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KEY MATCHUPS P E N N S T A T E V S . O H I O S T A T E | 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 PENN STATE RUNNING GAME 156.8 YPG, 4.5 YPC // OHIO STATE RUN DEFENSE152.7 YPG, 3.5 YPC THE LOWDOWNUp until their performance against Maryland this past Saturday, the Buckeyes would have been given the big advantage against Penn State's running game, especially with the status of RB Saquon Barkley still un- known. But against the Terrapins, Ohio State turned in its worst performance of the season. It allowed 253 yards on the ground on 42 rushing attempts, an average of 6.0 yards per carry. If Barkley is healthy and Penn State comes out with a balanced offensive game plan, there is a possibility that it could have some success running the ball against the Buckeyes. Even after missing the team's past two games against Army and Indiana, Barkley is Penn State's top rusher with 373 yards on 42 carries. His average of 8.9 yards per carry is by far the best in the Big Ten. Ohio State went into the season with one of the most highly regarded front sevens in the country. The Buckeyes' leading tackler is sophomore MLB Raekwon McMillan with 62 tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack. Senior OLB Joshua Perry is second on the team with 52 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss. Junior FS Vonn Bell is third in tackles with 35. Sopho- more DE Tyquan Lewis has 29 tackles and leads the team with nine tackles for loss. // KEY MATCHUPPenn State LT Paris Palmer will be going up against preseason All-American DT Joey Bosa, while LG Brendan Mahon will face another All-America defensive tackle, Adolphus Washington. // EDGEOhio State PENN STATE PASSING GAME 187.0 YPG, 12.6 YPC // OHIO STATE PASS DEFENSE 147.5 YPG, 10.8 YPC THE LOWDOWNChristian Hackenberg had his second-best performance of the season against Indiana, completing 21 of 39 passes for 262 yards with two touchdown passes, two rushing TDs and no interceptions. For the season, he's completed 87 of 164 passes (53 percent) for 1,086 yards with seven TD passes and just two interceptions. Soph- omore Chris Godwin is Penn State's leading receiver with 27 catches for 390 yards. Redshirt sophomore DaeSean Hamilton is second on the team in receptions with 17 for 207 yards. Against Indiana, Hackenberg was able to com- plete passes to eight receivers. That's a good sign for Penn State, because he will have to spread it around against Ohio State's pass defense, which is allowing opponents to complete just 46.1 percent of their attempts and is ranked third in the Big Ten in yards allowed. The Buckeyes are also tied for the league lead with eight interceptions. Senior SS Tyvis Powell leads Ohio State with two interceptions and 33 tackles. Sophomore CB Eli Apple and jun- ior FS Vonn Bell were preseason All-Big Ten selections. // KEY MATCHUP Palmer's battle with Bosa will be crucial. The juco transfer has looked better in recent weeks after struggling in the Lions' opener at Temple, but he's about to get his biggest test of the season. Godwin's battle with Apple will also bear watching. // EDGEOhio State PENN STATE PASSING GAME VS. OHIO STATE PASS DEFENSE OHIO STATE RUNNING GAME 230.0 YPG, 5.8 YPC // PENN STATE RUN DEFENSE117.0 YPG, 3.1 YPC THE LOWDOWNThe Buckeyes enter the game with the No. 1 rushing offense in the Big Ten. In addition to their aver- age of 230 yards per game, they've scored 17 rushing touchdowns, 10 of them by junior RB Ezekiel Elliott. The conference's second-leading rusher, Elliott is averaging 139.2 yards per game and 6.9 per carry. Senior slot receiver Braxton Miller is the Buckeyes' second-leading rusher with 25 carries for 161 yards (6.4 ypc). Quarterbacks Cardale Jones (146 yards) and J.T Barrett (126) are Ohio State's third- and fourth-leading rushers, respectively. The Buckeyes also like to use senior Curtis Samuel on fly sweeps. Penn State has the fifth-best rushing defense in the Big Ten, allowing 117.0 yards per game and just 3.1 yards per carry. Sophomore MLB Jason Cabinda is the Nit- tany Lions' leading tackler with 46 stops. Redshirt junior DT Austin Johnson is having an All-Big Ten type of year. He's Penn State's second-leading tackler with 36 stops and is sixth in the Big Ten with 7.5 tackles for loss. Senior DE Carl Nassib is second in the Big Ten with 12 tackles for loss. This will be strength vs. strength. Penn State is second in the country with 53 tackles for loss, while Ohio State's rushing attack is tops in the Big Ten. // KEY MATCHUP Ohio State RG Pat Elflein and LG Billy Price will match up against Penn State defensive tackles Johnson and An- thony Zettel. Ohio State RT Chase Farris will face Nassib. // EDGEOhio State OHIO STATE RUNNING GAME VS. PENN STATE RUN DEFENSE OHIO STATE PASSING GAME VS. PENN STATE PASS DEFENSE W H E N O H I O S T A T E H A S T H E B A L L PENN STATE RUNNING GAME VS. OHIO STATE RUN DEFENSE O C T O B E R 1 4 , 2 0 1 5 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 4 OHIO STATE PASSING GAME 230.0 YPG, 12.8 YPC // PENN STATE PASS DEFENSE158.7 YPG, 10.2 YPC THE LOWDOWNDespite fielding the No. 1 offense in the Big Ten at 460 yards per game and the fifth-best passing offense, Ohio State has had some difficulty throwing the ball downfield and at times has experienced turnover problems. Jones has completed 84 of 134 passes (62.7 percent) for 1,158 yards with seven touchdown passes and five interceptions. Barrett has completed 23 of 40 attempts (57.5 percent) for 219 yards with two TD passes and two interceptions. Junior WR Michael Thomas leads the Buckeyes with 27 catches for 399 yards and four touch-

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