racking up 315 rushing yards in a 38-10
victory. It was Ohio State's third con-
secutive win over Penn State and its 10th
in the past 13 games between the two
teams. The rematch will take place in
Beaver Stadium on Oct. 22, 2016.
Maybe, if Cardale Jones, Joey Bosa and
Ezekiel Elliott join Braxton Miller in the
NFL Dra?, the timing will be in Penn
State's favor next time.
Of course, timing is important in a
larger sense, too. If the Nittany Lions are
going to get to the point where they're
once again competitive against Ohio
State, it's important that they stay on
schedule. Performance needs to keep
pace with expectation, because when
the latter gets too far ahead of the for-
mer, con >
OFFENSE C- The only positive is that
there have been flashes of what could be
in both the passing game and running
game. Zero consistency, too many
penalties and too many mental lapses.
The offensive line is better than it
played vs. Temple but still has to get a
lot better. Hack is playing better than
his stats say, but his problems with the
short pass are frustrating. Optimistic
about the running game.
DEFENSE B+ Has kept us in games
when the offense stalls. Great defensive
line. Linebackers and defensive backs
have a lot of skill and are improving
every game with experience. Injuries
have hurt, as has the lack of a good of-
fense.
SPECIAL TEAMS B- Much better in
the return game. Punt coverage is fan-
tastic, especially considering the overall
inconsistent and often poor punting. OK
on kickoff coverage other than a few
mental lapses. Better at kicking than I
expected (despite the two missed PATs
vs. Indiana).
ppentz
OFFENSE C
Several injuries to deal
with, but not one segment of the offense
can be considered to be above average
through six games. I believe there is def-
inite upside: Hack's accuracy, receivers'
hands, Barkley's health, line experience
and stability. Barkley's potential and
limiting turnovers have been the major
plusses thus far.
DEFENSE A- Everything you could
possibly hope for, especially in light of
one serious and several nagging injuries.
The minus is due to two things: a few
more turnovers would not hurt and
hopefully the defense will be even
healthier and better in the second half of
the season.
SPECIAL TEAMS C+ Nothing spec-
tacular in the return game, but certainly
better than in recent years. Except for
the one breakdown, the special teams
defense has been very solid. One solid
game by Gulla and one solid half by
Pasquariello, otherwise every punt is
hand-wringing time. I was higher on Big
Toe before this past week against Indi-
ana. What will getting pulled do to him
mentally? He has not had an opportuni-
ty, so has not yet made a high-pressure
kick.
scottpsurules
OFFENSE C
Too inconsistent to be
anything higher. Hack has been good
but erratic. Barkley looks like he'll be a
player, and the offensive line is still sub-
par.
DEFENSE A- Nassib, Zettel and John-
son have been fantastic, the linebackers
(considering all the season-ending and
game-missing injuries and freshmen)
have been really, really good. Secondary
has been decent.
SPECIAL TEAMS C Again, consisten-
cy is the problem, especially in punting.
COACHING C- The Temple game took
it to an F but the Indiana game brought
it back... somewhat.
BBrown
OFFENSE C-
Very inconsistent, re-
ceivers act like Hack's passes are live
hand grenades. Injuries and inexperi-
ence are all mitigating factors. Certainly
better against Indiana, but the Temple
performance was the worst by the of-
fense in at least 10 years in my opinion.
DEFENSE B+ Maybe just a little in-
consistent on contain and tackling.
SPECIAL TEAMS B- Punting again
What letter grade
would you give
the Nittany Lions
at midseason?
W E B S U R V E Y
