SB Nation - Abe Koroma

Breaking down Western Illinois, NIU's pesky little brother

Mike Breese — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 06:55:50 -0000

Will the 'Necks be able to bounce back this year after losing stud LB Jason Williams to the NFL?

Still waters run deep

It's an intrastate rivalry that nobody really talks about, because it happens so sporadically.

Don't look now, but Northern Illinois hasn't beaten the Leathernecks in 20 years. Of course we've just played 3 times all during the Novak era and went 0-3 in those games. I'm sure Joe Novak is on his boat right now in North Carolina anticipating this game like nobody else. He hates Western!

Good thing our current coach knows a thing or two about playing WIU.

Jerry Kill is 6-1 against the 'Necks in his career, only losing in his first year. Ever since then, it was a tough matchup for Kill and his Salukis. Look at some of these scores:

2002: 54-52

2003: 37-32

2004: 66-13 (ok, don't look at that one)

2005: 34-24

2006: 31-24

2007: 10-9

That's a very close series, but Coach Kill always seems to eek out a win. Hopefully Kill can make a dominant statement with the D-I talent that he has in his 2nd year as a coach at this level.

Deja Vu

Wisconsin...now Western Illinois. This all seems so familiar to me. Oh yeah the exact same two non-conference games were scheduled back in 2002! I keep going back to that year, and why not? We did go 8-4.

We did have current Atlanta Falcon RB Michael Turner at the time and against Western Illinois he rushed the ball 29 times for 282 yds and 3 TDs! At the time it was 4th best ever performance by a Huskie and 8th best ever in the MAC. He won MAC player of the week and...wait we lost the game???

How is this possible?

Well, it's a little hard to tell because there was so little coverage. All you have is this USA Today box score of the game. Western had a boatload of passing yds (382-74), kick return yardage (118-36) and time of possession (35:06-24:54). QB Josh Haldi was un-Haldi like completing only 6-17 passes as he was harassed and sacked 5 times. Update: I found this from the WIU game notes from this week:

The Last Time Western faced Northern...

It was game No. 3 of the 2002 season for the Leathernecks, Reggie Gray’s ﬁve-yard reverse with 1:10 remaining gave Western Illinois its third straight win over I-A Northern Illinois, 29-26. Brian Ceaser forced a fumble at the NIU-35 with under a minute left and Victor Campbell recovered for the Leathernecks to give Western the 3-0 start to the season. Russ Michna threw for a career-high 382 yards, including 300 in the ﬁrst half, and Stacy Coleman set a Huskie Stadium record with 215 yards receiving (151 in the ﬁrst half), which was later broken by Northern’s P.J. Fleck in 2003 with 234 yards.

It was probably a combination of being upset about the ref's calls in the week before against UW + the fact that WIU's super bowl was against us that year. FCS teams usually get one big shot at an FBS (D-I) team each year and get completely amped for it. We didn't lose a game after that one in '02 until...well I'm not even going to get in to that right now.

How they fare against the big boys

In terms of an FCS national powerhouse, WIU is past their glory days. Since making the I-AA quarterfinals from 2002-03, the Leathernecks have been hovering around .500 even though in that division you only play 11 games.

Last year, Western gave the Arkansas Razorbacks a scare, losing 24-28 to start the season off. Before then, they've played a rash of BCS opponents where they have been overmatched. Even against MAC opponent Toledo they lost 14-62. They haven't had a win against a D-I opponent since they beat EMU way back in 2003. And then you know what happened the year before that.

They're a good, but not great team in the Missouri Valley Conference. They're unlucky because they have to face the likes of Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois every year. Not a very easy thing to do. If you weren't paying attention, both teams were within a field goal of upsetting both Iowa and Marshall respectively. While those teams place in the Top-25 of the FCS, Western is on the outside looking in.

Currently WIU ranks 36th in AGS poll, 35th in media poll & 47th in the coaches poll.

The 'Necks on O

Western naturally has a balanced offense, but decided to light up SHSU last week with some astronomical performances all-around that Clear Visor already talked about. Most likely because they lost their starting running back who had been leading the team in rushing ever since 2006.

RB Dre Gibbs, 5'10" 220 Sr - Rushed the ball LY 78 times for 580 yds and 5 TDs (7.3 ypc!). Was backup for the departed Herb Donaldson who rolled off 1,831 yds and 21 yds LY. He just got cut recently by the New Orleans Saints (that sound familiar?)

LT Mike Lamphear, 6'4" 275 Jr - The lone returning starter on their O-Line. Their starting O-Line averages 6'4" 285, 40 POUNDS LESS than Wisconsin's 6'6" 324 average.

The 'Necks on D

Their HUGE loss on this side is LB Jason Williams who was a beast last year and got picked by the 3rd round of the NFL draft by the Dallas Cowboys.

DE Victor Visoky, 6'4" 255 Jr - 39 tackles & 6 TFL LY

NG Abe Koroma, 6'3" 315 Jr - Recent transfer from Penn State. 3-star recruit according to Rivals. Played in 10 games LY before getting stuck in JoePa's doghouse.

LN Kyle Glazier, 6'1" 220 Jr - Led the team with 92 tackles LY. Wondering what LN stands for? it's THE LEATHERNECK POSITION. He is the leader of the defense and is kind of like a quasi-MLB/SS combo. But then they also have a rover position. Here's what Kill had to say about this situation:

"Defensively, they're unique. They may play with three down linemen, they may have four or five standing up, they move all over the place. They'll be the most unique defense we'll see. To be honest, at Southern, we struggled with them. We were able to win some games, but we struggled with what they do. I'm glad we have played them. That helps us a little bit.

