Early in the year Penn State faced a big meeting with Rutgers that would help send the season in the right direction with a big win on the road.
The Nittany Lions came away with that win and something to hang their hat on. After a three game losing streak, Penn State faces yet another pivotal game as the Nittany Lions take on Maryland.
A win gives Penn State positive momentum heading into three winnable games before closing out the regular season against Michigan State. A victory against Maryland is the first step in what becomes a very good shot at a nine win season.
Last Week: Penn State and Maryland both enter Saturday’s game coming off of losses although the Terrapin’s 52-7 loss is a much more definitive defeat than Penn State’s double overtime loss to Ohio State. In the big picture Maryland enters the game with a 5-3 record and 2-2 in conference play with wins over Iowa and Indiana. Maryland is quarterbacked by CJ Brown who has passed for 1,316 yards this season with 601 of those yards going to standout receiver Stefon Diggs.
The Good: Despite an otherwise average record, Maryland is by far one of the most experienced teams on paper in all of Division I football. Diggs has long been one of the best playmakers in the nation and now in the Big Ten which makes even a 5-3 Terrapin offense a lethal one at any given moment. Maryland doesn’t do any one thing exceptionally well but has still managed to score 30 or more points in four of its five wins so far this season. A three point loss to a good West Virginia team kept the Terrapins from starting the season 5-0. Maryland is better than its record indicates but still not overly impressive.
The Bad: The offense has weapons, but Maryland’s defense has given up big point totals and big plays this season. Allowing 29.3 points a contest is 84th best in the nation and the Terrapins have given up 40 or more in each of their losses with opponents breaking the 50 point mark on two occasions. CJ Brown leads Maryland on the ground with 376 yards with Brandon Ross coming in a close second with only 257 rushing yards.
The Player To Watch: CJ Brown is a dual-threat quarterback in theory but nothing about his passing or rushing numbers are especially noteworthy. This game will in all likelihood come down to how much Penn State is able to limit Diggs’ receptions and big plays. If he is held under 100 yards receiving chances are things are going well for Penn State. It’s hard to imagine Penn State’s offense giving up a big day on the ground after holding Ohio State’s much more lethal rushing attack more or less in check.
Keep in mind that Penn State can’t give Maryland short fields to work with and that means whoever ends up punting for Penn State this week has to do a good job. So far that’s easier said than done.
The Prediction: Maryland is experienced which means the Terrapins are capable of stealing a victory much like Northwestern did, but it’s hard to imagine a team that has given up so many points and struggles to do so against stiff competition coming away with a win. Penn State needs this game to start the final third of the season off right and in games where both team’s offenses might struggle, it comes down to which squad has the better defense. in this case it’s Penn State.
It might be a little ugly at times, but Penn State’s new found confidence is the tiebreaker in this one.
Penn State wins 27-14.
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