It will be another three weeks before Penn State takes the field at Beaver Stadium, as the Lions will travel to Northwestern next week and then enjoy a bye week after that before hosting Michigan for the annual White Out game and Senior Day for the home finale.
ILLINOIS INTERIM HEAD COACH BILL CUBIT
• Bill Cubit was named interim head coach at Illinois on August 28, 2015. Cubit also serves as offensive coordinator, his third season in that role for the Fighting Illini. He spent his first two seasons in Champaign-Urbana working with the quarterbacks, in addition to offensive coordinator duties. He was previously the head coach at Western Michigan from 2005-12.
• Cubit brings 34 years of coaching experience, including 17 years as a head coach on the collegiate and high school level. He also has spent eight years as an offensive coordinator at five NCAA Division I schools working the sidelines in five of the nation’s premier conferences (Big East, Big 12, Mid-American, PAC-10 and Southeastern).
• Cubit’s head coaching experience includes his time at Western Michigan and five seasons (1992-96) at Division III Widener University in Philadelphia.
• As a high school head coach in Pennsylvania, Cubit coached at Academy Park (Pa.) and his alma mater, Sharon Hill.
• A Sharon Hill native, Cubit played quarterback and wide receiver at Delaware (1971-74), earning AP All-America honorable mention in 1974.
SCOUTING THE FIGHTIN ILLINI
• Illinois started the season 4-1 with its lone loss coming at North Carolina, but enters the Penn State game on a two-game skid after falling at nationally-ranked and unbeaten Iowa (20-29) and most recently to Wisconsin (13-24) at home.
• Illinois is 1-2 in Big Ten play, winning its first league game against Nebraska, 14-13, on a touchdown with 10 seconds left.
• The Fighting Illini are tied with Ohio State and Iowa for the Big Ten lead with nine interceptions. Defensive backs Taylor Barton and Eaton Spence are tied for second in the conference with three interceptions each.
• Quarterback Wes Lunt is averaging 243.1 yards per game yards to rank fourth in the Big Ten. Lunt also ranks 18th nationally and tops in the conference with 22.57 completions per game. He is one of the most difficult quarterbacks to bring down, as Illinois leads the Big Ten and ranks 15th nationally with just 1.14 sacks allowed per game.
• Lunt’s top target is Geronimo Allison, who leads the conference and ranks 16th in FBS with 6.9 receptions per game. He also ranks second in conference and 14th nationally with 100.0 receiving yards per game.
• Safety Clayton Fejedelem ranks 11th in FBS and second in the Big Ten with 10.6 tackles per game. He also has a punt return for a touchdown.
• In the Big Ten, Illinois is second to Penn State in tackles for loss per game averaging 8.0.
HOME SWEET HOME
With a 270-71 all-time record in Beaver Stadium, PSU boasts the eighth-best winning percentage (.792) in its current home venue amongst current FBS schools, and leads the Big Ten. Ohio State ranks ninth overall with a 422-110-20 (.783) mark in Ohio Stadium, which was built in 1922. Only Alabama (.818) and Auburn (.795) boast higher winning percentages than Penn State in facilities older than Beaver Stadium. Baylor leads the country with a perfect 10-0 mark in the brand new McLane Stadium (2014).
PENN STATE VS. BIG TEN
• Penn State owns a 190-95-3 mark against Big Ten Conference teams since the Nittany Lions first opposed Ohio State in 1912.
• The Nittany Lions began play as a member of the Big Ten Conference in 1993 and have a 112-68 mark.
• Prior to joining the conference, Penn State played 107 games vs. the current Big Ten alignment and was 79-25-3 in those games.
• Maryland and Rutgers joined the Big Ten on July 1, 2014.
NEW TURF
• The Nittany Lions will take the field against Illinois on a new playing surface inside Beaver Stadium.
• Crews began working on Tuesday, Oct. 13 to remove the old sod, which had been in the stadium since October 2005.
• A new Kentucky bluegrass surface was installed on Oct. 15.
• Originally planted on a sod farm in 2004, the previous surface was installed during the days leading up to the epic primetime clash between Penn State and Ohio State on Oct. 8, 2005.
• With three full weeks between home games, Athletic Fields Supervisor Herb Combs and the Beaver Stadium grounds crew took the opportunity to re-sod the field in order to create the best playing surface moving into the future.
• Approximately 70,000 square feet of sod was used to complete the stadium playing surface and the nursery on campus.
