Blue White Illustrated

Kent State Pregame

Penn State Sports Magazine

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P R E G A M E R E P O R T K E N T S T A T E @ P E N N S T A T E 3 : 3 0 P . M . , S E P T . 3 B T N KENT STATE FACTS COACH Paul Haynes (Kent State, '93) COACH'S RECORD 9-26 in three seasons; career record: same 2015 RECORD 3-9 (2-6 Mid- American Conference) RECORD VS. PSU Penn State leads the all-time series, 4-0. MOST RECENT MEETING Akeel Lynch rushed for 123 yards on only 14 carries, and the Nittany Lions held visiting Kent State to 190 total yards in a 34-0 shutout on Sept. 21, 2013. GOOD NEWS Their recent records may not re- flect it, but the Golden Flashes have fielded some pretty good defenses under Haynes, a former Ohio State defensive coordinator. This year's defense returns three players who won first-team All- MAC honors in 2015: safety Nate Holley, cornerback Demetrius Monday and defensive end Ter- ence Waugh. BAD NEWS Kent State had offensive prob- lems throughout the 2015 season, but they were especially acute during second half of its games. The Golden Flashes scored only 47 second-half points all season and only eight fourth-quarter points. DID YOU KNOW? Between them, Kent State and Penn State have lost their past nine games. The Golden Flashes finished the 2015 season with five consecutive losses, while the Nit- tany Lions lost their last four games. The most recent victory by either team was Penn State's 39-0 shutout of Illinois on Oct. 31. M A T T   H E R B | M A T T @ B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M A U G U S T   3 1 ,   2 0 1 6 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M If you think you're desperate to see how Penn State's new offense operates this season under first-year coordinator Joe Moorhead, imagine how Kent State coach Paul Haynes feels. Haynes and his staff are trying to devise a defensive game plan to stop a possibly resurgent, definitely differ- ent Nittany Lion attack. But the most useful piece of evidence at their disposal heading into Saturday's opener at Beaver Stadium is a tape of BTN's broadcast of the Blue-White Game. "The first game is always tough, and when you see new offenses, it makes it even tougher," Haynes said. "It's hard to simulate [Penn State's offense] with the scout team be- cause the speed of it is a lot faster, and it'll be a lot faster on Saturday. Coach Moorhead does an unbelievable job. He knows his offense, he knows his system, he's very good at it. He waits to see what you're going to be in, and he puts them in a better play. So it's going to be 1 THE GREAT UNKNOWN New-look Nittany Lions pose big challenge for Kent State McSorley was named Penn State's starting quarterback ear- lier this month after battling Tommy Stevens throughout the off-season. On Saturday he'll be facing a defense that ranked third in the MAC in 2015. Photo by Steve Manuel

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