Penn State Football: What went right and what went wrong vs Ohio State
The Penn State Nittany Lions couldn’t knock off the Ohio State Buckeyes as they made several mistakes, but they did do some things well they can build on.
For Penn State fans they have some serious issues but they came away from the Ohio State loss knowing they have a star in the making. True freshman running back Saquon Barkley carried 27 times for 194 yards. He was fast and shifty and attacked the Ohio State defense on every carry.
That was the one area on offense that was successful though.
The way to beat Penn State is simple, you force Christian Hackenberg to throw and get them in long third down situations. PSU is absolutely awful on third downs and it showed against the Buckeyes. They were 1 for 11 against OSU, and were unsuccessful on two fourth down attempts and you can see why Penn State lost.
On defense Penn State has one of the best defensive lines I have seen in a long time. They were constantly in the backfield, led by end Carl Nassib who had three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. The problem on defense is similar to the offense. They have one really good bright spot, but not enough depth or secondary stars to complement the star.
In the end Penn State just did not have enough players and a good enough scheme to beat Ohio State. Once Penn State gets the players they need and a coaching staff that can develop them better, maybe they can turn this game into the rivalry that PSU fans so desperately want it to be. Until then this is another annual win for Ohio State.
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