Penn State Football: Five Things to Watch as Nittany Lions Face Villanova

After three emotional weeks of football Penn State is finally playing what could amount to its first real cupcake game in almost two years [As you’ll recall the 2020 schedule was Big Ten only]. So what is there to watch in a game that feels like it’s already over on Friday? Always keeping your eye on the football is good starting point, but here are a few other things to keep in mind as the Nittany Lions get set for a noon kick.

Notre Dame and Wisconsin:

If you aren’t going to Beaver Stadium on Saturday you could always watch Wisconsin and Notre Dame. Two ranked teams with one of them quite obviously already having a loss to Penn State on their card. The Irish and Badgers are traveling to Solider Field for the neutral site contest. Fewer of those please, play games on campus.

It’s A Game But Don’t Make It One:

You have to give Villanova some amount of “anything is possible” respect but at the end of the day the talent gap is what it is. Unless Penn State shows up to the game collectively hungover and is puking on the sidelines it seems generally unreasonable to assume that this game is ever really going to be a game. But when it’s all said and done Penn State has to go out and not make mistakes and not turn the ball over and not do all of the dumb things that teams do to turn a cupcake game into a loss.

Does anyone think this is actually going to happen? No not really, but both teams have to take the field and both teams are going to play and technically this means both teams could lose – albeit it not at the same time. If Penn State can make sure this game is over by halftime then it is mission accomplished.

Hey Mr. Roberson:

Ta’Quan Roberson is probably one of many depth players to see the field this weekend and how he does will maybe be the most interesting thing about the game. Each of the past three years Penn State’s backup quarterback has played meaningful snaps in meaningful games and Roberson is far and away the least experienced of the bunch if he were to do so this season. So no, getting second half snaps against Villanova doesn’t mean he’s the secret weapon against Ohio State, but it sure beats playing in practice. How does he look, how does he play and do they let him throw the ball?

Everyone OK?

These are the sorts of games that are good for the sake of having a game but feel really stupid when someone of note gets hurt in a game he probably didn’t even need to suit up for in the first place. Of all the objectives Penn State has this season, getting a win and getting the hell out of Beaver Stadium without any new injuries are the two biggest ones. The first one should be easy enough to accomplish but you can get hurt against anyone. This obviously isn’t performance based, but nobody complains when the injury tent doesn’t have to be used.

There You Are:

Games like this might result in a lot of stat padding performances but it can also result in getting confidence back for players farther down the depth chart who might otherwise need a little pep in their step. Running back Keyvone Lee comes to mind as a guy who was probably expected to do more this season but has so far been pretty quiet. Seeing him get back on track could be a good sign for an offense that is still trying to find its way in the running game a little bit. All told the second half of Saturday’s game could be a good opportunity for names you expected to hear more of – hello, Daniel George – making a splash and maybe making a good impression in the process.