Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/743031
P R E G A M E R E P O R T P E N N S T A T E @ P U R D U E N O O N , O C T . 2 9 A B C / E S P N 2 PURDUE FACTS COACH Gerad Parker (Kentucky, '03) COACH'S RECORD 0-1 in one season; career record: same 2016 RECORD 3-4 (1-3 Big Ten) RECORD VS. PSU Penn State leads the all-time series, 13-3-1. MOST RECENT MEETING Zach Zwinak rushed for 149 yards and three touchdowns and Allen Robinson caught eight passes for 98 yards as the Nittany Lions de- feated the visiting Boilermakers, 45-21, on Nov. 16, 2013. GOOD NEWS Purdue might get a lift this week with the possible return of senior defensive tackle Jake Replogle. The 6-foot-5, 289-pound stand- out missed the Boilermakers' past two games due to migraine headaches, but he is listed as a starter on the two-deep this week, and Parker said there's "hopefully a really good chance" he will play against Penn State. BAD NEWS Even when Replogle has been healthy, Purdue's defense has struggled this season. The Boiler- makers rank last in the Big Ten in total defense (441.0 yards per game) and are 13th in scoring de- fense (33.3 points per game). DID YOU KNOW? When he was named to succeed Darrell Hazell on an interim basis on Oct. 16, the 35-year-old Parker became the second-youngest head coach in the Football Bowl Subdivision this season. The youngest FBS head coach is Mike Norvell of Memphis, who turned 35 on Oct. 11. 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 The Nittany Lions have proven a couple of times this season that they are capable of put- ting disappointment behind them. But what about elation? In the wake of his team's 24-21 vic- tory over second-ranked Ohio State, Penn State head coach James Franklin encour- aged his players to revel in the moment. "Nights like this don't happen oAen," he said in his postgame presser following the Lions' comeback victory on Saturday. "Savor it." Presumably, they did. But now it's time to get back to work. Penn State has five games re- maining, and there's still a lot leA to accom- plish. At 5-2 overall and 3-1 in the Big Ten, the Lions aren't even bowl-eligible yet. If they're going to maintain their upward trajectory, they will need to let go of the past and focus on their next chal- lenge. "We've still got things that we need to get cleaned up and corrected," Franklin said. "We'll have another opportunity this week against a Big Ten opponent on the road. We 1 Kevin Givens (30) and Sha- reef Miller cel- ebrate a big play in last Saturday's vic- tory over Ohio State. Photo by Steve Manuel O C T O B E R 2 6 , 2 0 1 6 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M