As you might imagine, a 27-10 loss to Temple is not the ideal result for Penn State football. On paper, Temple’s veteran roster with experience against the Nittany Lions made for a tough game. On the field it looked even worse at nearly every juncture. Some of it was Temple’s playmaking ability, even more of it was Penn State’s struggles to move the ball on offense.
And so, this week does not result in particularly favorable grades for the Nittany Lions on just about every front.
Offense: D
There isn’t an active list of the worst offensive performances in Penn State football history but if there was one, this game would be near the top. The first two drives were productive but that was where it ended. An 8-play 53 yard campaign ended in a Joey Julius 34-yard field goal and a 42-yard run contributed to the most of Penn State’s following 6-play 75-yard drive to go up 10-0.
From there it was a wasteland. Paris Palmer looked outclassed on the left end and frequently required a tight end to assist him. Christian Hackenberg was sacked 10 times and amassed just 103 yards through the air with the majority coming late in the game. Chris Godwin’s five catches for 81 yards was the lone brights spot aside from Akeel Lynch’s score.
After gaining 126 yards offense in the first quarter, Penn State accumulated a whopping 54-yards of offense and converted just two third downs all game.
The only redeeming quality about Penn State’s performance was the fact the Nittany Lions actually scored.
Defense: C
By Bob Shoop’s standards 27 points is a lot to give up. On the other hand it became pretty clear early on that it was going to be the defenses’ game to win. A 93-yard Temple drive and score seemed to be the turning point of the game after Nyeem Wartman-White’s injury. That being said, Temple’s fairly modest 317 yards of offense and massive time of possession did little to help Penn State’s cause.
The Nittany Lion defense gave up 27 points, but at the end of the day that was the least of Penn State’s worries and perhaps a very different outcome with a functional offense to balance things out.
And at the end of the day, it was 17-10 heading into the fourth quarter. In most cases that’s acceptable.
Special Teams: A
For having a bit of an up and down summer, Joey Julius did his job on Saturday sending all of his kicks into the end zone and making his only (and career first) field goal.
In addition, Koa Farmer looked threatening at the kick return position with a 25.6 return average. The punt return game also look serviceable with an 8.2 average. Penn State’s special teams didn’t have many chances to make an impact, but of all the things the Nittany Lions did bad on Saturday, special teams wasn’t one of them. In fact, it looks like a promising unit with a bit more experience under the belt.
Overall: D+
Penn State will want to watch the tapes and then burn them as quickly as possible. The only reason this grade isn’t worse is because of special teams and the technicality that Penn State’s defense kept the Nittany Lions in the game.