CB Patrick Stoudamire, 5'11" 200 Sr - Preseason All-MVC, had 4 PBUs and a FF last week. He's also been All-MVC the past 2 years and an All-American in 2007.

SS Tim Franken, 6'0" 195 So - 4 INTs LY

Conclusion

Western Illinois returns only 10 starters (5 on each side) off a pretty mediocre year last year. What big production they did have at RB and LB are gone off to the NFL. Now they have changed their offensive philosophy around apparently to a more pass-oriented attack. It doesn't seem to me like they have found an identity yet for this year. Add in the fact that their offensive and defensive lines aren't very experienced and you have yourself a pretty bland FCS team.

Unlike Wisconsin, there aren't any physical freaks this week on either side of the ball against this opposition. WIU will try and make it close through the air, but the overall talent level on the Huskies will be just too much for them to handle. We are their bowl game, but we have a lot of motivation to do well on our own.

WIU 10, NIU 33

Brandon Ware Breaks Foot; Out One Month

Run Up The Score — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 17:58:35 -0000

So sayeth the Flounders:

"He was just running (in practice),'' Paterno said of Ware's injury. PSU's defensive tackle rotation had already been thinned by the loss of Milton Hershey grad Abe Koroma, who transferred to Western Illinois after Paterno said Koroma wouldn't play in 2009 due to personal issues.
Paterno said he spoke with team doctor Wayne Sebastianelli about [Ware's] injury. "He'll be out at least 3-4 weeks,'' Paterno said of Ware.

Bucknotes is getting healthy

Sam @ WWAHT — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:00:12 -0000

More photos » by Terry Gilliam - AP

3 months ago: Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel yells out instructions to his players during an NCAA college football practice Monday, Aug. 24, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

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Impressions from the open practice (Blogging the Buckeyes)
Tressel thinks: Heyward will be healthy, Boren will be ready for Sept. 5th and, Spitler's injury is of no concern. Other notes:

- Hines is rotating with Russell as both a deep safety and a nickelback

- Adams is now rotating with the third team. All hope of him being the guy on 5th is essentially lost. I'm starting to think this is some of Tressel's mind games at work; Adams can't possibly be bad enough to really be playing with the third team, can he? Could it be that Tressel is punishing Adams for the same lack of focus and inconsistency we saw in Alex Boone?

- Gordon thinks either Hall or Berry will redshirt, as Berry is hobbled and behind due to his recovery from offseason surgery

- Remember that post about Adam Homan and the future of the fullback in the Terrelle Pryor offense? His main competition, Zach Boren, is turning heads at LB.

The Buckeye Battle Cry | Diaries From The Trenches: Defensive Tackle
Excellent look at the situation at defensive tackle.

Scouting Report: Ex Buckeye Brian Hartline started Saturday night for the Dolphins | BucksInsider.com - Ohio State Buckeyes News, Videos, Schedules & More
B-Hart showed a much more veteran (and much more likable) Buckeye what's what in his preseason start:

On the TD pass from Pennington to Brown, Hartline forced Panther CB Chris Gamble to push him into the LB that was supposed to cover Brown. As a result, Brown was wide open and got the TD. This is just one example of how Hartline and the other Buckeye rookies bring a sophisticated knowledge of the game to their new teams far beyond their years.

Well, okay. Still a loudmouth.

College basketball ShootAround: Big Ten - Men's College Basketball - ESPN
Quoth Andy Katz:

All the Buckeyes need is for someone like Lauderdale to rebound and start the break.

A little bit of perimeter defense wouldn't be too shabby, either. Oh, and please beat UNC this time around. Kthx. Katz expects the Buckeyes to make some noise atop the Big Ten standings this year.

Buckeye Fans Plan Tribute for Navy Game; Spread the Word | The Buckeye Blog
This is actually a really, really cool idea. We Buckeye fans get a lot of crap throughout the sports world for our classlessness, and to an extent, I think it's justified. But this is a good way to start turning some of that around: cheer for the Middies when they hit the field. As someone with at least one friend and family member in each branch of the armed services, I fully support this.

The Buckeye Battle Cry | The changing mood of a douchebag
Watch Ralph G. Decker transform from a grinning jackass to a meathead who has realized he made a big, big mistake, watching what had been a misdemeanor get moved up to a felony.

Better Know A Buckeye: Kenny Guiton | Our Honor Defend
Quite simply: he's rough around the edges, he probably won't start soon, and he's not nearly as slow as the reported 4.9 forty indicates. He's the definition of a project player. If he sees the field before his (Redshirt?) junior year, your wails of agony will probably be fitting. He's a good kid and all, but planets will have to align for him to see the field any time soon.

AP: Everybody Panic! Internet: Eh, Not So Much, Probably | mgoblog
Unfortunately, Nick Sheridan probably won't start the season for the Wolverines. Michigan: you're the gift that keeps on giving when it comes to lulz, why don't you see this? Embrace it. Start Sheridan. Watch him go down in a blaze of fumbled snaps and pick sixes. Just this one last time. For great justice.

