Penn State is 6-4 on the year and nothing quite helps morale like a game against Rutgers. Then again plenty of people said that when the Nittany Lions hosted Illinois and then look what happened. Nevertheless, this should be – on paper – a fairly straightforward affair if Penn State shows up and plays with the same intensity that it has had in its bigger games this year. If it doesn’t, well it gets what it deserves.
Here are five keys to watch as the Nittany Lions host Rutgers.
Don’t Make It Harder Than It Needs To Be:
Rutgers is better, but don’t let that confuse you for thinking that Rutgers is wildly different than usual. The Scarlet Knights’ win over Indiana last week is easily their best of the season and there’s not much to speak of aside from that. On the losing side of the record both Ohio State and Michigan State put a good licking on Rutgers to the tune of a combined score of 83-26. Rutgers managed to give Michigan a fight in Ann Arbor back in September but so much can change over the course of two months. Penn State isn’t in a position right now to take anyone casually, but the Nittany Lions also don’t have to overthink this.
Off The Field:
Rutgers is dead last in the Big Ten when it comes to third down conversion rate with the Scarlet Knights converting just 32.68% of their opportunities on third down, almost 20% worse than Big Ten leading Ohio State and seven spots shy of Penn State. Sometimes these figures can be misleading because the rankings are often only a difference of a few percentage points, nevertheless the point remains the same – Rutgers fails to convert two out of every three times on third down. Get the Scarlet Knights off the field.
Dress Rehearsal, Again:
Penn State heads to East Lansing next weekend for the latest iteration of what might very well be another Top 10 meeting. Michigan State is at Ohio State this weekend so the No. 7 Spartans might fall out of the Top 10 with a loss, nevertheless it’s another chance to pick up a win over a ranked opponent. Penn State can’t look past Rutgers or it will end up in another two point conversion battle, but the Nittany Lions should play like they’re getting ready for something. Get a little mojo back, sure this season hasn’t gone the way anyone imagined it, but the Nittany Lions have all the tools to pull off the illusive upset. Have to take care of Rutgers first, but any message sent up north to East Lansing that the Nittany Lions haven’t packed it in just yet is a message well sent.
Play A Little Angry:
This team has to be a little pissed, right? Play like it, and nothing says playing a little bit angry quite like playing against a regional rival. Penn State and Rutgers’ players almost always have a long history that dates back to high school playing days so there’s never a shortage of emotions in this series even if the final scores have often been lopsided. Want to take out some anger on little bro? Saturday is the time to do it.
Pressure:
Rutgers is fourth in the Big Ten in sacks allowed having given up just 16 all season, that’s 11 better than Penn State and just five worse than Ohio State. Of course these kinds of figures can often be the result of how a team plays the game – Michigan has given up eight sacks all year but also runs the ball a ton so low sack numbers aren’t always indicative of excellent protection. Penn State hasn’t blitzed nearly as much this season as in years past and the sack numbers have reflected that. All the same, getting pressure on the quarterback can keep a bad third down team off schedule. It can also result in more turnovers, although the Scarlet Knights are third in the Big Ten in turnover margin only having lost 10 turnovers this year. Rutgers is also one of two teams to have recovered 10 fumbles in the Big Ten, the other being Northwestern.
