Blue White Illustrated

August 2022

Penn State Sports Magazine

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9 0 A U G U S T 2 0 2 2 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M When Tanner Morgan outdueled his Penn State counterpart, Sean Clifford, to lift Minnesota over the Nittany Lions in a battle of Big Ten unbeatens in November 2019, it might have seemed as though Clifford would never get another shot at the Gophers. It definitely seemed as though he wouldn't get another chance to square off against Morgan. But time has no meaning in college sports anymore. Thanks to the NCAA's decision to grant COVID-impacted classes an extra year of eligibility, Mor- gan and Clifford are both still playing college football in 2022, and there's ev- ery reason to believe the two quarter- backs will duel again in October. Morgan was spectacular the last time he faced Penn State, hitting 18 of 20 passes for 339 yards and 3 touchdowns in Minnesota's 31-26 victory. It was one of 27 wins he has amassed as a starter, the most by a quarterback in the pro- gram's history. The former three-star prospect from Union, Ky., is second in school history in career passing yardage (8,027) and touchdown passes (56). He has been reunited this year with Kirk Ciarrocca, who was Minnesota's offensive coor- dinator in 2019 when Morgan threw for 3,253 yards and 30 touchdowns. The veteran coach then headed to Penn State, where he lasted just one season, and spent a year at West Virginia before rejoining P.J. Fleck's staff at Minnesota this past December. Another welcome return is that of se- nior running back Mohamed Ibrahim. Like Morgan, Ibrahim saw action in the Gophers' previous game against Penn State, rushing 7 times for 33 yards. He went on to enjoy a breakout season in 2020, gaining 1,076 yards and scoring 15 touchdowns in just seven games. The 5-10, 210-pound Ibrahim seemed like he was on his way to an even better 2021 season. He shredded Ohio State for 163 yards and 2 touchdowns in a little more than two quarters of action in the opener. But late in the third quarter, he went down with what would turn out to be a season-ending Achilles injury. Now he's back, and he figures to give a lift to a Minnesota offense that averaged 198.1 rushing yards per game last year to finish 27th nationally. As for the defense, it was among the nation's best last year. Minnesota tied Penn State for sixth place in the FBS in scoring defense, giving up 17.31 points per game. But unlike the Nittany Li- ons, who gave up plenty of yards before toughening up inside the 20, the Go- phers simply shut opponents down, al- lowing just 278.8 yards per game to rank third nationally. Minnesota has gotten some help up front with the arrival of transfer defen- sive linemen Darnell Jeffries (Clemson) and Lorenza Surgers (Vanderbilt), and there's a playmaker on the back end in senior safety Tyler Nubin, who finished with 3 interceptions last season. — Matt Herb O C T . 2 2 | 7 : 3 0 P. M . | T V T B A | 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 . 2022 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2021 Result Sept. 1 New Mexico State — Sept. 10 Western Illinois — Sept. 17 Colorado W, 30-0 Sept. 24 at Michigan State — Oct. 1 Purdue W, 20-13 Oct. 15 at Illinois L, 14-6 Oct. 22 at Penn State — Oct. 29 Rutgers — Nov. 5 at Nebraska W, 30-23 Nov. 12 Northwestern W, 41-14 Nov. 19 Iowa L, 27-22 Nov. 26 at Wisconsin W, 23-13 WHAT COULD GO RIGHT The defense could continue to shine and running back Mohamed Ibrahim could regain his 2020 form. That combination, coupled with a schedule that spares them from having to face Ohio State and Michi- gan, might just lift the Gophers to a West Division title and first-ever appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game. WHAT COULD GO WRONG Quarterback Tanner Morgan's statisti- cal dip — he completed only 58.9 percent of his attempts the past two years after completing 63.6 in his first two seasons — could continue, and that might be enough to derail Minnesota in an evenly matched divisional race. QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Penn State leads 9-6 Last Meeting: Minnesota defeated visiting Penn State 31-26 on Nov. 9, 2019 Head Coach: P.J. Fleck (35-23 in five sea- sons at Minnesota; career coaching record: 65-45) 2021 Record: 9-4, 6-3 Big Ten Returning Starters: 13 (5 offense, 6 de- fense, 2 specialists) RETURNING LEADERS Rushing: RB Trey Potts (552 yards, 6 TDs) Passing: QB Tanner Morgan (2,044 yards, 10 TDs) Receiving: WR Chris Autman-Bell (506 yards, 6 TDs) Tackles: LB Mariano Sori-Marin (85) Sacks: DE Thomas Rush (5.5) Interceptions: S Tyler Nubin (3) WEEK 7 MINNESOTA Mohamed Ibrahim was the Big Ten Running Back of the Year in 2020 but missed nearly the entire 2021 season with an Achilles injury. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL

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