Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/898687
O T H E R M A T C H U P S THE LOWDOWNRutgers P Ryan Anderson leads the Big Ten with a 44.0-yard average, and the Scarlet Knights also have one of the better punt returners in the country in Grant. The senior wideout is ranked fourth in the Big Ten with an average 10.7 yards per attempt. Even so, Penn State has a slight edge here. Penn State has the No. 3 punt re- turner in the Big Ten in DeAndre Thompkins (16.2 yards per attempt), while Blake Gillikin is just behind Ander- son with an average of 43.7 yards per punt. Also, Barkley is third in the Big Ten in kickoff returns with a 30.2-yard average and first in the country with 195.7 all-purpose yards per game. // EDGE Penn State SPECIAL TEAMS THE LOWDOWNPenn State has dominated its series with Rutgers, winning 25 and losing only two The Lions have won all three games since the series was revived as a Big Ten rivalry in 2014. As an added benefit, they will be play- ing at Beaver Stadium, where they've gone 12-0 the past two years. // EDGEPenn State THIS 'N' THAT THE LOWDOWN This is Chris Ash's second year as Rutgers' head coach. He posted a 2-10 record in his first season, but the Knights have made some strides in year two. They've already doubled last season's victory total, and three of those wins have been against Big Ten opponents (Illinois, Purdue and Maryland). James Franklin has put to- gether a 32-17 record in four seasons as Penn State's head coach. He'll have to get the Lions refocused aBer back- to-back losses to Ohio State and Michigan State. // EDGE Penn State COACHING STAFF N O V E M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 7 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 5 for 253 yards and one TD. Grant is next with 16 catches for 167 yards and one TD. Edwards has good hands, as evi- denced by his 12 receptions for 102 yards. Penn State still ranks seventh in the Big Ten in pass defense despite having been shredded by Ohio State and Michigan State. The Lions are tied for fourth in the Big Ten with 10 in- terceptions, including four by CB Amani Oruwariye. Penn State ranks third in the Big Ten with 28 sacks. Toney leads the team with four, while Miller and DT Curtis Cothran have 3.5 apiece. // KEY MATCHUP Rutgers has been very good at protecting its passers, having allowed only 11 sacks all season. The key matchups here will pit Seymour against Miller and Cole against Toney. Also, when Penn State is in man-to-man coverage, Washington will face SS Troy Apke. // EDGE Penn State