Let’s compare:
Jim vs. James. Cliff vs. Trace. K.J. vs…K.J. (who else compares, right?).
Post-bye week games at Vandy vs. post-bye week games at PSU.
Fast starts since 1993.
With my bye week self-scouting out of the way (memo to self: more adjectives, fewer dangling participles), I decided to take a quick look at the numbers in five timely areas of Penn State football.
That insightful, well-researched — see, more adjectives — breakdown follows:
1. JIM vs. JAMES
The internet has been all abuzz with Jim Harbaugh’s coaching numbers at Michigan after he and the Wolverines and Josh Gattis got embarrassed 35-14 by Wisconsin on Saturday. Harbaugh was hired by his alma mater in 2015 and has yet to defeat Ohio State or win the Big Ten’s tough East division outright (both U-M and Ohio State had an 8-1 league mark in 2018).
It got me to thinking about how Harbaugh fares vs. James Franklin in some of the categories the Wolverine no-longer-faithful were sharing on Twitter for the past 24 hours. So, I did a bit of homework.
Of course, in the most important category — Big Ten championships — Franklin has a resounding 1-0 lead. Recruiting rankings don’t count; on-the-field performance does. Plus, we must consider that Franklin took over his current coaching position in much tougher circumstances than did Harbaugh, who succeeded Brady Hoke who succeeded Rich Rodriguez. With those important caveats, here’s Jimmy at Michigan vs. James at Penn State:
Against Top 25 Opponents (at the time of the game) — Harbaugh, 8-11; Franklin, 4-12.
Against Top 10 Opponents (at the time of the game) — Harbaugh, 1-9; Franklin, 2-8.
Bowl games — Harbaugh‚ 1-3; Franklin, 2-3.
Against Ohio State — Harbaugh, 0-4; Franklin, 1-4.
Against Michigan State — Harbaugh, 2-2; Franklin, 1-4.
Against Penn State/Michigan — Harbaugh, 3-1; Franklin, 1-4.
2. CLIFF VS. TRACE
Sean Clifford is just three games into his Penn State career as a starting quarterback, and he has shown pretty well for himself — three wins, six TD passes, no interceptions. You can’t ask for more than that, really.
Comparing him to Trace McSorley may not be fair — Cliff, admittedly, is always a bit rabbit-eared when McSorley’s name comes up — but here goes anyway. McSorley’s per-start average is pretty close to what Clifford has amassed in 2019, except that Clifford has zero picks and McSorley threw more passes and scored a boatload more rushing TDs. Here are the stats for the two QBs after the first three games of the past four seasons.
McSorley, 2016 (vs. Kent State, Pitt, Temple; 2-1 record) — 58-90-828 yards (64.4%), 2 interceptions, 4 TD passes; 32 rushes for 38 yards, 1 TD; 5 sacks.
McSorley, 2017 (Akron, Pitt, Georgia State; 3-0) — 51-76-753 yards (67.1%), 2 interceptions, 9 TD passes; 23 rushes for 137 yards, 2 TDs; 1 sack.
McSorley, 2018 (Appalachian State, Pitt, Kent State; 3-0) — 46-99-604 yards (52.7%), 1 interception, 5 TD passes; 26 rushes for 143 yards, 5 TDs; 3 sacks.
McSorley, 2016-18 (average) — 52-88-728 yards (59%), 2 interceptions, 6 TD passes; 27 rushes for 106 yards, 3 TDs; 3 sacks.
Clifford, 2019 (Idaho, Buffalo, Pitt; 3-0) — 44-75-781 yards (58.7%), 0 interceptions, 6 TD passes; 24 rushes for 113 yards; 6 sacks.
3. K.J. HAMLER
After the 2019 season opener, Franklin called K.J. Hamler “one of the — if not the most — explosive players in the country.” Toward that end, Franklin, O-coordinator Ricky Rahne and special teams coordinator Joe Lorig are trying the get the ball in the redshirt sophomore receiver/returner’s hands more often. That’s happening, but his overall offensive output is staying pretty much the same through three games.
Hamler has 20 touches in three contests (plus a seemingly ton of fair catches, plus a dropped ball or two). He had 80 touches in 2018 vs. 180 for Purdue’s Rondale Moore, the closest comp to Hamler there is in the Big Ten.
Hamler in 2019, first three games — 20 touches, 373 yards, 18.7-yard average, 2 touchdowns. Per game: 6.7 touches, 124.3 yards.
Hamler in 2018, first three games — 15 touches, 371 yards, 24.7 yard-average, 3 TDs. Per game: 5 touches, 123.7 yards.
Hamler in 2018, 13 games — 80 touches, 1,417 yards, 17.7-yard average, 6 TDs. Per game: 6.2 touches, 109 yards.
4. BYE WEEKS
At his previous institution, Vanderbilt, Franklin was a robust 3-1 in games after a bye week. That it came in the SEC, a killer of a conference, and while at Vandy, a perennial patsy, points to some of Franklin’s finest work in his nine-year career as a major college football head coach.
In his first year at Vandy (2011), the Commodores lost 34-0 to No. 2 Alabama after a bye week. But, over the next two years, he was an impressive 3-0 after bye weeks. That included victories on the road against Mizzou and Florida, and at home vs. No. 15 Georgia. Big wins against brand names.
His success with post-bye week games at Penn State is a bit more measured. In contests after bye weeks Franklin is 2-4 with the Nittany Lions, albeit against a heavy slate of foes that could be judged tougher than the Terps this Friday. By season, here is how Franklin’s PSU teams have fared after a week off:
2014 — Michigan, 18-13 loss; Ohio State, 31-24 loss (2OT); 2015 — Michigan, 28-16 loss. 2016 — Ohio State, 24-21 win; 2107 — Michigan, 42-13 win; 2018 — Michigan State, 21-17 loss.
5. FAST STARTS
If the Nittany Lions defeat Maryland on Friday, it will mark the first time Penn State has started the year 4-0 in three consecutive seasons since 1993-97 (yes, that’s four in a row), and just the 11th 4-0 start or better since joining the Big Ten Conference. Franklin has done it three times in five seasons.
Here’s a look at Penn State’s record after four games since 1993; records with more than four games are included to show undefeated starts to the season.
1993 — 5-0; 1994 — 12-0; 1996 — 5-0; 1997 — 7-0; 1998 — 3-1; 1999 — 9-0
2000 — 1-3; 2001 — 0-4; 2002 — 3-1; 2003 — 2-2; 2004 — 2-2; 2005 — 6-0; 2007 — 3-1; 2008 — 9-0.
2010 — 3-1; 2011 — 3-1; 2012 — 2-2; 2013 — 3-1; 2014 — 4-0; 2015 — 3-1; 2016 — 2-2; 2017 — 7-0; 2018 — 4-0; 2019 — 3-0.
