Blue White Illustrated

KEY MATCHUPS P E N N   S TAT E  V S .  O H I O   S TAT E WHEN PENN STATE HAS | THE BY P H I L G RO S Z BALL PENN STATE RUNNING GAME VS. OHIO STATE RUN DEFENSE PENN STATE RUNNING GAME 157.2 YPG, 3.8 YPC OHIO STATE RUN DEFENSE 92.4 YPG, 3.0 YPC PENN STATE PASSING GAME VS. OHIO STATE PASS DEFENSE PENN STATE PASSING GAME 283.7 YPG, 12.6 YPC OHIO STATE PASS DEFENSE 240.7 YPG, 11.5 YPC THE LOWDOWN Penn State has to be wondering exactly which way it wants to go with its running game. Bill Belton has been the second-teamer all season, but he's coming off one of the best games of his career, a 27-carry, 85-yard effort vs. Michigan in which he scored the winning touchdown. Zach Zwinak still leads the Nittany Lions in rushing with 393 yards, but he's fumbled in seven of his past 12 games. As a team, Penn State has fumbled 11 times this season and lost seven. That has to be a concern, because the Buckeyes' rushing defense is third in the Big Ten. It's led by MLB Ryan Shazier, who has a team-high 56 tackles including eight tackles for loss. EDGE Ohio State THE LOWDOWN This is the one area in which Penn State appears to have a solid advantage over Ohio State. The Nittany Lions enter Saturday's game with the third-best passing offense in the Big Ten, while the Buckeyes' pass defense has been the team's biggest disappointment this season. Not only have opponents completed 146 of 241 pass attempts for 1,685 yards, but they have also thrown for 13 touchdowns through seven games. Allen Robinson and tight ends Kyle Carter and Jesse James should create a major matchup problem for Ohio State's secondary and linebackers. EDGE Penn State WHEN OHIO STATE OHIO STATE RUNNING GAME VS. PENN STATE RUN DEFENSE OHIO STATE PASSING GAME VS. PENN STATE PASS DEFENSE HAS THE BALL OHIO STATE RUNNING GAME 279.6 YPG, 6.0 YPC PENN STATE RUN DEFENSE 117.7 YPG, 3.1 YPC THE LOWDOWN Ohio State boasts a very balanced running game. Carlos Hyde has surpassed 100 yards in the Buckeyes' past two games, victories over Northwestern and Iowa, while Braxton Miller is fully healthy and runs the read option to perfection. In addition, Jordan Hall should be back at full strength after missing the Northwestern game with a knee injury. Combined, the trio of Hyde, Miller and Hall average 228.6 yards per game rushing. This will be the toughest test of the season for Penn State's front seven. The Buckeyes are third in the Big Ten in rushing offense, trailing only Wisconsin (296.9 YPG) and Nebraska (284.8). EDGE Ohio State OHIO STATE PASSING GAME 213.6 YPG, 11.0 YPC PENN STATE PASS DEFENSE 218.2 YPG, 11.9 YPC THE LOWDOWN Call it double jeopardy. If Ohio State's running game is effective, the play-action passing game will pose major problems, too. Miller loves to throw deep off of play-action. He has completed 69.6 percent of his passes for 831 yards and eight TDs with just two interceptions, averaging 11.7 yards per completion. His two favorite targets are wide receivers Corey "Philly" Brown and Devin Smith. Brown has 33 catches for 453 yards and six TDs and averages 13.7 yards per catch. Smith has 30 catches for 434 yards and six TDs, averaging 14.5 yards per catch. In senior Kenny Guiton, Ohio State may have the best backup QB in the country. EDGE Ohio State OTHER MATCHUPS SPECIAL TEAMS THIS 'N' THAT COACHING STAFF THE LOWDOWN Ohio State has one of the best punt and kickoff return games in the Big Ten. Brown is second in the league in punt returns, averaging 14.4 yards per attempt, while freshman Dontre Wilson is fifth in kickoff returns with a 25.8-yard average. Buckeyes' place kicker Drew Basil hasn't missed a kick this year. He's 7 for 7 on field goals and 35 for 35 on PATs. EDGE Ohio State THE LOWDOWN All-America CB Bradley Roby is eligible to play against Penn State despite being ejected in the first quarter of last week's game against Iowa for targeting a Hawkeyes player. (Had he been ejected in the second half, he would have been ineligible for the first half of this Saturday's game.) With Roby back in action and Miller, Hyde and Hall all at full strength, Ohio State's two-deep is looking as good as it has all season. EDGE Ohio State THE LOWDOWN What more can you say about Urban Meyer? Ohio State fans were giddy after he was hired, but even they probably didn't expect him to win his first 19 games as head coach. O'Brien has surpassed expectations as well, but he was dealt a much tougher hand upon his arrival in University Park. This is a showdown between the top two coaching staffs in the Big Ten. EDGE Even O C T O B E R 2 3 , 2 0 1 3 3 B LUE WH I T E ON L I N E. COM

• Cover