Penn State Nittany Lions Seem Poised to Repeat

In 2008, the Nittany Lions went 11-1 before falling to USC in the Rose Bowl. The only team to defeat the Lions during that season was the Iowa Hawkeyes. In 2009, the Lions are now 7-1 after an impressive victory at Michigan. Once again, their only defeat so far came at the hands of Iowa. So how similar is this year's team to the squad that won the Big Ten title a year ago? Although there are over a dozen new starters from a year ago, the performance has been quite comparable thus far.

The leader of the Penn State offense, senior quarterback Daryll Clark, has been impressive to this point, putting up numbers very similar to last season. Clark is actually completing passes at a higher percentage and for more yardage, although his 7 interceptions has already surpassed the 6 picks he threw in all of 2008. Despite his increased production, Clark made a number of costly mistakes in Penn States lone loss this year, tossing 3 interceptions against Iowa in what was his worst game as the Lions starting QB. After picking apart the Michigan defense and accounting for 4 touchdowns and 0 turnovers, however, Clark seems poised to atone for his poor outing against Iowa.

Another significant returning starter on offense, tailback Evan Royster, also seems to have regained the form that made him an elite back in 08. The junior started slowly, in part due to poor offensive line play, but has come on strong lately and appears to be a lock to crack 1,000 yards for the second straight year. The only significant drop off in Royster's production thus far has been his touchdowns, as he has collected only four after finding paydirt a dozen times on the ground in 2008. Royster is a physical runner and should be considered one of the top backs in the nation if he returns for his senior season. His backup, Stephfon Green, has shown flashes of greatness but has not produced consistently in his sophomore season. Known as a home run threat due to his blazing speed, Green has broken off only one long run so far, a 52 yard touchdown against Illinois. That game, in which Green rushed for 120 yards, may have been a breakout contest for the Bronx native. Green was ineffective early against Minnesota, though, and later suffered an ankle injury which caused him to miss the Michigan game. He needs to regain his health and display more of the big play ability for which he is noted in order to complement Royster in the backfield.

Perhaps the most pleasant surprise of 2009 for the Lions has been the impressive play of the wide receivers, including three new starters: Derek Moye, Chaz Powell, and Graham Zug. After only 3 catches in 2008, sophomore Derek Moye has become one of the most explosive receivers in the Big Ten, as he has accounted for over 500 yards and scored 4 touchdowns thru the first eight games. Moye has utilized his 6'5 frame to make a number of acrobatic catches downfield, as he regularly out jumps smaller defensive backs. Chaz Powell, another sophomore wideout, has been extremely effective on deep routes, at times seeming reminiscent of Deon Butler. While his overall numbers suffered a bit by his ineffectiveness against Illinois due to illness, Powell has still caught passes of 79 and 51 yards this season. Moye's and Powell's abilities to stretch the field have benefited junior Graham Zug, who is the possession receiver of this group. In the mold of Jordan Norwood, Zug does most of his damage making catches across the middle of the field. Zug was one of the heroes at Michigan, as he exploded for 3 touchdowns. While this current trio lacks the experience of the departed unit of Derrick Williams, Butler and Norwood, all of whom were four-year starters, the new group has been a major factor in the success of the Lions offense.

Another deadly weapon in the passive attack has been senior tight end Andrew Quarless, who finally is living up to the potential he displayed as a true freshman in 2006. Quarless, who seems to have resolved his off-the-field and work ethic issues, has caught 23 balls for 315 yards in 2009. A physical specimen at 6'5, Quarless has displayed ferocious blocking combined with breakaway speed this season, as evidenced by his 60 yard touchdown reception against Michigan. Fellow senior tight end Mickey Shuler is used primarily as a blocker, although he is a sure-handed receiver when targeted.

The offensive line was full of question marks coming into 2009, as only two starters returned from the 2008 team. The captain of the line, center AQ Shipley, has been admirably replaced by junior Stefen Wisniewski, who moved from guard to center during the offseason. The other returning starter, Dennis Landolt, has shifted from right to left tackle, and seems to be settling in nicely as of late. Lou Eliades and Johnnie Troutman have taken over at the guards, while Ako Poti has solidified the right tackle spot. Poti has performed superbly over the last four contests, as he moved into the starting spot after DeOn'tae Pannell and Nerraw McCormack struggled, mostly notably against Iowa's front four.

