Penn State has lots of work ahead
Surprising OT loss Saturday to Indiana uncovers questions that need addressing
Penn State let its season opener slip away at the end, it will be noted, by unfortunate inches and decisions that turned sour.
A field goal barely missed to win it. An enemy touchdown barely scored to lose it. A head-shaking clock-management decision to keep it all going.
But there was so much more fundamental to the stunning loss to Indiana — no matter that it was the first time these Nittany Lions had played in 10 months, no matter that they were breaking in a new offensive coordinator.
Too much went wrong for a team ranked in the top 10, one that shouldn’t even be in position to lose at the end.
That’s what matters most in this pandemic-shortened season that only ratchets up in difficulty with College Football Playoff favorite Ohio State coming to town this week.
It’s one thing that Penn State is staring at an 0-2 start for the first time in eight years. It’s quite another to wonder when the Nittany Lions will be able to fix these unexpected shortcomings to allow themselves to perform close to their expected level.
If there’s anything you could depend on from coach James Franklin’s teams, it’s that they rarely beat themselves, almost never lose to someone when they own the talent advantage.
Yet for parts of the first three quarters Saturday, his deepest and most talented team yet at Penn State all but handed over momentum and the outcome to the Hoosiers with one basic blunder after another.
From 10 penalties to three turnovers to one missed field goal after another. From dropping balls to overthrowing receivers.
‘‘I don’t think our attention to detail was great, including myself,’’ tight end Pat Freiermuth said after it was over. ‘‘We got ourselves in good opportunities, but we turned the ball over too many times. . . . You can’t win the game like that.
‘‘We can’t even use the excuse that it’s a new offense because we’ve had a hundred meetings and a hundred walkthroughs prior to this.’’
At least a defense breaking in three new linebackers, then losing one of those, gave a good account of itself. It gave up only 211 yards through four quarters and overtime and was steady throughout.
Even when the defense got beat in the end, it was mostly because of the sudden superlative play of Indiana quarterback Michael Penix and his receivers.
No, the offense and special teams pulled the Nittany Lions down to the point where preparation comes into question — and where the once-promising future seems cloudy.
While quarterback Sean Clifford finally found his rhythm and led his team back, he was forced to do much of it with his legs and absorb far more hits than intended. His 119 rushing yards took 17 carries, which is what Penn State is trying to avoid.
To make matters worse, the Nittany Lions are not only without starting tailback Journey Brown for the foreseeable future, but they also might be missing top backup Noah Cain, who left with an injury.
And sophomore Devyn Ford is not the hopeful answer. He gained only 69 yards on 20 carries, with 14 of those yards coming against a defense that begged him to score when he should not have.
Even worse, the special-teams units fell all over themselves, an embarrassing development for second-year coordinator Joe Lorig.
If anything, Penn State was expected to control the game by relying on its strong running game and the decision-making of Clifford. Now it seems questionable whether this team can fix its holes to achieve the kind of success expected.
Beating Ohio State won’t be expected in a nearly empty Beaver Stadium. Rather, the true difficulty ahead lies in facing beatable opponents that will require a kind of discipline, precision and passing game invisible for much of Saturday.
Forget about an 0-2 start. The meaning of this season will be determined by how quickly the Nittany Lions grow in the seven weeks that follow.
That always was the case. It’s just that the work never figured to be this substantial to get there.