 times for over 300 yards.

None of that matters, other than it shows the scores can be a bit deceiving, as we saw yesterday at Halftime.

On the flip side, I don't think PSU is nearly as bad as they showed yesterday. Are they are top 5 or top 10 team? No
But I think the Michigan matchup was a bad one for them as their OL and DL are very good. Their DL has been questioned all year because of the lost of their two Edge rushers from last year, but they're very good and more balanced. That proved nightmarish for Penn State's OL. And Michigan's OL is one of the best in the country. They haven't been healthy and played yesterday without their starting RT, but the backup has had plenty of experience. In the Red Zone, PSU's DL made some plays. But when spread out, Michigan was too much. I don't think a lot of teams will do that to PSU. Yesterday was just a buzzsaw kind of day overall.

But their are things to look forward to. How they play from here, especially next week, will determine a lot. How much heart do they have? Can they come back after being whipped? Can they clean up some of the poor tackling? Minnesota will present a challenge running the ball, but their QB may or may not play. If they are one dimensional, I think PSU steps up and handles them, especially at home. Mo Ibrahaim may still get his 100 yards, but I don't see them giving up 300-400 yards again. The big plays from Corum and Edwards yesterday were fluky in the sense that there were several. Those guys can break long runs, but not typically so often. Questions for PSU next week start with their psyche and how well they can bounce back, There is an old saying about not letting the same team/game beat you twice. PSU has to avoid that. And second, how will they be at QB? I haven't heard anything about Clifford's health. Was he just banged up or is there more? Will they make the change to Allar and if so, is he ready? If they do, it would seem better to do it this week rather than against OSU.

I think PSU will be fine. Most likely they'll end up as a team ranked in the 15-20 range and win most games, but struggle against the Elite teams. Not want many want to hear, but better than the mood in general, I think. Let's just hope the reaction and bounce back this week is the right one, or things could then spiral down hill fast.

Unless Franklin wins out, time to go.

There are many differences between where this PSU team was vs Michigan last season and where they are now. Given all these listed below, I’m feeling pretty good about our chances tomorrow.
1. The PSU run game was beyond pitiful last year. It was a joke. This year we not only have Allen getting positive yards every play we have the home run threat of Singleton.
2. Clifford is relatively healthy this year. Last year he was a shell of himself.
3. PJ Mustipher is back and is a force. He was desperately missed last year.
4. Overall, the Oline is significantly improved. Without a doubt.
5. B Strange has taken a leap forward and is a serious threat. He was mediocre last year.

Nice stat line. 1-19 120 yds . His era needs to be over .

Anyone getting concerned that he is looking very pedestrian? Of course OLine not doing him any favors. But goes down way too easy. Those who compared him to Saquon? Not even close.

Allen looks better. Can do more with less

Time for a change at the top.

NFM!!

First, Worse offensive play calling I have ever seen! Why do we constantly throw a two-yard pass when we need 8+ yards, especially when receiver is covered!

Next week Minny wins by 17, with over 200 yards rushing!

Week after OSU has over 580 total yards and wins by 30!

Time to play all the youngsters! Run outside! Get them ready for next year!

As he was taken to the hospital for a head injury.

Their backup is Athan Kaliakmanis. Former 4 star Pro Style QB out of Illinois. In his career he's 5/11 for 84 yards, 0 tds, 2 Ints.

I was on the road most of the day but managed to catch some of the game on the radio and now in the hotel room have read through the game thread here.

Bummer, man.

I honestly thought we'd spring the upset. At the very least I thought it would be a dogfight. Wrong on both counts. Oh well.

But let's not rush to jump off the ledge. At the beginning of the year, most of us thought 9-3 would be good. As bad as things were today, we're still looking at the solid possibility of 10-2 and a very nice bowl game.

OK, in the unlikely event that we lose the white-out next week against Minnesota, I might well join the pile-on.

Meanwhile, this was not a good day. But this is a young team with its best days still ahead.

As for Clifford, he's a great guy and decent player...but not a championship-caliber QB. That's just a hard fact. It always has been.

Regarding Franklin, it is what it is. He's not going to be cut loose at this point, so we sink or swim with the guy.

Let's put this game in the rear-view mirror and think about the Gophers. The narrative changes quickly in college football. Beat Minnesota and then, who knows. Hope springs eternal.

Man, you made us sweat. Into the third quarter, it reminded me of games where we have been completely dominated but pulled off just enough big plays to win (like our first night game vs ND). But in reverse (shudder).

I hope Clifford is okay. He was your MVP today. He does a little bit of everything. Can throw deep, can scramble, throw the deep out, -and that FAKE! A lost art for most QBs.

You are the only team that has a chance vs Ohio State before the final game of the season. You have a history of playing the Bucks CRAZY tough at home. I think the Buckeyes fear you more than us.

Good luck the rest of the year.

Go Blue!