Certainly, I think the smart money would be on PSU.
That said, I can't help but feel this game could turn into a complete abortion for both offenses.
Lots of three and outs.....the type of game that - unless you are a rabid fan of one of the teams - would be unwatchable.
That would - I am afraid - bode poorly for PSU, because it then becomes a game that can be controlled by the punting teams (when every 4th snap is a punt, the punt game becomes the one item that can determine field position).
Just for grins, I took a look back at last years game:
There were THIRTY offensive possessions in the game (so, obviously, an average "drive time" of 2:00 minutes)
Temple had 10 possessions of 2 minutes or less (6 of 1 minute or less): PSU had 7 of 2 minutes or less (6 of 1 minute or less)
That's incredible.
If things play out anywhere along those lines on Saturday, and barring Walker having another game where he imitates a Junior High QB (and Walker - not withstanding his game against us - really isn't that bad of a QB), the PSU punt game could be the nightmare scenario.
I could really see a game where Temple is consistently working with a short field, and PSU is bottled up in their own end for 3/4 of the game......thanks to Temple gaining 10-20 yards of field position on each punt exchange.
If that happens - even if Temple struggles to gain 250 yards of offense in the game (which I think will be the case) - they could be in position to add 2 or 3 cheap field goals due to short fields, and come away with a 16-7ish win.
That type of outcome wouldn't surprise me at all.
Again, the smart money would be on PSU, and if either offense is going to be able to put forth a decent or good effort, it is far more likely (IMHO) to be Penn State's. But the uglier the game is, the more the PSU punting issues will influence the outcome.
All in all, I'd be satisfied to get out of this one with a 13-10 win. A solid win by more than one score would just be gravy.
That said, I can't help but feel this game could turn into a complete abortion for both offenses.
Lots of three and outs.....the type of game that - unless you are a rabid fan of one of the teams - would be unwatchable.
That would - I am afraid - bode poorly for PSU, because it then becomes a game that can be controlled by the punting teams (when every 4th snap is a punt, the punt game becomes the one item that can determine field position).
Just for grins, I took a look back at last years game:
There were THIRTY offensive possessions in the game (so, obviously, an average "drive time" of 2:00 minutes)
Temple had 10 possessions of 2 minutes or less (6 of 1 minute or less): PSU had 7 of 2 minutes or less (6 of 1 minute or less)
That's incredible.
If things play out anywhere along those lines on Saturday, and barring Walker having another game where he imitates a Junior High QB (and Walker - not withstanding his game against us - really isn't that bad of a QB), the PSU punt game could be the nightmare scenario.
I could really see a game where Temple is consistently working with a short field, and PSU is bottled up in their own end for 3/4 of the game......thanks to Temple gaining 10-20 yards of field position on each punt exchange.
If that happens - even if Temple struggles to gain 250 yards of offense in the game (which I think will be the case) - they could be in position to add 2 or 3 cheap field goals due to short fields, and come away with a 16-7ish win.
That type of outcome wouldn't surprise me at all.
Again, the smart money would be on PSU, and if either offense is going to be able to put forth a decent or good effort, it is far more likely (IMHO) to be Penn State's. But the uglier the game is, the more the PSU punting issues will influence the outcome.
All in all, I'd be satisfied to get out of this one with a 13-10 win. A solid win by more than one score would just be gravy.