33 Thoughts on Penn State's 33-14 win over Central Michigan
Despite surrendering a once early 14-0 lead, Penn State defeated Central Michigan comfortably on Saturday afternoon in front of a nearly sold-out Beaver Stadium.
1. It did seem Penn State was going to avoid the emotional letdown on Saturday against Central Michigan. Getting out to that 14-0 lead, it looked like this wasn't going to even be close. Until it wasn't.... more on that later.
2. Sean Clifford really can be an enigma at times. Starts great, going 8-for-8 but then misses seven of his nine. Notably, however, he did get back into rhythm, completing 12 of his last 17 passing attempts.
3. While his final line of 22-for-34, 217, and three touchdowns is a quality one, a few of his misses are the passing attempts that will stand out the most from this game. There were some pretty bad misses in that second quarter. If you break it down by depth, Clifford was very good within 20-yards going 22-for-28 but again it's not about the misses but about the quality of some of those misses that is concerning.
4. Numerous times throughout Saturday's game, Clifford had open receives in the flats but refused to look their way. Had he looked towards those open receivers, Penn State likely would have had an even more comfortable victory.
5. We talked last week that true freshman running back Kaytron Allen is potentially just as good as Nick Singleton but there is an argument that he's the better running back right now. He's certainly the more technically sound running back at this moment in time but his vision is truly elite. A fantastic day for the former four-star recruit with 13 carries for 111 yards and one touchdown.
6. Brenton Strange's "breakout" through four games has been tremendous, he's improved his game in many areas and is quickly becoming a complete tight end. He had five more receptions for 42 yards and two touchdowns against Central Michigan.
7. Theo Johnson recorded his first reception of the season on Saturday - good to see the former top-ranked tight end involved but it's clear it will take some time for him to get fully back in the groove.
8. Parker Washington was a favorite target of Sean Clifford's in this one with nine targets. The Texas native recorded six receptions for 64 yards. Mitchell Tinsley once again is setting himself up as one of the better wide receivers in the Big Ten. He had another four receptions for 51 yards and a touchdown.
9. Nice moment early in the first quarter when Sean Clifford found younger brother Liam Clifford on a screen. The younger Clifford had two receptions in the game for 19 yards.
10. The offensive line had trouble opening up running lanes but was good in their pass protection. Sean Clifford wasn't sacked at all in the game while Central Michigan totaled just three quarterback hurries in the game.
11. Penn State was 5-for-13 on third down and two-for-three on fourth down. Still would like to see improvement on third down. Another four turnovers were forced for Penn State this weekend but they were only able to muster up seven points off those turnovers. Over the last two weeks, Penn State has forced eight turnovers and has just 17 points off those eight turnovers. It will be imperative that they find out why they're struggling
12. - Let's talk about the place kicking here - while it hasn't been a nightmare just yet, the early results are very concerning. Over the last three weeks, they've missed three field goal attempts and two extra points, both extra points being blocked. With their tricky schedule following the bye week, the chances of the kicking game costing Penn State a game or two at some point or another seems pretty high.
13. - Overall, I thought the offense on Saturday was solid but overall left a lot to be desired. Central Michigan's consistent usage of cover zero was a problem for the Nittany Lions who have enough playmakers that they should've had better success.
14. Another great week for the Penn State defensive line, PFF gave the Nittany Lions 31 total pressures in the game, the second straight week that they totaled 30+ pressures.
15. While Adisa Isaac and Chop Robinson had quality days, Dani Dennis-Sutton and Amin Vanover flashed their abilities against Central Michigan. The former five-star in Dennis-Sutton is starting to put it together which would be big for Penn State as they head into Big Ten play.
16. Abdul Carter had a quieter game this week but continues to show improvement and is arguably one of Penn State's top linebackers already. Curtis Jacobs was solid in all aspects as well.
