Good evening,
As I'm sure you're all aware, No. 2 Penn State dismantled Michigan tonight at Beaver Stadium, 42-13. We've got some videos coming for you of postgame reaction and stories, but I wanted to just go through some of the immediate news and notes items, plus impressions of mine, that I think stand out.
Let's get right into it:
1) Lo and behold, the key to the game very much wound up playing out that way.
Trace McSorley needed to stay upright against a Michigan defense that was hellbent on blowing up the play before it got going, and in that same vein, needed to give his receivers an opportunity to make plays against a cocksure Michigan defensive scheme for its secondary. At no point was Michigan's plan a secret, nor was it something the Wolverines were willing to move away from even as the Nittany Lions quickly started to unravel it.
"He ran the ball well, he threw the ball well," James Franklin said of McSorley's performance. "When you play that style of defense and they’ve had success against everybody, you have to be able and willing to hit the go balls, the fade balls, the inside fade by number two and typically, people can’t hit them enough to make them pay for playing that style of defense. Tonight, we were able to do that.
"In my opinion, it was the biggest difference in the game. When you’re able to complete long balls, shots down the field against a team that is trying to sack your quarterback and trying to play man coverage, you’re going to be difficult to deal with. We were able to do that tonight at a fairly consistent rate, as well as get some pass interferences or holds as well which factored too."
2) I'm going to build on that last note rather than continuing it because quite obviously, Penn State's receivers were the second part of that equation, and they came through in the form of a big night for DaeSean Hamilton, and some big receptions for Mike Gesicki and Juwan Johnson as well.
Hamilton ended with 115 yards on six catches to lead the Lions, but more important than the numbers themselves were how those yards came on those catches, and its effect on Michigan's defense moving forward.
According to Franklin, right out of the gates Michigan had to defend Penn State's shots and it had an impact.
"I thought the play he made on their sideline where he went up and the ball’s a little short, and he went up and caught it in traffic, they’re the plays you have to make in these types of games, especially against this style of defense," said Franklin. "You gotta be able to make them pay for playing so aggressive. And I thought we did a really nice job because they play a lot of man coverage, outside leverage man and try to funnel everything to the help, the safety and then we beat them outside a few times, also on long balls and then they adjusted even wider and then we went to running slants.
"So then we hit DaeSean Hamilton with the slant against outside leverage verse man, which was a nice adjustment. We didn’t even really have that in the game plan. It was just something we were able to make an adjustment at halftime and get that done so, we got a mature team so we’re able to make adjustments like that on the fly and have success with it. So there’s a lot of value with that obviously."
Later, talking to McSorley, he put it in somewhat more blunt terms.
"I think we just did a really good job of manipulating our matchups and taking advantage of them. Our guys did a great job winning against man. We knew we were going to get that," he said. "We really took to heart as the receiver group, if someone wants to try to man you up, say our guys are better than your guys. It's not a disrespect thing, but it's a challenge. It's a challenge that you gotta step up to and be ready for. I think that's something that our receivers really took to heart is, all right, we're going to get man coverage. Let's go. We gotta win."
Penn State did, finishing the night with seven explosive plays in the passing game and another seven on the ground to more than match their goal of 10 explosive plays per game. Gesicki, Hamilton, Barkley and Polk all had at least one chunk play in the passing game.
3) The third part of the equation in having offensive success against Michigan, then, came down to Penn State's offensive line.
McSorley ended up taking only two sacks on the night and the Nittany Lions allowed seven total TFLs, but for only 28 yards in losses. Both of those numbers represent improvements over the line's season averages of 2.67 sacks allowed per game (No. 101 nationally) and TFLs allowed per game at 8.33 (No. 121 nationally).
Mostly managing to avoid third-and-long situations, and in fact avoiding third downs altogether in finishing 4-of-7 in the category (especially as opposed to Michigan's 6-of-16 mark), Penn State's offensive line received plenty of praise from Franklin and teammates following the game. McSorley said the line played "unbelievable" and that he was proud of them. Franklin, meanwhile, said the offensive line played "great."