Koroma to Transfer to Western Illinois | NittanyWhiteOut
Penn State DT Abe Koroma has left the team; he contributed some quality time last year (here's a picture of him getting held by Cordle), but he was already going to spend the season "away from the football team" in 2009. He has instead opted to leave the program altogether. Penn State isn't quite thin at DT, but behind Jared Odrick, there's not a lot of quality experience. Expect Ollie Ogbu to step up for the Nits.

Penn State's Reason For Hope #4 - Larry Johnson Sr.

BSD — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 12:00:23 -0000

via blog.pennlive.com

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I can remember a few years ago looking ahead to 2009 and thinking Penn State was going to be absolutely loaded on the defensive line. But a funny thing happened between then and now. Phil Taylor and Chris Baker were dismissed from the team. Maurice Evans and Aaron Maybin decided to go pro early. Josh Gaines had the audacity to graduate. And JoePa decided to throw Abe Koroma in the doghouse for a year and throw away the key.

Normally this kind of attrition would be devastating to any average defense. But I'm not worried, and I don't have the sense Nittany Lion fans are worried either. That's because we know that no matter how bad things get with dismissals and injuries, as long as we have Larry Johnson Sr. everything will be okay on the defensive line.

Of course nobody is worried about Jared Odrick, a first team All-BIg Ten selection a year ago who probably could have entered the NFL draft and done quite well for himself last spring. And we know his defensive tackle counterpart Ollie Ogbu is a proven commodity who I think is poised for a breakout season in 2009. With Devon Still, Chima Okoli, and Brandon Ware to back these guys up there's plenty of talent and depth to work with at the defensive tackle position.

But then nobody I read mentionsthe defensive tackles as a concern. The defensive ends are a different story. Penn State has to replace their top three guys on the outside this year. Maybin, Evans, and Gaines accounted for 19 sacks and 31.5 TFL. That's a lot of production to replace, but if there's one area Penn State has proven it can reload, it's on the defensive line.

Jack Crawford is Larry Johnson's latest project this summer. Standing an imposing six-foot-five and 256 lbs. with tremendous explosiveness due to years of playing basketball in England, Crawford has drawn comparisons to Aaron Maybin. I'll go one better than that. I'll go out on a limb and say Crawford will be better than Maybin before it's all said and done. Maybin, as good as he was, was really a one dimensional player. He was an outside pass rushing specialist, but he wasn't really that great against the running game, and he never really developed a bull rush due to the fact he couldn't put on weight. Crawford has explosiveness, but he also has the size Maybin could never obtain which I think will make him an even more dominant player.

On the other side it's going to be interesting to watch Johnson work his magic. It looks like Jerome Hayes is penciled in as the starter at weak side defensive end after two reconstructive knee surgeries in the past two years. It has me a bit concerned that he's our best option, but if he can show the same speed he did before his injuries he'll be a force to wreckon with coming off the edge on third and long.

He'll have to platoon with Kevion Latham on the weak side. Latham saw considerable action last year as a redshirt freshman. He reminds me a lot of Josh Gaines in his physique and his motor. This will be his third year under Johnson's tutelage, so I expect him to be a solid player.

A Way Too Early Look At The 2009 Schedule - Week 7 - Penn State

JG2112 — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:30:12 -0000

More photos » by Carolyn Kaster - AP

6 months ago: Penn State football coach Joe Paterno pauses after he talked to media, Thursday, June 11, 2009, in State College, Pa. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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Penn State: At a glance:

Location: University Park, Pennsylvania
Stadium: Beaver Stadium (size: 107,282)
Expected Attendance: about 109,000.
Undergraduate population: 44,512.
First season: 1887
Number of Big Ten Titles: 3
All-time record: 800-349-32
All-time bowl record: 26-13-2.

Most awesome alum: undoubtedly Jonathan Frakes, better known as William T. Riker and "#1" on the new Star Trek series.

Most awesome Penn State fan site: Red, er, Black Shoe Diaries of course.

And here comes the Big Ten buzzsaw.

Much has changed since the last time these two teams played in 2006, a referee-assisted 28-27 overtime victory for the Nittany Lions at Metrodump. The Gophers have a new coach, a new stadium, and have switched offensive philosophies twice. For Penn State...errr......Joe Pa...errr....Darryl Cla......good linebac......okay, so much has changed for Minnesota since 2006.

This year Indiana and Michigan drop off the Gophers' schedule. It looks pretty bad, however, when one realizes that Penn State (11-2 in 2008) and Michigan State (9-4 in 2008) rotate on to the schedule. The Gophers get the "good" fortune to play their seventh game in 2009, and their second conference road game, in the pale fury of University Park, PA against the Fighting Paternos.

Why good? Well, Minnesota should be 5-1 or 4-2 going into the game (um, right?). If so, perhaps a repeat of the stirring victory over then #2 Penn State in 1999 could be in the offing. Whether that happens depends a lot upon injuries, morale, and players. Speaking of players, we're going to fly solo and analyze the Nittany Lions, starting with....

More after the jump.....

Penn State on Offense - You may have heard of Darryl Clark. Heck, your grandparents may have seen him play in the ‘40s. Clark returns as a fifth-year senior, but is six years' removed from high school, so he's closer to legally renting a car than he is to gaining the right to vote. In 2008, he completed almost 60% of his passes, throwing 19 TDs against only 6 INTs. He also ran for 10 TDs. His backup, Paul Devlin, transferred to Joe Flacco U., so true freshman (as well as Michigan and Virginia de-commit) Kevin Newsome backs him up. Seeing how Newsome struggled in the Lions' spring game, Penn State is an injury away from quarterbacking incompetence.

