It’s Senior Day for the Penn State Football team, but they will need a very good showing on Offense and Defense if they want to squeak one out at home versus the Spartans of Michigan State. Adrian Amos, Brad Bars, Bill Belton, Jesse Della Valle, Miles Dieffenbach, Sam Ficken, Mike Hull, Ryan Keiser, CJ Olaniyan, Tyrone Smith, and Zach Zwinak will be playing at Beaver Stadium for the final time in their College Careers.
Passing:
Christian Hackenberg did not impress anyone last game facing Illinois, Penn State has moved way down to 67th in the Nation in the passing game. PSU throws one average 224 yards a game.
Michigan State’s passing game is ranked 34th in the nation in passing, Connor Cook has been a TD Throwing Machine, with 21 TD passes this season. Michigan State is averaging 269 passing yards per game.
Advantage: Michigan State
Rushing:
Penn State’s rushing game has improved a lot since they were last in the nation in running. They are currently 10 spots out of last in the nation, but the returns of Donovan Smith and Miles Dieffenbach has really helped create holes for Akeel Lynch and Bill Belton. PSU is averaging about 109 yards a game in the rushing game.
Michigan’s running game is ranked 20th in the nation. Jeremy Langford has burned defenses this year, he’ll have some trouble this game facing one of the best rush defenses in the nation in Penn State. Michigan State is currently averaging 245 yards on the ground per game.
Advantage: Michigan State
Receiving:
Penn State has one of the best receiving corps in the nation. They are led by freshman , DaeSean Hamilton (Allen Robinson 2.0), Hamilton is 7 yards shy of 800 yards receiving this season, and it is a near lock for him to reach that mark this game. Geno Lewis and Chris Godwin also accompany Hamilton, Lewis is the second best receiver for PSU with 640 yards, Chris Godwin has had at least one catch every game.
Led by Tony Lippett the Michigan State Spartans receiving game is also very good. The Cornerbacks and Safeties have to pay very to Lippett, he has burned players with his speed and moves. Tony Lippett has crossed the 1000 yard mark in receiving this season with a total 1071 yards. Their other leading receiver Keith Mumphery, has 362 yards receiving yards this season.
Advantage: Penn State
Defense:
Penn State has one of the best rush defenses in the nation, but their secondary hasn’t done as well. Penn State is in the top 10 of overall defenses in the nation, they are led by another very good Linebacker in Mike Hull.Penn State has a long tradition of making good Linebackers, and the Mike Hull project has gone very well, he is one of the best defensive players in the nation. The Michigan State offense averages around 45 points a game, but the Penn State defense gives up on average only 16 points a game, so it will be interesting how this matchup plays out.
The Michigan State defense has not done as well as last year, but they are still a very solid defense, they currently give up 20 points a game.
Advantage: Penn State
Senior Day is always a special day, but this class is very special because these guys were just freshman players when the Sandusky Scandal became public. These players could have transferred to another school without skipping a year of play (That’s the “punishment” if you transfer schools, but the NCAA let PSU players transfer without skipping a year of play), but they stayed with this program even though the sanctions were very harsh. These players have persevered through the tough times and this season they will get their reward, the postseason ban on PSU was lifted early in the season, and they just recently became eligible for the postseason.
Penn State will need their best showing on offense and defense in this game if they want to squeak one out for the seniors against Michigan State.
Prediction: Michigan State: 20 Penn State: 17
This prediction may seem pretty optimistic, but the emotions for PSU players will be running high, and don’t forget what happened vs Wisconsin last year. I think Penn State will make it a close game, but I don’t know if it’s very likely that they win this game.
Factor: Christian Hackenberg has to shine today, that will be the difference in the game, if he plays well Penn State has a shot, if he doesn’t, all hope is lost.