"I thought our o-line obviously played really good," said Franklin. "Guys, that’s a defense that hasn’t given up any yards and any points really to anybody. So I’m very proud of them."
4) I thought the story of the first half was obviously the momentum swing of the McSorley interception. I was looking to get an answer for who was responsible on that - and maybe some of the more knowledgable football guys on here can provide some clarity - but I wasn't able to really come up with a good answer. Gesicki just said it was a "miscommunication" but obviously Moorhead seemed to be chewing out McSorley on the sideline.
Of the turnover, Franklin said this:
"The one thing I’m probably disappointed in during the game is we turned the ball over. We really had a good thing going there and we turn the ball over. We gave them momentum," said Franklin. "I didn’t think we handled, defensively, sudden change well. That point after that turnover, they kind of got some momentum and moved the ball more than any drive they had up to that point."
Truly, it appeared to be not that far off from Iowa, in my mind. Penn State was passing every eye-test category in the game, making some explosive plays right out of the gates and then able to march down the field on that third possession, seemingly ready to score to put themselves ahead by a healthy 21-0 margin. Penn State will continue to have an outstanding turnover margin after this game with a net neutral, but an inability to cash in was a lesson I thought might be learned after Iowa that didn't hold up completely in the first half.
The good news, if you're Penn State tonight, is that by coming out and hitting that third touchdown in the second quarter and then coming out in the second half and scoring on that first possession, a game that might have been more of a battle quickly moved back into Penn State's considerable favor.
5) This look-ahead note might not be to Franklin's liking - having said he would not entertain a single question about Ohio State in the postgame - but I think it's important nonetheless.
In a game against Michigan, even at home, while Ohio State was enjoying a bye week, I thought it was likely this program would take some serious bumps and bruises against a physical Wolverine team. I could be wrong on this, but I didn't see anyone coming out of the game due to injury. And really, at least from my vantage point, it was a game that Penn State was physically in control of throughout.
Tim is correcting me in saying that Bates appeared to get shaken up at the end of the game on the very last throwaway play. And obviously, McSorley took some shots but he appeared to be fine in the postgame.
As I'm sure you're all aware, No. 2 Penn State dismantled Michigan tonight at Beaver Stadium, 42-13. We've got some videos coming for you of postgame reaction and stories, but I wanted to just go through some of the immediate news and notes items, plus impressions of mine, that I think stand out.
Let's get right into it:
1) Lo and behold, the key to the game very much wound up playing out that way.
Trace McSorley needed to stay upright against a Michigan defense that was hellbent on blowing up the play before it got going, and in that same vein, needed to give his receivers an opportunity to make plays against a cocksure Michigan defensive scheme for its secondary. At no point was Michigan's plan a secret, nor was it something the Wolverines were willing to move away from even as the Nittany Lions quickly started to unravel it.
"He ran the ball well, he threw the ball well," James Franklin said of McSorley's performance. "When you play that style of defense and they’ve had success against everybody, you have to be able and willing to hit the go balls, the fade balls, the inside fade by number two and typically, people can’t hit them enough to make them pay for playing that style of defense. Tonight, we were able to do that.
"In my opinion, it was the biggest difference in the game. When you’re able to complete long balls, shots down the field against a team that is trying to sack your quarterback and trying to play man coverage, you’re going to be difficult to deal with. We were able to do that tonight at a fairly consistent rate, as well as get some pass interferences or holds as well which factored too."
2) I'm going to build on that last note rather than continuing it because quite obviously, Penn State's receivers were the second part of that equation, and they came through in the form of a big night for DaeSean Hamilton, and some big receptions for Mike Gesicki and Juwan Johnson as well.
Hamilton ended with 115 yards on six catches to lead the Lions, but more important than the numbers themselves were how those yards came on those catches, and its effect on Michigan's defense moving forward.
According to Franklin, right out of the gates Michigan had to defend Penn State's shots and it had an impact.
"I thought the play he made on their sideline where he went up and the ball’s a little short, and he went up and caught it in traffic, they’re the plays you have to make in these types of games, especially against this style of defense," said Franklin. "You gotta be able to make them pay for playing so aggressive. And I thought we did a really nice job because they play a lot of man coverage, outside leverage man and try to funnel everything to the help, the safety and then we beat them outside a few times, also on long balls and then they adjusted even wider and then we went to running slants.
