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KEY MATCHUPS P E N N   S T A T E   V S .   U M A S S | B Y P H I L G R O S Z W H E N P E N N S T A T E H A S T H E B A L L O T H E R M A T C H U P S PENN STATE RUNNING GAME 75.7 YPG, 2.3 YPC UMASS RUN DEFENSE 218.0 YPG, 4.4 YPC THE LOWDOWN This has to be considered the most disappointing aspect of Penn State's season so far. If it is going to turn the running game around, this is the game in which to do it. Massachusetts lost four starting defensive line- men from last season and is now running a 3-4 set. The leaders of the front seven are junior ILB Jovan Santos- Knox and senior ILB Stanley Andre, both of whom rank among the team's top three tacklers. The key matchup here will be Penn State LG Brendan Mahon against Santos-Knox. If Mahon can get to the second level and control Santos-Knox, it will open up running lanes for Zach Zwinak and Bill Belton. EDGE Even PENN STATE PASSING GAME 360.7 YPG, 13.7 YPC UMASS PASS DEFENSE 213.7 YPG, 10.9 YPC THE LOWDOWN After what happened against Rutgers, expect UMass to blitz Christian Hackenberg early and often in hope of putting Penn State in third-and-long situations. Even if that happens, don't be surprised if Hackenberg surpasses 300 yards passing again. Junior CBs Trey Dudley-Giles and Randall Jette will have an extremely diffi- cult time handling both DaeSean Hamilton and Geno Lewis. Hamilton leads the Big Ten in receptions with 26 for 337 yards, and Lewis has the league's second-best yards-per-catch average (19.0). Penn State's tight ends, espe- cially Jesse James, will present huge matchup problems for the Minutemen's secondary. EDGE Penn State PENN STATE PASSING GAME VS. UMASS PASS DEFENSE UMASS RUNNING GAME 82.7 YPG, 2.7 YPC PENN STATE RUN DEFENSE 65.0 YPG, 2.3 YPC THE LOWDOWN In their three losses – to Boston College (30-7), Colorado (41-38) and Vanderbilt (34-31) – the Minute- men have been one-dimensional on offense, with the passing attack overshadowing the ground game. RB Jamal Wilson is UMass's leading rusher with 88 yards on 20 attempts. Lorenzo Woodley has more carries than Wilson (24) but only 53 yards. Don't expect the Minutemen to be effective running the ball against Penn State, which ranks second in the Big Ten in run defense. The key matchup here will likely pit LG Fabian Hoeller against three-tech- nique DT Anthony Zettel. It'll be a classic battle of size vs. athleticism. EDGE Penn State UMASS RUNNING GAME VS. PENN STATE RUN DEFENSE UMASS PASSING GAME VS. PENN STATE PASS DEFENSE THE LOWDOWN In Dudley-Giles, UMass has one of the best return men in the country. The 5-foot-11, 182-pounder av- erages 15.5 yards per punt return and 35.4 yards per kickoff return. Penn State does, however, have an edge at place- kicker. Sam Ficken has converted 6 of 7 field goal attempts this season, while his counterpart, Blake Lucas, has gone 5 of 14 since the beginning of last season and may be in danger of losing his starting job. EDGE Even SPECIAL TEAMS THE LOWDOWN Penn State still has to be riding high following the NCAA's decision to remove most of its sanctions against the program, including a ban that, as originally written, would have kept it out of postseason competition for another two years. Penn State now has a legitimate chance to be 5-0 going into its game at Michigan on Oct. 11. It can get to 4-0 this week. EDGE Penn State THIS 'N' THAT THE LOWDOWN UMass coach Mark Whipple previously served as head coach at Massachusetts from 1998 to 2003, when he took a 2-9 team and led it to a Division I-AA national championship in his first season. James Franklin and his staff turned around Vanderbilt's program and are focused on reviving PSU now that the on-field sanctions have been abandoned. It's a very interesting coaching matchup. EDGE Penn State COACHING STAFF W H E N U M A S S H A S T H E B A L L PENN STATE RUNNING GAME VS. UMASS RUN DEFENSE S E P T E M B E R 1 7 , 2 0 1 4 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 3 UMASS PASSING GAME 224.0 YPG, 14.3 YPC PENN STATE PASS DEFENSE 207.3 YPG, 12.2 YPC THE LOWDOWN Junior Blake Frohnapfel has taken over at quarterback following his transfer from Marshall. In his first three games, Frohnapfel completed 46 of 94 passes for 619 yards, five touchdowns and only two interceptions. His favorite target is junior Tajae Sharpe. Sharpe has 15 receptions for 246 yards and is averaging 16.4 yards per catch. The Minutemen's home run threat at wide receiver is junior Rodney Mills. He's caught only five passes but three have been for touchdowns, and he is averaging 22.4 yards per catch. Junior TE Jean Sifrin has five catches for 50 yards. The key matchup here will pit CB Trevor Williams against Sharpe. EDGE Penn State

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