Penn State's five top rushing threats return, highlighted by Evan Royster and Stephon Green. Royster gained 1236 yards at 6.47 ypc, and Green gained 578 yards at 5.50 ypc. This will be the obvious focal point for the Gophers' defense, because.....

.....Penn State's three senior receivers (Deon Butler, Jordan Norwood and Derrick Williams) all graduated, taking a majority of the receptions with them. Top returning wideouts include Graham Zug, Brett Brackett, and James "DUI" McDonald. This part of the offense will likely be functional but non-threatening at the time of the Gopher game. The wideouts' inexperience should allow Traye Simmons to help the run defense, hopefully neutralizing Royster and Green.

The Lions also lose three all Big Ten offensive linemen, though they have Stefen Wisniewski moving to center and Dennis Landolt at right tackle. New 6'5", 313-pound left tackle (and gloriously named) DeOn'tae Pannell will have to step in and perform at a high level to ensure the rushing game does not stall.

Bottom Line - Penn State's Offense: The offense will likely take a step back from its production in 2008. If Clark, Royster, and/or Wisniewski spend any significant period of time out injured, the offense will have significant production issues. Minnesota's large defensive line and mobile linebackers should be able to at least hang with the rushing attack, and the defensive backfield should handle the Lions' inexperienced wideouts. Due to Tramaine Brock's departure, however, we can count on at least one video replay with Ryan Collado trailing a wideout into the end zone.

Penn State on Defense: Linebacker U., right? Shane Conlan, Paul Pozlusny, Leapin' LaVar Arrington. Lately, Penn State has also churned out a number of solid defensive linemen, including 2009 draftees Aaron Maybin and Maurice Evans.

Well, wait a moment. Evans wasn't drafted, which begs a couple of questions. Was the NFL correct in determining Evans made a mistake in coming out early? Did Evans consider himself too good for college? What is left in State College? Well, Jared Odrick for one. Odrick had 41 tackles last year, 9.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. Also, Jack Crawford is new to the sport, being British and all (check that name), but he is highly regarded in Pennsylvania (as well as Portsmouth, for that matter) and will be expected to contribute. Ollie Ogbu and Abe Koroma are also returning linemen.

As for linebackers, well, if you follow a police blotter, you may have read some stuff about Navorro Bowman this off-season (all the action should serve Bowman well: he's a Crime, Law and Justice major, which I presume is University-Speak for "Wants to Be a Cop or District Attorney if he tears his knee up"). It seems JoePa is satisfied Bowman is ready to play football instead of smoking spliffs or beating up coeds. This is too bad for Duane Bennett, et al, as Bowman had 106 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, and 4 INT's last year.

Also returning after a year out due to injury is LB Sean Lee. He was all Big Ten in 2007 before tearing his ACL, and will undoubtedly be a tough block for the Gophers' O-line.

Wide receivers are the big question mark on offense. On defense, it's the defensive backfield. All starters have moved on, leaving CBs AJ Wallace and (really?) Knowledge Timmons and Ss Drew Astorino and Cedric Jeffries, as well as a cavalcade of 2009 signees, to take their place. This is where Gophers Offensive Coordinator Jedd Fisch should be picking on the defense, if he is the offensive genius Coach Brewster has made him out to be.

Bottom line - Penn State's Defense: The defense will step back this year from their dominating 2008 performance. Odrick, Bowman and Lee form about 40 % of a solid front seven. However, the defensive secondary is untested and has little experience. The Gophers should abandon any pretense of balance in their offensive attack in this game, spread five wideouts, get Pittman, Stoudermire, Brandon, McKnight, Kuznia, Decker, and Carpenter in space against the untested secondary, and pick them apart.

Penn State on Special Teams: 4-year starter Kevin Kelly departs, with either (Michigan de-commit) Anthony Fera or Colin Wagner assuming the kicking duties for Penn State's all-time leading scorer. Jeremy Boone, a senior returns as punter with a 43.03 ypk average from 2008.

One additional point bears mentioning regarding PSU's special teams. The youngest and most inexperienced areas of Penn State's team are their wideouts and defensive backfield. Kickoff return teams normally field some reserve players from these units. As the starters for Penn State are younger, the backups are even younger. Troy Stoudermire should be able to exploit these players' inexperience and youth and have some big returns at Beaver Stadium.

Bottom Line: What to Expect

Minnesota is Penn State's Homecoming opponent. We are sandwiched between a home game against Eastern Illinois (heh?) and a road game against Michigan. We could be the beneficiary of a team which wasn't really tested the prior week. Also, if the Wolverines improve, Minnesota could be the beneficiary of a team looking ahead to a 3-game stretch including Michigan, Northwestern and Ohio State.

As for the Gophers, this is the start of what looks to be a bad stretch of games, including a road game at Ohio State, home games against Michigan State and Illinois, an off week against South Dakota State, and then the battle for the Pig. This is the best chance to beat one of those scheduled "rough games." Penn State has little experience at wideout, even less in the defensive backfield, and is exploitable in special teams. If the Gophers spread the field and pick on Penn State's defense, the Gophers could walk out of Pennsylvania with a victory.

Minnesota 38
Penn State 34

Your say....

Poll

Who will win on October 17th?

