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O T H E R M A T C H U P S THE LOWDOWNUSC has a big-time playmaker in Jackson, who averages 15.9 yards per punt return and 30.5 yards per kickoff return. But the Nittany Lions appear to have the edge elsewhere in the kicking game. Tyler Davis has con- verted 22 of 24 field goal attempts, with a long kick of 40 yards, while Blake Gillikin is third in the Big Ten with an average of 42.1 yards per punt, with 21 of his attempts landing inside the opponent's 20-yard line. USC redshirt jun- ior Matt Boermeester has converted 15 of 20 field goal attempts, with his longest covering 49 yards. Redshirt soph- omore Chris Tilbey averages 37.8 yards per punt. // EDGE Penn State SPECIAL TEAMS THE LOWDOWN Although it's not their stadium, the Trojans have what amounts to a home field advantage in this game. They've made 33 Rose Bowl appearances, more than any team in college football, and they've won 24 of those games, also a Rose Bowl record. They've been absent for a while, though; this year's game will be their first appear- ance in the Granddady of Them All since 2009, when they defeated the Lions, 38-24. // EDGEUSC THIS 'N' THAT THE LOWDOWN This has been a breakthrough year for both James Franklin and his USC counterpart, Clay Helton. Franklin's success has been thoroughly documented, but Helton is less well known on the East Coast. He became Trojans' interim head coach last year aBer Steve Sarkisian took a leave of absence, and was later given the position on a permanent basis. This season, aBer dropping three of its first four games, USC won eight in a row and heads into its bowl game with nearly as much momentum as Penn State. // EDGE Penn State COACHING STAFF D E C E M B E R   3 0 ,   2 0 1 6 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 7 and nine touchdowns. Senior WR Darreus Rogers has 51 catches for 654 yards and three TDs, while sophomore WR Dontay Burnett has 43 catches for 458 yards and four scores. Darnold has done a nice job of spreading the ball around, as 18 players have receptions for the Trojans. Penn State's pass defense ranks fiBh in the Big Ten. The Lions finished the regular season with nine interceptions. Heading into the Rose Bowl, Smith leads the team with two picks. Allen leads the team in tackles, while fellow safety Malik Golden is fourth with 68 stops. CB John Reid is Penn State's top cover man in the secondary, totaling 25 tackles and leading the team with seven pass breakups and eight passes defended. Sickels and Evan Schwan lead Penn State with six sacks apiece. As a team, Penn State ranks second in the Big Ten with 39 sacks. // KEY MATCHUP Smith-Schuster will go up against Reid, while senior RT Zach Barnes will try to keep Schwan from wreaking havoc in the backfield. // EDGE USC

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