Blue White Illustrated

down the right sideline with a pass in- tended for classmate Juwan Johnson. The redshirt freshman wide receiver appeared to haul it in initially, but with Marcus Allen on the coverage, Johnson was unable to finish the catch, drop- ping the ball as he was pushed to the ground. BEST SACK In a game in which the quarterbacks were off-limits to oppos- ing tacklers, Evan Schwan barreled through the offensive line late in the first quarter to tag Tommy Stevens. With the White team backed up deep in its own territory and with Stevens dropping back in his own end zone, the "sack" was considered a safety. BEST HIT After McSorley found Blacknall on a crossing pattern across the middle, he was met by a huge hit from defensive end Colin Castagna to bring him to the ground with a thump. Honorable mention: Stevens threw a seam pass intended for Dalton late in the third quarter, but a hit from John Reid jarred the ball loose. BEST EFFORT After switching teams at halftime, Robinson filled a hole in pass protection, picking up a blitzing linebacker in the middle of the pocket and allowing McSorley to pass for an- other one of his 23 completions. WORST EFFORT Stevens played mostly behind a patchwork offensive line featuring a former starter, redshirt freshmen, walk-ons and a January en- rollee, and although he wasn't brought to the ground due to the rules, the Blue team was credited with four sacks. WORST KICKS In a game that was without kickoff or punt coverage, multi- ple kickoffs fell short of the end zone. And in his only field goal attempt, with time expiring in the fourth quarter, Tyler Davis missed on a 42-yarder. BEST DECISION There was at least a glimmer of hope that fans might get a glimpse of star sophomore running back Saquon Barkley, but the coaches kept him on the sideline throughout the en- tire afternoon. In what is essentially a meaningless scrimmage, it was a smart move to keep the team's best player off the field and away from the risk of in- jury. MOST TELLING MOMENT Late in the second quarter, as the Blue offense was on yet another fast-paced scoring drive, redshirt freshman defensive tackle Robert Windsor of the White squad was bent over at the waist and appeared to lose his lunch on the 1-yard line. If that wasn't an indicator of Penn State's new up-tempo look and the ef- fect its speed has, then the reporters in the press box who were scrambling to keep stats of the game were. ■ G A M E G R A D E S B Y R Y A N S N Y D E R QUARTERBACKS Trace McSorley wasted little time showing what he can do in Joe Moorhead's offense, completing 18 of 19 attempts for 217 yards and three touchdowns in the first half. Tommy Stevens didn't have nearly as much sup- port from the second-team offensive line, but he showed that he, too, has what it takes to be successful in this offense. I think it's fair to say that McSorley walked away the winner, but the stats don't tell the story here. PSU fans have reason to be excited about both. GRADE A RUNNING BACKS Mark Allen was im- pressive in the first half, racking up 49 yards on just eight car- ries. Not only did he do an excellent job of finding the open hole in Moorhead's zone- read, but he also fought for every yard. Saquon Barkely, who didn't play in the Blue-White Game, will be the main man this year and moving forward, but Allen looks as if he could be an excellent fit for Moorhead's zone-read. Andre Robinson also played well behind the first-team offensive line. GRADE B RECEIVERS Penn State's core group of Saeed Blacknall, DaeSean Hamilton and Chris Godwin looked excellent in the first half, racking up 160 yards on just 12 receptions. Godwin and Blacknall each contributed a touchdown each. The White squad showed its inexperience, but that's to be expected. GRADE B OFFENSIVE LINE This is probably the toughest unit to grade. Penn State's first-team offensive line dominated all afternoon, while the White squad showed its inexperience. That said, I think you also have to credit a few indi- viduals on the Blue squad's defensive line for really getting after it in an effort to prove something to the coaching EIGHT IS ENOUGH Allen received an extensive audition in the Blue-White game, as the coaching staff held Barkley out of action. Photo by Steve Manuel

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