Minnesota

41 votes

Penn State

369 votes

410 votes | Poll has closed

Penn State Recruiting Update - Defense

BSD — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 18:10:18 -0000

The other day we went through an update on Penn State's recruiting efforts on the offensive side of the ball, so today we'll go through the defense.

Defensive Tackles

Projected Need: 2

Verbal Commits: None

In the last two recruiting classes Penn State has brought in two defensive tackles: Brandon Ware and Jordan Hill. Jared Odrick runs out of eligibility this year, and Tom McEowen, Abe Koroma, and Ollie Ogbu aren't far behind. So Penn State really needs to bring in two defensive tackles in this class.

So far there is nothing in the basket, but signs are looking good with Sharrif Floyd from Philadelphia, PA. Floyd is a five-star prospect and the #3 rated tackle in the country as rated by Scout. They also just got in the game with DaQuan Jones of Johnson City, NY and gave him a scholarship offer.

Personally I feel really good about our chances with both of these guys. Floyd is slow playing things, but I think we're the leader there. He has said he doesn't have a top five, but if he did, Penn State would be in it. Jones just got his offer and plans to visit at the end of this month. I wouldn't be surprised if he commits during his visit or within a week after it.

Defensive Ends

Projected Need: 2

Verbal Commits: None

The early departures of Maurice Evans and Aaron Maybin left the depth chart pretty thin at defensive tackle. So I'm thinking Penn State is going to take two defensive ends in this class.

They haven't landed any commitments yet, but the coaches have been very selective in their offers. Dominique Easley from Staten Island is the top target. He hasn't named any leaders yet, but I have to think our reputation, location, and depth chart have to be attractive to him and Penn State will be in it to the end with him.

The other big target is Kyle Baublitz from York, PA. He has made numerous visits to Penn State, and the Nittany Lions are considered to be his leader.

Linebackers

Projected Need: 2

Verbal Commits: Mike Hull

Penn State only took one linebacker, Glen Carson, last February. Sean Lee is gone after this season, and there's a high possibility Navorro Bowman won't be back next year if he has another great season. So I'm thinking we need to take two kids in this class.

Mike Hull committed back in December, but we still need one more. Everyone seems to think it's just a matter of time until Khari Fortt commits to Penn State. His high school teammate, Silas Redd, is already a Nittany Lion. Fortt loves Penn State and has made several visits.

Defensive Backs

Projected Need: 1

Verbal Commits: None

Penn State took a huge haul of defensive backs in the last class with three safeties and three cornerbacks. By all accounts Gerald Hodges looks impressive and will probably be a three year starter beginning in 2010. Drew Astorino looks like he has the other safety spot all to himself until 2012. With freshmen speedsters Derrick Thomas, Darrell Givens, and Stephen Morris competing at cornerback along with sophomore D'Anton Lynn, the secondary is looking pretty promising for the foreseeable future.

But with Timmons and Wallace graduating after this season there are a few scholarships available to give. So I wouldn't be surprised if they take one or two kids, but I'm not counting on it. I think with the way Astorino and Hodges have been impressing along with the overflow of bodies at cornerback it's very possible we'll sit this year out when it comes to defensive backs. If a four or five star stud at another position wants to get on board, this is the position that will suffer in order to make room for them.

But having said all of that, Penn State is floating a few offers out there. It never hurts to dip your lure in the water and see what bites. Jeff Knox from Maryland, Sean Parker from California, and Keenan Allen from North Carolina are reportedly sporting offers. Of those four, Knox seems to be the most promising since he lives in the state of Larryland and he recently listed Penn State in his top four along with Michigan, Maryland, and Pitt. But he has yet to make a visit to campus.

June Status Report

It's still early in the recruiting season, but it's a bit concerning that the offense has six verbal commitments and the defense only has one. (I never thought I would see the day!) And that one is Mike Hull who committed seven months ago.

The coaches are clearly being selective in who they offer as evidenced by the low number of known offers out there. They have to do this with a small class. My concern is that we wait too long on these kids, and then if they decide to go elsewhere it's too late to get back in the game with the other top targets. I would feel better if we had more offers out there, but I understand it's a delicate balance. You don't want to fill up your roster with all the two and three star kids that would normally be destined for the MAC. I suspect we'll see another round of offers sent out soon after the summer camp circuit wraps up.

Nitt Picks Is Running Like Hell

Run Up The Score — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 17:02:55 -0000

More photos » by PAT LITTLE - AP

8 months ago: Penn State linebacker Sean Lee (45) talks with teammate Chris Colasanti during spring football practice on Friday, March 27, 2009 in State College, Pa. (AP Photo/Pat Little)

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Okay, back to football.

Penn State recently held its annual Coaches' Clinic -- this year it was indoors at Holuba Hall due to the windy conditions. For the uninitiated, it's an event attended by hundreds of high school coaches from across the state. There are instructional presentations by the PSU coaches, but the big news always comes out of the live scrimmage.

Last year, the highly unusual news was the offense performing quite well against the defense. This year, things seem to have reverted to the defense just mauling its adversaries. Some reports from across the state:

Mark Wogenrich, Allentown Morning Call (which also has a two-deep depth chart):

On the very first play of the scrimmage, tight end Andrew Quarless jumped offsides. Head coach Joe Paterno was all over him.

Paterno also worked over cornerback Knowledge Timmons, who seemed physical but uncertain when to turn it on and off. He looked like a perpetual pass-interference flag waiting to happen.