• The new sod came from Tuckahoe Turf Farms in Hammonton, N.J., which supplies several NFL organizations with sod, including the Cleveland Browns, Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers.
TAKING CARE OF THE FOOTBALL
• Penn State ranks tied for ninth in the nation and first in the Big Ten with a plus-nine turnover margin (17 takeaways, 8 turnovers).
• With five takeaways against Maryland, Penn State improved its ratio despite an uncharacteristic three fumbles lost. PSU entered the game with just three fumbles lost all season.
STRIKING FIRST
• Penn State has scored first in all eight games this season, and nine straight games dating back to last season’s Pinstripe Bowl against Boston College.
• The Nittany Lions have scored in the first quarter in all but two games (Buffalo and Rutgers.) However, Penn State was able to earn double-digit victories in both, including a season-high 25-point victory over Rutgers.
UNDEFEATED DEFEATS
• Penn State is the only team in FBS with multiple losses to have all losses come at the hands of the country’s undefeated teams.
• The Nittany Lions only losses this season are to Temple and Ohio State. Temple is now ranked No. 21 by the Associated Press and No. 22 in the USA Today Coaches Poll.
Ohio State has been No. 1 in both polls all season. • Only 12 undefeated teams remain in FBS.
STOPS BEHIND THE LINE
• In addition to leading the nation in sacks with 32 (4.0) pg), Penn State also ranks fifth in the nation and tops in the Big Ten with 9.3 tackles for loss per game.
• Penn State has recorded at least five tackles for loss in 15 consecutive games. The Nittany Lions recorded 11.0 tackles for loss vs. Maryland, including 5.0 sacks.
• The 15-game streak with 5.0 or more TFLs is the longest since a 15-game string from 2001-03.
• The Nittany Lions recorded 11.0 tackles for loss to mark the fifth game this season with at least 9.0 TFLs in a game.
• The Penn State defense accumulated 10.0 tackles for loss against Ohio State, the most the Buckeyes had surrendered all season.
• Penn State leads the nation in both tackle for loss yardage (361) and sack yardage (246).
• Penn State’s 15 tackles for loss against Temple were the second-most in the country during the opening week, trailing only Colorado State, which racked up 16 against FCS-level Savannah State. Eleven different Nittany Lions were credited with at least an assist, led by Carl Nassib, Brandon Bell and Anthony Zettel with 2.5 TFL each, while Trevor Williams had 2.0.
• Nassib leads the country with 2.2 TFL per game.
TWO ADDED TO BEDNARIK WATCH LIST
• Defensive linemen Carl Nassib and Austin Johnson were added to the Bednarik Award watch list, joining fellow lineman Anthony Zettel on the list.
• Nassib and Johnson were also named ESPN.com Midseason All-Big Ten.
• The Bednarik Award has been presented to the College Defensive Player of the Year since 1995.
• The Nittany Lions’ four Bednarik Award recipients are the most of any school in the nation — LaVar Arrington (`99), Paul Posluszny (`05 & 06) and Dan Connor (`07).
• Nassib currently leads the FBS in sacks (12.5; 1.6 pg), tackles for loss (17.5; 2.2 pg) and tied for the lead in forced fumbles (5).
• Johnson has been a force up front for the Nittany Lions 49 tackles, which is tied for second on the team. He also has 3.5 sacks and 9.0 tackles for loss this season. Additionally, Johnson registered his first career touchdown with a 71-yard fumble return. Most recently against Maryland, he tied his career high with nine tackles, marking the third time this season he has recoded nine stops.
• Zettel has 34 stops on the season, including 18 solo tackles. He also has 9.0 tackles for loss, including 2.0 sacks. Zettel has also influenced the passing game with four pass breakups. He also has a forced fumble and a fumble recovery on the season.
DEFENSIVE LINE LEADER
• DT Anthony Zettel moved into a tie for 10th place on the PSU career tackles for loss charts with 1.0 TFL at Maryland. He now has 36 career TFLs and his tied with Tamba Hali (2002-05) and Matt Millen(1976-79).
• Zettel set a career-high with seven tackles vs. Maryland. His previous high was seven vs. San Diego State on Sept. 26, 2015.
• Zettel recorded a half-sack against Ohio State to give him 17.0 for his career, moving him into a tie for 13th place at PSU with Justin Kurpeikis and Maurice Evans.
