Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1482664
3 0 N O V E M B E R 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 P enn State's defense exited the team's bye week in October as one of the nation's best in a number of key statistical categories. After a 41-17 blowout at Michigan, however, coordinator Manny Diaz's group tumbled, especially against the run. The performance in Ann Arbor left fans and observers asking a simple question: Were the first five games a mirage, or was that simply a one-game aberration that happened because of an enormous number of missed assignments that aren't likely to occur again? There are strong cases to be made for both viewpoints. It's hard to see Diaz's defense being that sloppy again. But, on the other hand, it was incapable of getting off the field or keeping Michigan from racking up explosive plays and short-yardage conversions. The Nittany Lions did look much better against Minnesota the following week, holding the Gophers to 340 total yards in a 45-17 victory. The visitors were without injured quarter- back Tanner Morgan, and the game was played in a White Out atmosphere that greatly aided the Lions by contributing to numerous pre-snap penalties, putting first-time starter Athan Kaliakmanis in difficult down-and-distance situations. Still, the Lions showed resilience and turned the game into a rout in the third quarter. At roughly the halfway point of the season, here's how the defense has graded out so far. Defensive Line Penn State entered the 2022 season knowing it had work to do along the defensive line to replace so many standouts who left after last season. Even so, redshirt junior defensive end Adisa Isaac and senior defensive tackle PJ Mustipher were both returning from season-ending injuries they'd suffered the year before, while redshirt junior defensive tackle Hakeem Beamon was back from an undisclosed off-field absence and former standout recruit Chop Robinson was transferring in to play defensive end after one season at Maryland. So far, the pass rush has been just OK, as has the rush defense. Penn State does seem to have been a bit more disruptive lately at the line of scrimmage than it was at the start of the year. Against Minnesota, one of the Big Ten's better rushing teams, the Lions had 7 tackles for loss. Still, as head coach James Franklin noted after the Michigan loss, his team isn't big enough in the trenches to match up well against the most physically imposing opponents on its schedule. "We've got to develop, we've got to recruit, we've got to get bigger," he said. "We're undersized at some spots. "Everybody thinks they're Aaron Donald," he continued, re- ferring to the Los Angeles Rams' 280-pound All-Pro defensive tackle. "They're not. Everybody sees Aaron Donald playing un- dersized. Everybody thinks they're that guy. And there has been one of those guys in the last 100 years of football. We need to be more physical. Work on our technique, our fundamentals. It's all of it. We own all of it." Safety Ji'Ayir Brown was Penn State's leading tackler with 41 stops through the team's first seven games. He also had a team-best 3 interceptions. PHOTO BY DANIEL ALTHOUSE GRADING THE DEFENSE Penn State has been strong on the back end, but the front seven has had its ups and downs G R E G P I C K E L | G R E G. P I C K E L @ O N 3 . C O M