Running back Evan Royster is effortlessly smooth. He scored on a 40-yard run that didn’t seem to require much energy expenditure.

Bit of a surprise to see Andrew Dailey at strong safety. Dailey, a 6-2 redshirt sophomore, spent last season at receiver and linebacker. True freshman Gerald Hodges was at third-team safety.

Sophomore receiver A.J. Price is listed at 173 pounds.That has to include pads.

[More from Wogenrich here.]

Bob Flounders, Harrisburg Patriot-News:

Penn State is rebuilding an offensive line that lost three first-team All-Big Ten choices to graduation. By the time the Big Ten season rolls around next falll, the unit might be solid enough to hold its own. ... There were few surprises. Senior Knowledge Timmons started at the one cornerback spot opposite A.J. Wallace and sophomore Andrew Dailey -- listed as a linebacker on the roster -- worked at one of the safety spots along with Drew Astorino.

[And from a different Flounders PennLive.com link: Harrisburg High redshirt freshman defensive tackle Brandon Ware, who is rumored to be down to 341 pounds after spending much of 2008 in the 360s, worked with the third-team defense and was a handful when an O-lineman tried to engage him one-on-one. ... Shuler caught a touchdown pass from Clark, one of the rare shining moments for the offense. ... Sophomore Jon Ditto, listed as a wideout on the roster, is working at outside linebacker. ... Other notables who were held out of practice were defensive end Jerome Hayes (knee) and tailbacks Stephfon Green (ankle) and Brent Carter (knee)]

Eric Thomas, Carlisle Sentinel:

Judging by one scrimmage in limited work against the first team defense, it appears redshirt freshman walk-on Matt McGloin may have the edge over Kevin Newsome. Newsome looked tentative under center, had a pass batted down at the line and was mugged by defensive end Kevion Latham and was off on deep balls during the scrimmage. The true freshman from Virginia who enrolled in January also had trouble handling some snaps both with the first and second string offensive line and appeared to be off on his timing when under center. On one play Newsome appeared to have trouble with a three-step drop. At first glance he appeared to throw the ball a lot of like Michael Robinson did, a side-armed somewhat inaccurate style.

The first team offensive line had DeOn’Tae Pannell at left tackle, Matt Stankiewitch at left guard, Stefen Wisniewski at center, Lou Eliades at right guard and Dennis Landolt at right tackle.

First team defense was Latham and Jack Crawford at the ends, Jared Odrick and Ollie Ogbu inside. Mike Mauti, Josh Hull and Navarro Bowman were the linebackers.

Sean Lee was held out of contact during the scrimmage and will do so all spring.

The secondary had A.J. Wallace and Knowledge Timmons at the corners with Andrew Dailey at free safety and Drew Astorino at strong safety.

The second team defensive line had Pete Massaro and Eric Latimore at the ends with Devon Still and Abe Koroma inside. Bani Gbadyu, Chris Colasanti and Nate Stupar at the linebackers and a secondary of D’Anton Lynn and Devin Fentress at the corners and Cedric Jeffries and Nick Sukay at the safety spots.

Jon Ditto, a one-time tight end, worked out with the linebackers.

On the first play the first team offense ran, tight end Andrew Quarless jumped. It appears the starting tight end spot is up for grabs between Quarless and East Pennsboro’s Mickey Shuler. Shuler made a nice grab on a throw from McGloin and later on a beautiful throw from Clark scored. Chaz Powell has inherited the Derrick Williams role, even his No. 2. Powell lined up in the backfield on several snaps.

Harrisburg’s Brandon Ware had a strong showing taking down reserve lineman Jonathan Stewart to pressure the quarterback and later knocking down a pass at the line of scrimmage.

The takeaways? No surprise that the defensive line is going to be amazing, and with the return of Sean Lee, Penn State will probably have the best front seven in the conference. Pray to whatever gods you believe in for the health of Daryll Clark, because Newsome isn't even close to being ready for live action. If Clark goes down, we're officially in "entering a world of pain" territory unless Newsome or McGloin improve greatly. Be afraid, again, about the defensive secondary, although Penn State can (for the second straight year) take comfort in the fact that they won't face many prolific passing attacks in the Big Ten. The coaching staff is quite obviously looking at various defensive back combinations -- let's hope they come up with a winning superfecta by October. Finally, the wide receiver position remains problematic. Zug jokes aside, they're not scaring anybody with a competent pass defense, and that means we're going to need a hell of a lot more from Mickey Shuler and...gulp...Andrew Quarless.

Nitt Picks Will Not Be Drafted In The First Round

Run Up The Score — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 17:00:06 -0000

All kinds of good stuff floating around The Internets today, so let's flag a few stories for the people who are stuck at work (hi!) on the Friday after Christmas.

It's been a successful year for the Nittany Lions on the field, but a very quiet year for them elsewhere:

Despite those hurdles, Bowman took over at one starting linebacker spot four games into this season and has remained there.

"I've matured a lot," he said. "I notice a lot of things that I don't do now. I appreciate my family just always being there for me. Just Joe (Paterno) and the Penn State family also just helping me out and leading me on the right path."

Paterno has noticed the growth of Bowman, on and off the field.

"He's become very solid," Paterno said. "And when he lost his dad, I think that was a shock to him and kind of made him think twice about his obligation to his family and some things."

