Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/592872
O T H E R M A T C H U P S THE LOWDOWNNeither team appears to have a big advantage here, although the Illini do have the No. 2 punt-return game in the Big Ten, with senior V'Angelo Bentley averaging 11.2 yards per attempt. Senior PK Taylor Zalewski has converted 10 of 15 field goal attempts, with his longest being 51 yards. Junior P Ryan Frain has struggled, aver- aging only 38.9 yards per punt. Frain's Penn State counterpart, Daniel Pasquariello, had a better outing against Maryland than he did the previous week at Ohio State and is averaging 39.7 yards per punt. But the Nittany Lions' punting unit still lacks consistency. // EDGEEven SPECIAL TEAMS THE LOWDOWNA year ago, Penn State played one of its worst games of the season when it visited Illinois, as David Reisner kicked a 36-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining to give the Illini a 16-14 win. But the Nittany Lions have typically fared well when they've welcomed the Illini to Beaver Stadium, winning eight of nine home games in the series. // EDGEPenn State THIS 'N' THAT THE LOWDOWN When Tim Beckman was fired just before the start of the season, offensive coordinator Bill Cubit took over on an interim basis. Cubit had previous Division I head coaching experience, having gone 51-47 in eight seasons at Western Michigan, and he's done an admirable job of keeping his players focused through all the tumult. James Franklin is 0-1 against the Illini, but under his watch the Lions are once again bowl-eligible and will have a chance to burnish their postseason credentials on Saturday. // EDGEPenn State COACHING STAFF O C T O B E R 2 8 , 2 0 1 5 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 5 completed 12 of 23 passes for 115 yards with two TD passes and one interception. Lunt's favorite target is senior WR Geronimo Allison, who leads the Big Ten with 48 receptions for 700 yards. Sophomore WR Marchie Murdock is second on the team with 20 receptions for 194 yards, while freshman Desmond Cain has 26 catches for 211 yards. Junior WR Dionte Taylor has 13 receptions for 135 yards. In addition, Ferguson is an excellent receiver coming out of the backfield, with 12 catches for 78 yards. As a team, Penn State has seven interceptions, with cornerbacks John Reid and Grant Haley having nabbed two apiece. Nassib leads the country with 12.5 sacks, and Penn State leads the Big Ten in sacks with 31. Illinois gets the edge here, but not by much. // KEY MATCHUP DiLauro will go up against Nassib, while Allison will do battle with Haley. // EDGEIllinois