When it’s all said and done it’s fair to put some portion of Penn State’s 0-3 start on quarterback Sean Clifford. He is the quarterback after all and there’s little doubt he would like a few throws and a few decisions back. He would be the first one to tell you that, and he has said as much already.
So there’s that.
It’s also true -and fair- to say that this isn’t all on Clifford’s shoulders. Football is more than just a quarterback, more than just a few misses here or there. Clifford might be rattled as he gets a case of the Hackenbergs, he might not be elite to the level of Justin Fields but that’s only part of the equation.
So sure, be frustrated with his play, he is too. But here are a few other things Penn State has to get better at that might go a long way towards giving the Nittany Lions’ second-year starter a better shot at turning the season around and picking up that first win.
Running Game:
Goes without saying that losing Noah Cain and Journey Brown didn’t exactly help the cause here, and while Devyn Ford has been “okay” in their absence, the Nittany Lions don’t really have a dangerous running game and opponents have taken notice. This isn’t entirely on Ford and not entirely on Penn State’s offensive line but the entire thing simply has to get better.
When Saquon Barkley was on campus defenses were content to clog up lanes and make Trace McSorley beat them with his arm -which he did. With no real running game, defenses are happy to let Penn State beat them on the ground -which they haven’t.
The Nittany Lions clock in at No. 10 in the conference in yards per game and rushing average [not sack adjusted]. Worth noting: Clifford accounts for 150 of Penn State’s 388 yards on the ground this season.
The issue Penn State faces is that it can’t win without running the game, but it is having a hard time running the ball. If that game finds its footing, expect Clifford to suddenly have more time and more open options. He might miss things, but better to have open receivers on a more regular basis, than every once in a while.
“[Maryland was] able to stay on schedule on first and second down and created a bunch of manageable third-down situations, and were able to do that really for the majority of the game,” James Franklin said. “And then offensively, we weren’t able to get the running game going, which everything builds off of that, and that continues to be an issue for us.”
Third Down Distance:
It’s fair from the outset to acknowledge that Penn State’s distance-to-gain on third down does have some to do with Clifford given his role in the offense. But as a matter of a collective effort – Penn State is averaging 8.1 yards to-gain on third down this season. That number has only dropped below the average when Penn State needed an average of 6.1 yards on third down against Indiana. It comes as no surprise whatsoever that this also happened to be the game where Penn State had its most success on third down.
There is a strange twist to this though: The Nittany Lions are 21-for-46 [45.6%] on third down this year which -if that rate holds- would be Penn State’s third-best conversion rate of the past 12 years [2009,2017].
Late Down Protection:
Not all of this falls on the offensive line, but Penn State has given up 13 sacks this season, the most in the Big Ten and six of those have come on third or fourth down. On top of that Penn State has had three of these sacks go for double-digit yardage losses. Of course Clifford can do a better job simply getting rid of the ball, but considering Penn State is facing an average of eight yards per third down, it’s going to take a few beats for receivers to get open and protection becomes key in those moments.
Generally speaking Penn State’s pass protection can improve, and if the Nittany Lions wants to start winning, that protection coming into play on third would go a long way towards that goal.
In an odd twist, Clifford is 12-for-18 passing on third-and-7+ so he’s doing well for himself when he gets the time with 11 of those completions going for a first down.
“There’s too many times where he’s under pressure and getting hit early in games,” Franklin added. “He’s been hit way too many times this season. He’s been sacked too many times this season and has been under pressure too many times and does that have an effect? Yeah, it does. But obviously there’s some throws that we need to make. It’s all of it. There’s some catches that we need to make. We all own responsibility in this.”
First Down Pass Plays:
Clifford is completing over 60% of his passes on second, third and fourth down but just 49.1% of his passes on first down. Certainly he will miss some open looks, but there’s something different going on here compared to the other main downs. This is admittedly the weakest observation because there’s nothing substantial to back this claim up, but when your completion rate drops 10+ percent on what ought to be the easiest passing down, something is up.
First Half Defense:
Penn State has given up 66 points in the the first half so far this season and double-digits during the second quarter in two of three games. On the other side of the coin Penn State has given up 15 points in the fourth quarter and 28 in the third. Of course a team with a semi-comfortable lead is less inclined to do anything but run out the clock, but it doesn’t take decades of coaching to understand that putting your struggling offense behind the eight-ball right off the bat isn’t ideal.
Penn State has given up opening drive touchdowns in two straight games which immediately puts Penn State’s offense under pressure, probably why Penn State has gone for it on fourth down on its opening drive two games in a row after giving up that opening score.
Everyone knows Penn State’s defense has to get better, but it’s not doing Clifford any favors out of the gate.