Other Penn State defenders who have benefited from second chances are end Maurice Evans and tackle Abe Koroma. The pair still faces misdemeanor marijuana possession charges from a Sept. 2 incident at their apartment. Each sat out three games, returned for the Illinois game, and contributed to a highly-rated defense.

Evans, a junior who before this season had been promoted for All-America honors based on his 12.5 sacks from last season, started the opener but has been a backup since, registering 31 tackles and 4.5 sacks.

"I tried to come back and be a force like I was before," Evans said. "Things didn't work out that way, but I'm happy with the progress now from the beginning of the season."

Koroma, a redshirt sophomore, also was a first-game starter but has been a backup since. He finished the regular season with 24 tackles and 1.5 sacks.

"I'm happy where I'm at right now, where the team's at right now," Koroma said. "I'm blessed."

It would be a bit foolish to say that the 11-1 record is directly due to the improved citizenry of the Penn State players, but it certainly could not have hurt. And hey, we know Maurice Evans will be back, right? As for Aaron Maybin, well...

When you go from having 12 tackles - total - in 2007 to 12 sacks, 19 tackles for losses and three forced fumbles the following season, maybe the worst thing you can do is wonder why and how it all happened.

"I don't know. I try not to think about it," the serendipitous Maybin said when asked about his dizzying ascent from a possible rotation-type guy on Penn State's defensive line to its most acclaimed star. "In any case, that's really not something I can control now. Things happen for a reason."

As is the case with run-stuffing junior defensive tackle Jared Odrick, Maybin, a 6-4, 247-pounder from Ellicott City, Md., is contemplating an early jump to the NFL. Each has filed paperwork with the league to assess his draft prospects, although Maybin said his only focus for now is on fifth-ranked Southern California (11-1), which takes on No. 6 Penn State (11-1) in the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day.

"I'm really not concerned about it," Maybin said of the NFL evaluation of his potential for going high in the draft, should he choose to come out. "I probably won't get the report until after the Rose Bowl, anyway."

Okay, nothing set in stone there. I think we all agree that Maybin would be foolish to come back if he was truly projected as a top ten pick. Whether he would actually be drafted that soon is still open for debate.

ESPN.com recently ran a nationwide poll about who would win the Rose Bowl. You likely know the results by now -- 49 48 states picked USC. The Penn State players were bemused:

"I'm glad we got one state," [A.Q.] Shipley said. "It's obviously disappointing that 49 other states don't think we've got a shot."

Defensive end Josh Gaines, watching on the Penn State campus, ordinarily doesn't worry about such things. He made an exception this time.

"I immediately jumped up," he said. "I got a little excited."

Then he called teammate Jared Odrick.

"I was actually writing a paper, and I didn't see it," Odrick said. "I think it kind of caught me off-guard during the conversation. I was eight pages deep in a paper."

...

"We've developed a black eye for the past couple years," Shipley said. "I was talking to James Laurinaitis from Ohio State, and if we win both of our games, [The Big Ten conference is] back on the map. It's going to be a challenge, but we both think we can do it."

I'm sure we'll get into recruiting once the Rose Bowl is in the books, but the Pocono Record has a nice rundown (they're highly underrated for PSU coverage, in my opinion), including news of a possible second quarterback, the ongoing saga of five-star LB Jelani Jenkins, and wide receiver Justin Brown of Delaware.

Finally, we know that athletes from every bowl-eligible team receive an armful of goodies. The Rose Bowl swag:

The Rose Bowl ranked among the middle of the pack, giving each player a Sony DVD camcorder, a Fossil watch, an Ogio backpack, a New Era 59Fifty fitted cap, a plaque, an autographed football and a one-year subscription to ESPN the Magazine.

Not too bad. Who autographs the football, anyway?

Elsewhere: USC Offensive Coordinator Steve Sarkisian says Aaron Maybin is "the best [pass] rusher we've ever seen." Joe Paterno still isn't sure whether he'll coach from the sideline or the press box. David Jones takes a fun look at the first USC-Penn State Rose Bowl in 1922. The apparent star of the Rose Bowl Parade? A 49-foot tall robot from Japan. Oh, and miniature donkeys from Indiana. Both terrifying in their own ways.

Grading the Defense Against Purdue

BSD — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 03:07:20 -0000

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are intercepting in space
(Photo via PennLive.com)

It was a gritty win on the road against an opponent that admittedly has more questions than answers. Let's go through the defense and see how they did.

Defensive Line

Once again it was a solid performance by everyone in the trenches. Kory Sheets was held to half his season average and pretty well contained all day with one or two exceptions. Jared Odrick was a monster in the middle clogging the inside running lanes all day. Abe Koroma was also very impressive.

In the passing game I felt like the line wasn't consistently getting good pressure on Painter. But they had a few moments here and there and Maybin got another sack while Gaines and Odrick split another. But Maybin pretty much disappeared after that early sack and we didn't really hear for him the rest of the day.

Final Grade: B+

Linebackers

Josh Hull easily had his best game of the season recording 11 tackles, all solo. He looked much more decisive than he did against Illinois and had two tackles for loss to show for it. But then, last week you had to guess whether the option was going to Juice Williams, Daniel Dufrene, or Arrelious Benn. This week the option was between Curtis Painter or Kory Sheets. It's a safe bet to assume Sheets was getting the ball 90% of the time. But regardless, Hull played a great game.