"So then we hit DaeSean Hamilton with the slant against outside leverage verse man, which was a nice adjustment. We didn’t even really have that in the game plan. It was just something we were able to make an adjustment at halftime and get that done so, we got a mature team so we’re able to make adjustments like that on the fly and have success with it. So there’s a lot of value with that obviously."
Later, talking to McSorley, he put it in somewhat more blunt terms.
"I think we just did a really good job of manipulating our matchups and taking advantage of them. Our guys did a great job winning against man. We knew we were going to get that," he said. "We really took to heart as the receiver group, if someone wants to try to man you up, say our guys are better than your guys. It's not a disrespect thing, but it's a challenge. It's a challenge that you gotta step up to and be ready for. I think that's something that our receivers really took to heart is, all right, we're going to get man coverage. Let's go. We gotta win."
Penn State did, finishing the night with seven explosive plays in the passing game and another seven on the ground to more than match their goal of 10 explosive plays per game. Gesicki, Hamilton, Barkley and Polk all had at least one chunk play in the passing game.
3) The third part of the equation in having offensive success against Michigan, then, came down to Penn State's offensive line.
McSorley ended up taking only two sacks on the night and the Nittany Lions allowed seven total TFLs, but for only 28 yards in losses. Both of those numbers represent improvements over the line's season averages of 2.67 sacks allowed per game (No. 101 nationally) and TFLs allowed per game at 8.33 (No. 121 nationally).
Mostly managing to avoid third-and-long situations, and in fact avoiding third downs altogether in finishing 4-of-7 in the category (especially as opposed to Michigan's 6-of-16 mark), Penn State's offensive line received plenty of praise from Franklin and teammates following the game. McSorley said the line played "unbelievable" and that he was proud of them. Franklin, meanwhile, said the offensive line played "great."
"I thought our o-line obviously played really good," said Franklin. "Guys, that’s a defense that hasn’t given up any yards and any points really to anybody. So I’m very proud of them."
4) I thought the story of the first half was obviously the momentum swing of the McSorley interception. I was looking to get an answer for who was responsible on that - and maybe some of the more knowledgable football guys on here can provide some clarity - but I wasn't able to really come up with a good answer. Gesicki just said it was a "miscommunication" but obviously Moorhead seemed to be chewing out McSorley on the sideline.
Of the turnover, Franklin said this:
"The one thing I’m probably disappointed in during the game is we turned the ball over. We really had a good thing going there and we turn the ball over. We gave them momentum," said Franklin. "I didn’t think we handled, defensively, sudden change well. That point after that turnover, they kind of got some momentum and moved the ball more than any drive they had up to that point."
Truly, it appeared to be not that far off from Iowa, in my mind. Penn State was passing every eye-test category in the game, making some explosive plays right out of the gates and then able to march down the field on that third possession, seemingly ready to score to put themselves ahead by a healthy 21-0 margin. Penn State will continue to have an outstanding turnover margin after this game with a net neutral, but an inability to cash in was a lesson I thought might be learned after Iowa that didn't hold up completely in the first half.
The good news, if you're Penn State tonight, is that by coming out and hitting that third touchdown in the second quarter and then coming out in the second half and scoring on that first possession, a game that might have been more of a battle quickly moved back into Penn State's considerable favor.
5) This look-ahead note might not be to Franklin's liking - having said he would not entertain a single question about Ohio State in the postgame - but I think it's important nonetheless.
In a game against Michigan, even at home, while Ohio State was enjoying a bye week, I thought it was likely this program would take some serious bumps and bruises against a physical Wolverine team. I could be wrong on this, but I didn't see anyone coming out of the game due to injury. And really, at least from my vantage point, it was a game that Penn State was physically in control of throughout.
Tim is correcting me in saying that Bates appeared to get shaken up at the end of the game on the very last throwaway play. And obviously, McSorley took some shots but he appeared to be fine in the postgame.
