When it was all said and done last Saturday fans left Beaver Stadium deflated and disappointed because the Nittany Lions couldn’t quite pull out another overtime victory.
A missed field goal in OT and a missed extra point in the first half both loomed large as Penn State fell to 6-5 on the year. Some fans took to twitter to send less than encouraging notes to kicker Sam Ficken for his misses, the most obvious target of their frustration.
But like any team game, a loss is never that simple. The extra point snap was low and was only in place at the last possible second. The overtime miss was not quite aligned as Ficken’s foot swung in to try and connect on a long kick in the swirling winds of Beaver Stadium.
Ficken’s kicks weren’t the only thing to doom Penn State on Saturday. For the fifth time this season the Nittany Lions struggled in the same areas and showed the same tendencies in each of the four previous losses.
The common factors in each of those losses are third downs, long drives, and missed kicks.
The Impossible Down:
Facing third down Penn State has struggled all season long. In some games the Nittany Lions have converted with ease, but in losses? Penn State is 24-of-69, a success rate of 34-percent. That average of just over 4 conversions per game is even worse when you consider that Penn State converted no more than two third downs in three of its losses. The highest O’Brien’s offense managed was 11 conversions against Indiana and eight conversions in a blowout loss to Ohio State. And O’Brien’s magical fourth down conversion rate? It’s down to 3-of-11 in losses this season.
On the flip side, Penn State converted 10-of-12 third down attempts against Purdue.
“Anytime, in my opinion, you can physically dominate the line of scrimmage, it’s a good thing,” O’Brien says. “You go in there and you’re in manageable downs and distances, especially on third down. I think we had one third-and-long, which we converted. I think most of our third downs were less than seven yards, which was good. Those are easier play-calls.”
Don’t Stop That Offense:
A drive chart can be misleading. Maybe one defender slips and a play breaks for a 60-yard gain. Sure it’s the defense’s “fault” that it happened, but it may not be indicative of a team’s ability. When an offense can drive down the field on a regular basis is when you have a problem.
In all of Penn State’s losses, the Nittany Lions have given up multiple scoring drives of 70 or more yards. In short, Penn State’s opponents start inside their own 20 and are able to score on that same drive — and it happens more than once during the game.
Not too surprisingly, Penn State struggled to stop Ohio State’s high-powered offense giving up five long drives. Against UCF the Nittany Lion defense surrendered three drives of 80 or more yards and against Nebraska and Minnesota, Penn State fell prey to drives of 91 and 96 yards respectively. Against Indiana, Penn State gave up five drives of 65 or more yards, including two of 75.
In large part, Penn State’s defense has played well the second half of the season but those long drives pile up.
Special For All The Wrong Reasons:
Penn State’s special teams hadn’t cost the Nittany Lions a game until the Nebraska game. The Cornhuskers blocked a punt, returned a kickoff for a touchdown. Sam Ficken missed two kicks by the end of the game. So far this season Penn State’s kickoff unit has prevented massive returns, but teams have begun to figure out how to attack it, breaking off longer returns. As far as Ficken in concerned, his kicks haven’t cost Penn State a game until Nebraska, but he has 4 total misses in the team’s five losses. That includes three missed field goals (all from 30+ yards out) and one missed extra point.
