Dip in offense is causing concern at Penn State
Call them dips, funks or slumps, but Penn State’s offense has gone through unproductive stretches since demolishing Maryland
59-0 in late September.
The Nittany Lions have scored just
24 second-half points in their last three games against Michigan, Iowa and Purdue. They’ve watched their scoring average drop to 40.0 points per game and their total offense plummet to 439.3 yards per game.
Yes, they’ve been explosive, putting up four touchdowns in the first 16 minutes against the Boilermakers and 21 points in the first 23 minutes against the Wolverines.
But the Penn State offense lacks consistency, which apparently has bothered coach James Franklin enough that it took four questions and almost 800 words Tuesday at his weekly press conference for him to finally explain what he thinks is wrong.
“We have to eliminate the plays where we’ve (misidentified) the protection and we get pressured when we shouldn’t,” Franklin said. “Or they get pressure on us just because a guy made a play. Or we’ve got to eliminate the plays when we have a guy open and we don’t hit him consistently.
“The long balls, we would like to hit 100 percent of them, but you’re not going to. We’ve got to try to hit as many of them as we can because we all understand how impactful they are. It’s the third-and-8, and the tight end is wide open. …those you’ve got to hit 100 percent of the gimmes.”
The sixth-ranked Lions (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) will have to be sharp on offense against Michigan State (4-3, 2-2) Saturday at 3:30 at Spartan Stadium (TV-ABC; WEEUAM/830).
The Spartans have allowed at least 31 points in their last three games against Wisconsin, Ohio State and Indiana, but they have a veteran defense and have quieted Penn State’s offense the last two seasons in comeback wins. Michigan State ranks 22nd in the country in total defense (314.3 yards per game) and 33rd in points allowed (21.0).
“They have one of the better defenses in the country,” Franklin said. “I can speak for the six years that we’ve been here. They’re very consistent in terms of how they play defense at Michigan State and do it at a very, very high level.”
After rolling past Maryland, the Lions jumped to an early 28-0 lead against Purdue before they committed two turnovers and missed a field goal. They punted five straight times to open the second half before scoring a fourth-quarter touchdown for a 35-7 victory.
At Iowa, Penn State punted seven times and had three three-and-outs before scoring a late touchdown off a turnover for a 17-12 win.
Last week against Michigan, the Lions led 21-0 and then were forced to punt on their next five series before Sean Clifford lobbed a 53-yard touchdown to wide-open KJ Hamler in the fourth quarter in a 28-21 victory. They punted eight times and had six three-and-outs.
Penn State couldn’t crack 300 total yards against Iowa or Michigan, which both rank among the top 15 in total defense.
“In the run game, we’ve got to consistently make the one free hitter, the safety or whoever it may be, we have to make that guy miss,” Franklin said. “Or it’s the guy who’s being blocked but at the last minute falls off the block to make the tackle. We have to sustain that block half a second longer.”