On the defensive side of the ball, Penn State has been dominant as usual, despite an unproven defensive line, injuries among the linebackers, and four new starters in the secondary. Although he doesn't receive as much recognition or accumulate the stats like the linebackers, defensive tackle Jared Odrick is probably the most critical member of the Lions defense. The senior has been a beast all season long, overcoming regular double teams and appearing unblockable at times. Odrick has recorded 5 sacks and 9 tackles-for-loss, and the attention he garners has allowed the defensive ends to record countless other big plays. The most prominent beneficiary of this has been Jack Crawford, who has developed tremendously in only his fourth year playing football. The native of London, Crawford has used his raw physical tools to record team highs with 5.5 sacks and 12 tackles-for-loss. Eric Latimore starts opposite of Crawford, and has come on strong as of late. Also seeing action at end is senior Jerome Hayes, who has battled back from two severe knee injuries to contribute in 2009. Hayes did not play much early in the season but has made a bigger impact in the past two weeks, highlighted by his shutout-saving play against Minnesota. Lastly, junior Ollie Ogbu starts alongside Odrick at tackle, and while unheralded, has provided steady play all season long. While the ends will not match the gaudy sack totals that Aaron Maybin and Maurice Evans posted the last two seasons, the defensive line has once again proven to be a strongpoint for defensive coordinator Tom Bradley.

Playing behind the stout defensive line is arguably the most talented and accomplished linebacking corp in all of college football. "Linebacker U" boasts a starting triumvirate of Sean Lee, Josh Hull, and Navorro Bowman. Lee is the leader of this defense, and after missing all of 2008 with a torn ACL, showed no ill effects of the injury in the early portion of the season. Over the past month, however, Lee sustained another injury, one that caused him to miss multiple games, including the Iowa defeat. Lee has since returned, although he was only able to play limited downs against Michigan. He may be the smartest player on the entire defense, however, and has still contributed an impressive 7.5 TFL. Hull, who plays the middle linebacker position, has enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2009, as he leads the team in tackles by a wide margin. The former walk-on has been a mainstay all season, recording 79 tackles to go along with 2 interceptions. The third member of this group is Bowman, who quite simply might be the most gifted linebacker in the nation. Like Lee, Bowman missed a number of games early in the season with injury, but quickly returned to top form. Bowman has recorded a slew of big plays this season, including a 90 yard fumble recovery touchdown. Against Michigan, Bowman was all over the field, as he recorded 11 tackles, a sack, a recovered fumble, and an interception. Now in his junior year, Bowman seems destined to enjoy a successful NFL career. Bani Gbadyu has been steady but unspectacular filling in for the injured backers, as he has recorded 34 tackles. Nate Stupar and Chris Colasanti have chipped in despite limited duty. Tyrell Sales is the only departed linebacker from a season ago, although his absence has barely been noticed due to the great play at the position this year.

The secondary featured a complete turnover, however, as all four starters from a year ago graduated. Gone are cornerbacks Lydell Sargeant and Tony Davis, as well as safeties Anthony Scirrotto and Mark Rubin. Seniors AJ Wallace and Knowledge Timmons, two incredibly fast players, have split time at the one corner position. Timmons received more playing time earlier in the season, although Wallace has come on as of late, particularly against Minnesota's standout receiver Eric Decker. Wallace, who has intercepted two balls this season. has all the physical tools, and if he continues his strong play could catch the eye of NFL scouts. On the other side of the field is D'Anton Lynn, who has lockdown potential. Lynn has not been targeted very frequently by opposing quarterbacks, which is a sign that Lynn has often down a good job of blanketing his receiver. Safeties Drew Astorino and Nick Sukay are also first-year starters, although Astorino was a regular contributor in nickel situations in 2008. Often, Astorino resembles his predecessor Scirrotto, as he has a penchant for making big plays. He currently stands fourth on the team in tackles, and has seemed particularly adept as sniffing out screens. Sukay seems to have improved as the season has progressed, as he appeared a step late oftentimes on passes across the middle. While he has proven to be a sure tackler all season long, Sukay now is doing a better job of defensing passes. Moreover, the secondary in general has not allowed any big plays the last few weeks, perhaps another indication of Sukay's improvement. It must be noted, however, this group has not been tested very often this season, and perhaps the biggest knock on them is that they haven't created turnovers as frequently as in years past.

The Lions have experienced a significant dropoff in special teams play from a year ago, as kicker Collin Wagner has not been able to match the consistent excellence of Kevin Kelly. Wagner has connected on 8 of 12 field goals this season, although most of the attempts have been very short. Jeremy Boone returns as the punter, and generally has been excellent once again. His biggest error, however, was extremely costly, as his punt was blocked and returned for a game-changing touchdown by Iowa.
Ultimately, on paper the 2009 version of the Lions appears very comparable to the 2008 Rose Bowl team. The biggest areas of concern, wide receiver, offensive line, and the secondary, have all proved competent and continually improve. If their upward trend continues, the Lions seem destined for another excellent campaign. However, if these units begin to show their inexperience as Penn State faces difficult games forthcoming, the Lions likely will not be in contention to repeat as Big Ten champions.