If you went to sleep early last night and are just waking up now, you’re probably just finding out that head coach Joe Paterno was fired last night.
This is coming off the report that former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky was sexually abusing little boys.
It’s way too soon to even think about football right now, because this scandal is much bigger than sports. But the fact is that life does go on, and the Penn State Nittany Lions do have a game this Saturday against the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
Tom Bradley, who was the current defensive coordinator this season, will be the interim coach for the rest of the season.
The Nittany Lions currently have a two-game lead over the Wisconsin Badgers in the Leaders division, and the only way they can mess that up is if they lose the last three games.
The problem with Penn State is that they have little-to-no offense and are really only where they are in the standings because of their weak schedule. These next three games will show just how good this team really is.
This week, it’s really hard to pick the Nittany Lions to win against a talented Nebraska team. You have a new coach who only has a couple of days to prepare his team. You’re playing with tons of distractions around you, and your offense is ranked 100th in scoring out of 120 teams.
It’s hard not to like the Cornhuskers in this game.
Penn State will then take their act on the road to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes, which is never an easy task. It’s going to be even harder now that the Buckeyes seem to have gained some momentum and have been playing better since a few suspended players are back.
Once again, no offense, tons of distractions and you throw in the fact they’re on the road in a tough atmosphere. This game should be close, but how do you not pick Ohio State at home with a dual-threat quarterback in Braxton Miller who can stretch the defense and make plays?
To finish the season, Penn State then has to travel to Wisconsin to take on the Badgers who are one of the most balanced teams in the country. It’s almost impossible to see the Nittany Lions win this game considering they struggle to score points and Russell Wilson and company score a truckload.
I see the Big Ten Championship game coming down to Wisconsin and Michigan State.
But let’s assume that the Nittany Lions win two of the remaining three games. The team rallies around coach Bradley and they find ways to win for Paterno. They would then have to win the Big Ten Championship game.
Could they really beat a strong defensive team like Michigan State? Penn State could get shut out in that contest.
Would they be able to beat Nebraska possibly twice in one season?
Or would they be able to find ways to slow down Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson and hold the Wolverines in check?
To me, there’s just a lot of hurdles for this Penn State team to overcome to win the Big Ten. I would much rather put my money on a better overall team that has their head coach and no distractions following them around.
Could Penn State win the Big Ten?
Sure they could—anything is possible.
But much like the chances of this black cloud hanging over the university going away anytime soon, the odds are stacked against them.
Randy Chambers is a B/R Featured Columnist that covers College Football and the NFL. You can contact him @Randy_Chambers or Randy.Chambers7@yahoo.com
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