Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/541265
2014 RECORD 6-6 (4-4 American Athletic Conference) SERIES RECORD Penn State leads, 39-3-1. MOST RECENT MEETING The Nit- tany Lions ran over the Owls, 30-13, on Nov. 15, 2014. Akeel Lynch accounted for 130 of Penn State's 254 rushing yards. OFFENSE Playing behind a shaky of- fensive line, P.J. Walker struggled as a sophomore, completing only 53 percent of his attempts for 2,317 yards, with 13 touchdown passes and 15 interceptions. The line is expected to be better this fall, as four players with starting experience return, notably senior center Kyle Friend, a Rimington Trophy candidate. As for Walker, he'll be looking to fulfill the promise he showed two years ago when he seized the starting position as a true freshman. He has a new potential go-to receiver in Keith Kirkwood, a transfer from Hawaii, and the backfield will be a bit deeper, with Zaire Williams returning after missing most of last sea- son with a back injury. DEFENSE The Owls return 10 starters from a defense that surrendered only 17.5 points per game last season, fourth- best in the nation. The marquee name is senior linebacker Tyler Matakevich. A three-year letter-winner, he'll be mak- ing his 36th consecutive start when the Owls meet Penn State and he is looking to become the school's all-time leading tackler. Matakevich's 355 career stops are more than any other active player in college football, and he'll be getting a lot of help this year from two standout line- men: end Praise Martin-Oguike and tackle Matt Ioannidis. SPECIAL TEAMS Austin Jones con- nected on 13 of 22 field goal attempts as a freshman, while punter Alex Starzyk averaged 38.4 yards per attempt. OUTLOOK Temple faded in the second half of the 2014 season, dropping five of its last seven. But the Owls are focused on the big picture, and in that respect, they've bounced back nicely since losing coach Steve Addazio to Boston College following the 2012 season, improving from 2-10 in 2013 to 6-6 last year. With third-year coach (and former Penn State linebacker) Matt Rhule welcoming back 17 starters this fall, Temple has ample reason to believe that its upward trajecto- ry will continue. It will have a chance to make a statement in its opener, although the fact that this game is taking place at the Linc may not provide much of an edge. Penn Staters have always flocked to Philly whenever the Lions have played there, and they've usually gone home happy. Penn State hasn't lost a road game to Temple since 1941. 2014 RECORD 5-6 (3-4 American Athletic Conference) SERIES RECORD The all-time series is tied, 1-1. MOST RECENT MEETING Rodney Kinlaw rushed for a career-high 129 yards and Penn State ripped the Bulls, 45-24, on Sept. 15, 2007. OFFENSE Heading into his senior year, Joe Licata has already established him- self as one of Buffalo's all-time best quarterbacks. His 60 touchdown passes are the most in school history, and his 6,516 passing yards rank fourth. He'll be teaming up in the backfield with a fine running back in Anthone Taylor, who accounted for 1,403 of Buffalo's 1,965 rushing yards last fall. The Bulls also have a strong receiver corps, so first- year head coach Lance Leipold has a lot to work with as he looks to install his of- fensive system. DEFENSE The Bulls surrendered 31.5 points per game in 2014, and only three starters return from that unit. They're also switching from a 3-3-5 base defense to a 4-3 scheme under new coordinator Brian Borland, so the returning players are having to do some reshuffling. Defen- sive ends Brandon Crawford and Max Perisse are moving to tackle, while Okezie Alozie is going from safety to linebacker. The secondary was hit hard, too, but it should get a lift from the arrival of safety Jordan Collier, a transfer from UAB. SPECIAL TEAMS Redshirt freshman Adam Mitcheson is expected to be the starting kicker, while senior Tyler Grassman returns at punter. Devin Campbell is a first-rate kick returner. OUTLOOK When he steps into Beaver Stadium, Leipold will be coaching against a Football Bowl Subdivision op- ponent for the first time since 2003. For the past seven seasons, he was a Division III coach, albeit a hugely successful one, going 109-6 and winning six national championships at Wisconsin-Whitewa- ter. He's taking an enormous step up, but he's not without D-I experience, having served as a graduate assistant at Wisconsin and later as an assistant coach at Nebraska. Leipold has inherited a manageable schedule this fall, so while he could end up surpassing those six D- III losses in his first year on the job, it also wouldn't be surprising to see the Bulls maneuver themselves in bowl con- tention. Whether they do it at Penn State's expense is another matter. 2014 RECORD 8-5 (3-5 Big Ten) SERIES RECORD Penn State leads, 23-2. MOST RECENT MEETING Penn State put together an 80-yard TD drive in the last three minutes to rally past the host Knights, 13-10, on Sept. 13, 2014. W E E K 1 TEMPLE 3 : 3 0 p. m . , S e p t . 5 @ L i n co l n F i n a n c i a l F i e ld W E E K 2 BUFFALO N o o n , S e p t . 1 2 @ B e av e r St a d i u m W E E K 3 RUTGERS 8 p. m . , S e p t . 1 9 @ B e av e r St a d i u m 2 0 1 5 P E N N S T A T E F O O T B A L L