The coaches rested Navorro Bowman a few days during the week leading up to the game to allow him to heal up some bumps and bruises. Maybe he was a bit rusty because of it since he didn't seem his explosive self. But he did manage a few big tackles.

Bani Gbadyu was flying all over the field like a pinball...fast and out of control. He ran by a few plays and missed a few tackles. But every once in a while he hits his target and it's pretty impressive when he does.

Final Grade: B

Secondary

I was really afraid that Curtis Painter was going to torch us for 350 yards in this game. I'm pleasantly surprised to admit I was wrong. The secondary looked a lot more like the group we saw in 2006 rather than 2007. They held the highly efficient Purdue passing attack to just 158 yards. It's great to see Tony Davis out on the wing making plays again. We really missed him last year. His counterpart, A.J. Wallace, is coming together nicely in pass coverage, but when asked to tackle someone he misses more than he hits. After dropping an interception in the third quarter he was yanked in favor of Lydell Sargeant. But I think it's safe to say Wallace has a firm grasp on the starting job going forward.

Anthony Scirrotto looked like his old self laying out people crossing the middle and crashing the line hard in run support. And while we're on the topic of crashing run support, how about Drew Astorino. The redshirt freshman was flying all over the field sacrificing his body and making hits that could be heard from Nebraska. He also forced the only turnover of the game in reading Painter perfectly to make an interception. He did get a little too aggressive in drawing a pass interference penalty, but personally I didn't think the ball was catchable.

Final Grade: A

Special Teams

Kevin Kelly was solid, even if a hobbled Joe Paterno could have made those chip shots from 20 and 25 yards. His kickoffs, however, are completely unpredictable. You never know if they are going to go out the back of the endzone, land on the 20, or go out of bounds. This week he had one go in the endzone for a touchback while the others landed at the 9, 8, and the 5. Not bad.

Is it me or does Jeremy Boone not look as good as last year. Granted he's not getting as many chances, but his kicks seem to be noticeably shorter. And he's been terrible at landing kicks inside the 20 all season. This week he had two kicks land in the endzone. Remember a few weeks ago they had Kelly pooch punting when they had a short field? I'm starting to wonder if something is up with Boone.

The return game was awful. Chaz Powell replaced Wallace on kickoffs and returned his one chance just eight yards to the 22 yard line. Derrick Williams wasn't much better. He returned his kickoff chance just ten yards to the 14 yard line. He also fair caught a punt he probably could have gained some yardage on. Annoying, but after the recent mishaps I think it's smart to just catch the ball and let this high powered offense do their thing.

Final Grade: C

Defensive Coaching

To all those who claim the coaches are loyal to their seniors to a fault, take note that A.J. Wallace (junior) started ahead of Lydell Sargeant (senior) and Drew Astorino (redshirt freshman) played the entire game. They are getting their best talent on the field and for this they deserve credit.

The coaches played nickel defense almost exclusively on first down with Bowman and Hull as the linebackers, Astorino at Hero, and Rubin in the nickel. They rarely blitzed and asked the front four to provide all the pressure. Sometimes they did, and sometimes they didn't. Painter had some success here and there finding the holes in the zone between the linebackers for seven or eight yards. This led to some frustrating moments in the first half when the defense kept finding itself in 2nd and 3 and 3rd and 1 situations. But they came in with the classic Penn State "Bend-Don't-Break" philosophy hoping Purdue would make mistakes. A good bet against Purdue. Their biggest mistake was trying to run the ball on first down. When they did, they often got stuffed for little or no gain forcing long yardage on second down. When Painter is asked to gain five or six yards through the air he can be an effective quarterback. Ask him to gain you 15 yards on third and 10 and he's awful. The coaches realized this and formed the perfect gameplan to beat them.

As for the long drive surrendered to Elliot, Penn State switched to their base 4-3 defense when he came in the game. Perhaps thinking they could rattle the new kid they called a few blitzes and he made them pay with short passes over the middle that gained yards after the catch. It was like Purdue was waiting for us to blitz all day and finally got their chance when Painter came out of the game. We should probably not do this anymore. But I'm willing to give the coaches a break here since the game was in hand and I'm always in favor of pressuring young quarterbacks.

Final Grade: A

Poll

Who was the defensive MVP of the Purdue Game?

Josh Hull

216 votes

Jared Odrick

60 votes

Navorro Bowman

29 votes

Anthony Scirrotto

15 votes

Drew Astorino

161 votes

481 votes | Poll has closed

Evans And Koroma Back At Practice

Run Up The Score — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 02:07:43 -0000

About time. Fight On State has the goods:

Sources tell FightOnState.com that Penn State defensive linemen Abe Koroma and Maurice Evans practiced Monday for the first time since a Sept. 2 search of their on-campus apartment turned up what police reported as a "small amount" of marijuana.

Last week, both players were slapped with misdemeanor marijuana possession charges. Lion coach Joe Paterno has consistently declined comment on their status with the program, saying he wanted to see how things play out legally and with the university.

Evans and Koroma missed State's last three games. But both former starters were back at practice Monday wearing red jerseys, signifying they were on the second-team defense.

"Yeah, both Mo and Abe were back today," one observer said. "Who knows how much action they'll see this week [against Illinois]? Depends on the shape they are in and how the coaches — or at least one coach — feels about it."

As another observer explained, "Both of them got into drills today and were in the red jersey. I thought Maurice looked pretty good in his technique drills. I didn't get to see much of Abe, but others said he looked like he could contribute [this week]."