Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/916653
V S . W A S H I N G T O N he left in early December for Mississippi State. Given the caliber of Washington's defense, a unit with playmakers at every level, former tight ends coach Ricky Rahne has a big task ahead of him in his first game since taking charge of the Lions' offense. But Washington will be without its co- ordinator as well, as Jonathan Smith left in December to become head coach at Oregon State. Petersen has hired Atlanta Falcons quarterbacks coach Bush Ham- dan to take over the position full-time, but Hamdan won't begin work until the Falcons conclude their season. Despite its injuries, Washington fin- ished the regular season strong. The Huskies ripped Oregon, 38-3, on Nov. 4, and after a 30-22 road loss to Stanford the following week, they rebounded by edg- ing Utah, 33-30, and pounding Washing- ton State in the Apple Cup. "I think the guys played good," Petersen said. "We lost a hard-fought game to [Stanford]. Stanford played well. They did, they beat us. But it wasn't for lack of trying. I mean, those kids left their heart and soul on that field. They played hard. "But then we come back and we win a last-second game against Utah, who we think is a really good team. And to play the rival across the state, the kids played at a high level. So I think they did a good job in this last month, and we know that what starts to separate people is how you play in November." What really separates people is how you play in December and January. Like Penn State, Washington didn't achieve its goal of winning another conference champi- onship and reaching the College Football Playoff. But if the Fiesta Bowl is a conso- lation prize, it's an enticing one. As Penn State and Petersen have both shown, the desert can be a surprisingly fertile place in which to grow your program. "This is what college football is all about, and this is what you play so hard for during the season, to go to a big-time bowl game like this and play against an- other really, really storied, great pro- gram," Petersen said. "We couldn't be more thrilled on our end. … Our kids are extremely thrilled to be a part of this." ■ KEY MATCHUPS PENN STATE RUNNING GAME 167.4 YPG, 4.9 YPC WASHINGTON RUN DEFENSE 92.3 YPG, 2.6 YPC THE LOWDOWN Penn State wrapped up the regular season with one of its best o>ensive performances in years, racking up 534 yards of total o>ense in a 66-3 dismantling of Mary- land. That total included 286 rushing yards and six touch- downs, a performance that helped the Nittany Lions move up to sixth in the Big Ten in rushing o>ense. Big Ten O>ensive Player of the Year Saquon Barkley is the Lions' leading rusher with 1,134 yards and 16 touchdowns on 199 carries (5.7 ypc). QB Trace McSorley is Penn State's second-leading rusher with 431 yards on 132 carries (3.3 ypc) and 11 TDs. Backup QB Tommy Stevens has taken over third place on Penn State's rushing chart with 190 yards on 27 carries (7.0 ypc) and four TDs. The fact that two of Penn State's top three rushers are quarter- backs says a lot about the division of labor at the running back position. The backups simply haven't had much of an opportunity to shine, although Miles Sanders did see increasing action toward the end of the season. Washington will pose a major challenge. The Huskies have the No. 1 run defense in the country and also rank =rst in the Pac-12 with 83 tackles for loss. Their leading tackler is ILB Ben Kirven-Burr with 79 stops, including 4.5 tackles for loss. OLB Tevis Bartlett has a team-high 12 negative-yardage stops and has amassed 43 total tackles. FS Taylor Rapp is Washington's second-leading tackler with 55 stops. Ezekial Turner, who shares the strong safety position with JoJo McIntosh, is third on the team with 52 tackles. But the leader of the Huskies' defense is DT Vita Vea. A 6-foot-5, 340-pound junior, Vea was recently named Pac-12 Defen- sive Player of the Year. His statistics – 5.5 tackles for loss, 38 total stops – might not catch your eye, but make no mistake: He's a dominant player who ties up blockers so that others can make plays. // KEY MATCHUPS This could be the most physical defensive front Penn State has faced all season. If the Lions are to have any success running the ball, guards Steven Gonzalez and Brendan Mahon will need to hold their own against Vea. Gonzalez, Mahon and C Connor McGov- ern will be looking to get to the second level to block Kirven-Burr and Bartlett. If they can't, Barkley won't =nd a lot of running room. // EDGE WASHINGTON PENN STATE PASSING GAME 285.8 YPG, 12.8 YPC WASHINGTON PASS DEFENSE 185.1 YPG, 9.3 YPC THE LOWDOWN Penn State enters the Fiesta Bowl with the No. 1 passing o>ense in the Big Ten. McSorley has completed 65.3 percent of his attempts (252 of 386) for 3,228 yards, with 26 touchdown passes and only eight interceptions. Stevens has played primarily as a running back or wide receiver in red zone packages but has also completed 14 of 27 passes for 158 yards, with three TDs and no interceptions. Depending on how things go in the Fiesta Bowl, the Lions could =nish the season with four receivers topping 50 catches. TE Mike Gesicki is Penn State's leading receiver with 51 catches for 501 yards, while WR DaeSean Hamilton is next with 48 catches for 747 yards. WR Juwan Johnson has 48 catches for 635 yards, fol- W H E N P E N N S T A T E H A S T H E B A L L PENN STATE RUNNING GAME vs. WASHINGTON RUN DEFENSE PENN STATE PASSING GAME vs. WASHINGTON PASS DEFENSE |