Penn State Football: 5 overreactions from win over Pitt

1. Trace McSorley is Penn State’s weak link

When watching Penn State’s contest against the Panthers, it became increasingly difficult to watch junior quarterback Trace McSorley overthrow wide open receivers for the vast majority of the game.

In only eight minutes of total offense in the first half, McSorley completed an abysmal 6-of-15 passes for a paltry 48 yards.

And in the second half, things didn’t get much better.

Though McSorley did finish the game with a stat line of 15-of-28 for 164 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, he was never able to get into a consistent rhythm as a passer which is essential for Moorhead’s offensive philosophy.

Since arriving in Happy Valley last season, Moorhead’s incarnation of the Nittany Lions’ offense has been one of the most explosive in all of college football, predicated their attack on long runs and deep passing concepts.

But this scheme doesn’t work with an inefficient quarterback.

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After coming to Penn State as a three-star safety recruit, the high school quarterback became Christian Hackenberg’s primary backup as a redshirt freshman before replacing him in the team’s starting lineup the following year.

Now, in his second year as the Nittany Lions’ quarterback, McSorley is the owner of a 57 percent completion rate and has thrown for 34 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 16 games.

While these numbers aren’t atrocious, they aren’t the stat line of a national championship-winning quarterback.

Penn State is in a unique position.

The Lions are one of the most veteran teams in all of college football, and are expected to lose many of their star players, like Saquon Barkley, Mike Gesicki, Marcus Allen and Jason Cabinda to the NFL draft after the season.

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While Penn State can’t exactly sign a quarterback in free agency, and backup quarterback Tommy Stevens is largely unproven, it’s a shame that the Nittany Lions may gamble the best roster they’ve had in over a decade on an inconsistent quarterback.