Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/725670
S E P T E M B E R 1 0 , 2 0 1 6 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . c O M 3 without middle linebacker Jason Cabinda due to a hand injury. Pitt con- tinued to flummox Penn State's defen- sive front throughout the half. "I didn't think we tackled as well as we needed to," Franklin said. "We were throwing shoulders instead of wrapping up. That's a big, physical team, and we need to do a better job there." • The offense didn't do Penn State's struggling defense any favors by twice giving Pitt a short field in the first half. Under heavy pressure, McSorley fum- bled twice and has now had three fum- bles in two games, all of which have led to touchdowns. Barkley fumbled, too, hindering Penn State's desperate sec- ond-half comeback effort. "The reality is, we didn't play smart enough, we didn't play mistake-free enough to win," Franklin said. "If you go back to the beginning of time, if you lose the turnover battle and turn the ball over in your area of the field, you're going to have a hard time winning consistently. That was probably the biggest difference in the game." THE TAKEAWAY Losing is never good. Let's get that out of the way. But this could have been more than a loss; it could have been an embar- rassment that contradicted the hopeful narrative that Franklin has been trying to create and lingered in the minds of re- cruits. But the way things turned out, the game dovetailed with Franklin's message, which has emphasized the Nittany Lions' youth and the need for patience as its freshmen and sophomores gain experi- ence. On Saturday, Penn State started a red- shirt sophomore at quarterback against a Pitt defense with seven senior starters. And as evidenced by the Lions' 406 total yards of total offense (only 26 fewer than Pitt) and 39 points, they fared reasonably well. That said, things didn't go nearly so well on the opposite side of the ball, and the ease with which Pitt ran on Penn State has to be a huge concern. After watching the Panthers shred the Lions throughout the first half, it's worrisome to note that the Big Ten opener at Michigan is only two weeks away. The Wolverines have won their first two games by a combined margin of 114-17. But as the Lions work to get their issues on defense sorted out, it's encouraging to see them field an offense that can make things interesting even when the oppo- nent sprints out to a big early lead. "I love the fight and the attitude that our team has," Franklin said. "But we have to learn from this and move for- ward." One other positive for Penn State: Un- like its previous loss to Pitt in 2000, it will have a chance to avenge this one next year. The Panthers are set to visit Beaver Stadium on Sept. 9, 2017. If that date wasn't circled before in bright red ink, it is now.