Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1138762
P E N N S TAT E F O O T B A L L >> 2 0 1 9 S E A S O N P R E V I E W GAME OF THE YEAR Do we even have to say it? The Buckeyes will be heading into the belly of the beast on Nov. 30, but they haven't exactly struggled in Ann Arbor lately, having won six of their past seven games in the Big House. OUTLOOK Day may be an o>ensive guru, but you can understand why he has devoted so much attention to his defense since taking over for Urban Meyer. The Buckeyes' only loss last year was a 49-20 beatdown against unranked Purdue in which the Boilermakers totaled 539 yards. Ohio State later gave up 535 yards and nearly lost to another unranked op- ponent, Maryland, in the regular-season =nale. Those two defensive collapses kept the Big Ten champs from making the College Football Playo>. Getting back to the CFP is job No. 1 in Columbus, or maybe job No. 1A behind beating Michigan. Meyer reached the playo> twice and won the title in 2014. He went 83-9 during his seven-year tenure with the Buckeyes and never lost more than two games in any one season. That's the standard that Day will be asked to up- hold, beginning immediately. If Fields makes a smooth transition to the starting quarterback position and the defense tightens up, there's no reason to think that the Buckeyes' new coaching regime won't get o> to a successful start. –M.H. 2018 RECORD 1-11, 0-9 Big Ten COACH Chris Ash (7-29 in three sea- sons at Rutgers; career record: same) SERIES RECORD The Nittany Lions lead the all-time series, 27-2. MOST RECENT MEETING Freshman tight end Pat Freiermuth caught two touch- down passes, and the Nittany Lion de- fense gave up only 46 passing yards and 234 total yards in a 20-7 victory at Rut- gers on Nov. 17, 2018. OFFENSE The Scarlet Knights are com- ing o> a season in which they averaged 266.3 yards per game. Only two teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision averaged fewer. If they're going to improve on that dismal stat in 2019, they'll need a much better performance from their quarter- back, whoever that turns out to be. Artur Sitkowski struggled as a fresh- man, completing fewer than half of his passes while compiling a nightmarish 4- 18 touchdown-interception ratio. He continued to have trouble getting the ball down=eld in the Knights' spring game, potentially opening the door for January enrollee Cole Snyder or gradu- ate transfer McLane Carter, formerly of Texas Tech. The back=eld appears to be in better shape, as Raheem Blackshear and Isaih Pacheco are both back a?er combining to rush for 1,117 yards and six touchdowns last season. Blackshear was a do-it-all threat who also led the team in receiving with 40 catches for 334 yards and two TDs. DEFENSE This unit did its best to keep Rutgers competitive last season, holding Northwestern, Penn State and Michigan State to 20 points or fewer. It's now being overseen by a new coordinator, Andy Buh, formerly of Maryland, and it's welcoming back one of the team's best young players, cornerback Avery Young, who had 66 tackles and 10 pass break-ups as a true freshman starter. Young will be joined this fall by a couple of potential impact players in defensive end Tijaun Mason and linebacker Deion Jennings. Mason is a dangerous pass rusher who is back in action a?er su>er- ing a season-ending injury in last year's opener against Texas State. Jennings has been one of the breakout stars of the o>- season, =nishing with six tackles and an interception in the spring game. SPECIAL TEAMS Kicker Justin Davi- dovicz has a terri=c leg. Last year, he hit 9 of 11 attempts, with a long kick of 52 yards. Also back is punter Adam Korsak. Korsak got a workout last season due to Rutgers' o>ensive woes but still averaged 42.7 yards. Only =ve punters in the FBS had more attempts than Korsak's 78. SCHEDULE A?er opening at home against Massachusetts, Rutgers has a tough September, with games against Iowa, Boston College and Michigan. The October slate looks a lot more manage- able, but if the Scarlet Knights are going to attain bowl eligibility, they had better get their six wins by early November. Their last three opponents are Ohio State, Michigan State and Penn State. GAME OF THE YEAR No matter how lopsided the series may be, Penn State will always be Rutgers' biggest game. OUTLOOK The Scarlet Knights averaged an FBS-worst 13.5 points per game last season. If you subtract their opener against Texas State, in which they scored 35 points, their average dips to 11.5 points per game. And that, folks, is how you end up with a one-win season. If it's going to avoid a repeat of last year's per- formance, Rutgers needs to develop a credible down=eld passing game, one that can generate the occasional chunk play and also create some space for Blackshear and Pacheco, two pretty good running backs. The QBs will be under heavy scrutiny in the months to come. There's a lot riding on whether any of them will be able to rise to that challenge. –M.H. TOP RETURNEES PASSING Artur Sitkowski 134 of 273 | 1,158 yds. | 4 TD | 18 int. RUSHING Raheem Blackshear 127 att. | 566 yds. | 3 TD RECEIVING Raheem Blackshear 40 rec. | 334 yds. | 2 TD TACKLING Avery Young 35 solo | 31 asst. | 66 total SACKS Elorm Lumor 4 sacks | 18 yds. Mike Tverdov 4 sacks | 34 yds. WEEK 12 RUTGERS T I M E T B A | N O V . 3 0 | B E A V E R S T A D I U M | U N I V E R S I T Y P A R K , P A .