Penn State Sports Magazine
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F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 2 2 7 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M yards in his career at Governor Miff- lin High in Shillington, Pa., while Allen shined at IMG Academy in Florida. Both figure to be in the mix for significant play- ing time in the fall, especially since they're already on campus as early enrollees. Cain's departure, which caught a lot of people off guard, only opens up more opportunities for the remaining backs. Lee has to be considered the favorite to start on opening day; he's the team's top returning rusher with 933 career yards heading into his junior year and started five of the last seven games in 2021. But given last year's struggles, it's a sure bet that the freshmen will be given every op- portunity to show what they can do. QUOTABLE: Franklin: "Right now, Penn State is a .500 program over the past two seasons, and in contrast to a year ago, the Nit- tany Lions didn't go into the offseason feeling as though things were trending in the right direction. They dropped six of their last eight games dur- ing the 2021 season, including a 24-10 bowl loss to Arkansas in which some of the problems that dogged them throughout the regular season — an unproductive running game, a scattershot passing attack, a habit of exposing quarterback Sean Clifford to more than his share of physical punishment — resurfaced yet again. When the team's struggles were confined to a five- game stretch at the beginning of the 2020 season, it was easy to write it off as an uncharacteristic dip in a generally upward trend line. Now, Penn State has to show that it hasn't pla- teaued after seemingly being on the verge a few years ago of challenging Ohio State on a regular basis for Big Ten supremacy. That's not going to be easy, but the Big Ten may have done Penn State a favor when it made some adjustments in January to its conference schedule for the 2022 season. The Nittany Lions had been slated to face Purdue, Ohio State and Michigan in the first six weeks of the 2020 season, with the games against the Buckeyes and Wolverines taking place on consecutive Saturdays (Oct. 1 and 8). The revised slate pushes the Lions' visit to Ann Arbor back a week to Oct. 15, while Ohio State's trip to State College will be four weeks later than originally scheduled, with the Buckeyes now set to face PSU on Oct. 29. In another seemingly helpful move, the Lions will now have a bye week ahead of the Michigan game. PSU also will have more time to prepare for Michi- gan State. The Spartans had been scheduled to visit Happy Valley on Oct. 29, but with Ohio State now filling that slot, the battle for the Land Grant Trophy has been moved to Nov. 26, where it will occupy its familiar season-ending spot. Other changes include an opponent swap, with Northwestern set to visit Beaver Stadium in place of Illinois. Penn State would have been hosting the Illini for the third year in row, a scenario that couldn't have sat well with coach Bret Bielema. Now, the Lions will face Pat Fitzgerald's Wildcats instead, with that game — Penn State's Big Ten home opener – set for Oct. 1. Another West Division foe, Minnesota, will visit on Oct. 22 instead of Nov. 19. Games against Indiana (Nov. 5) and Mary- land (Nov. 12) are unchanged from the origi- nal schedule, while PSU's trip to Rutgers has been moved up a week to Nov. 19. One other game that hadn't been changed as of mid-January was the season opener in West Lafayette. The Lions are still set to open against the Boilermakers, but there's been speculation that the game could be moved from Sept. 3 to Sept. 1 as a Thursday night showcase to kick off the new season. The nonconference schedule hasn't changed, and it looks formidable. After the home opener Sept. 10 against Ohio, there's a first-ever trip to Auburn on Sept. 17, the second half of the home-and-home series that began with PSU's 28-21 victory over the Tigers this past September at Beaver Stadium. And a week later, Penn State will face Central Michigan, which wrapped up its 2021 campaign by defeating a Power Five opponent, Washington State, in the Sun Bowl. While Penn State's new slate might appear a little more manageable than the original, everything is relative. This still looks to be one of the tougher schedules in the country in 2022. — Matt Herb Revised Big Ten Schedule Shifts Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State Games Penn State will now welcome Ohio State to Beaver Stadium on Oct. 29. The teams had originally been slated to meet on Oct. 1. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL PENN STATE'S 2022 SCHEDULE DATE OPPONENT 2021 RECORD BOWL RESULT Sept. 3 at Purdue 9-4 Music City W, 48-45 vs. Tennessee Sept. 10 Ohio 3-9 — — Sept. 17 at Auburn 6-7 Birmingham L, 17-13 vs. Houston Sept. 24 Central Michigan 9-4 Sun W, 24-21 vs. Washington State Oct. 1 Northwestern 3-9 — — Oct. 15 at Michigan 12-2 Orange (CFP semifinal) L, 34-11 vs. Georgia Oct. 22 Minnesota 9-4 Guaranteed Rate W, 18-6 vs. West Virginia Oct. 29 Ohio State 11-2 Rose W, 48-45 vs. Utah Nov. 5 at Indiana 2-10 — — Nov. 12 Maryland 7-6 Pinstripe W, 54-10 vs. Virginia Tech Nov. 19 at Rutgers 5-8 Gator L, 38-10 vs. Wake Forest Nov. 26 Michigan State 11-2 Peach W, 31-21 vs. Pitt