17. That being said, opposing offenses continue to target the Nittany Lions' linebacker room and the middle of the field. Out of starting quarterback Daniel Robertson's attempts, the Chippewas targeted the middle of the field within 10-yard 15 times, completing 11 of those attempts. He was also 3-for-4 on passing attempts between 10-20 yards. When Penn State goes up against more athletic wide receiver rooms in Ohio State, Michigan, and Maryland just to name a few - it could end up being long days for Penn State in that regard.
18. Going to the secondary, Zakee Wheatley is a fantastic playmaker, there's just no other way to put it. The redshirt freshman appears to be a budding star thanks to playing consistent high-IQ football which allows him to read and react quickly, putting him in tremendous spots to make plays. Through the Nittany Lions' first four games this season, Wheatley has one forced fumble and two interceptions. Truly living up to his name as the turnover king.
19. Kalen King had his best game as a Nittany Lion against Central Michigan, He was targeted seven times on the afternoon, allowing just two completions while breaking up four passes. He also had one interception while also recovering a fumble which he forced. If King can continue to improve, Penn State's already strong secondary is only going to be scarier for opposing defenses this season.
20. Joey Porter Jr continues to be phenomenal in coverage, targeted five times, allowing one reception. He also had three pass breakups in the game. Johnny Dixon with a great game himself, including three pass breakups and one interception.
21. Hat tip to Audrey Snyder of The Athletic but through four games, Penn State has 41 pass breakups this season after recording 41 all of last season.
22. Joey Porter Jr on the season has been targeted 21 times so far, allowing just nine receptions while totaling seven pass breakups. He continues to build his stock as one of the nation's top corners and a future first-round pick.
23. Penn State's tackling as a team has improved since week one but still can be a struggle at times for the Nittany Lions. They missed another 10 tackles against Central Michigan this week.
24. A week after struggling on third and longs against Auburn, Penn State's defense bounced back, keeping the Chippewas to 0-for-4 in those situations. Overall, Central Michigan was 5-for-15 on third down.
25. Central Michigan running back Lew Nichols was the country's leading rusher last year and Penn State did a good job in containing the dynamic running back on Saturday. Nichols had 13 carries for 67 yards, an average of 5.2 yards per carry.
26. We noted above how Daniel Richardson was 11-for-15 across the middle of the field within 10-yards and 3-for-4 on passes between 10-20 yards. When not targeting the middle of the field/the linebackers, he completed 12 of 26 passing attempts for 89 yards.
27. Manny Diaz's aggressiveness continues to cause chaos for Penn State as evident by the seven turnovers (not counting Central Michigan's muffed punt) the last two weeks. However, we also saw how it could hurt Penn State. On Central Michigan's first touchdown, Diaz brought the house on 4th and goal, allowing wide receiver Finn Hogan to get open with no one around him. He had to make a nice catch on a rushed throw from Richardson but in that situation, blitzing nearly everybody made little sense. (See play below)
It will be intriguing to see if he's willing to make such a play call against some of the better offenses Penn State will face.
28. Barney Amor has an argument to be the best punter in the nation, no doubt about it. He has continuously pinned opposing teams inside their own 20 this season. He did so again on Saturday with three punts inside CMU's 20-yard line.
29. Amor is averaging 46.1 yards per punt so far this season. For those with more than one punt, that's the best in school history For those wondering, Jordan Stout averaged 44.5, Jeremy Boone 43.1, and Blake Gillikin 43.0.
30. It wasn't always pretty but in a day where many of the country's top teams struggled, you take a still rather comfortable victory and you move on. A lot for Penn State to clean up this week but at the end of the day, they're 4-0 and are knocking on the door of the top 10.
31. This is now the sixth time in nine years that Penn State has started 4-0 on the season in the James Franklin era.
32. Sean Clifford continues to move closer to becoming Penn State's all-time passing touchdowns leader. After three on Saturday, he now has 70, just seven behind Trace McSorley's school record of 77.
33. Looking forward to the season entering Big Ten play, Northwestern is a matchup Penn State should win by multiple scores but Pat Fritzgerald's program has always given Penn State struggles.
--------------------------------------------------------------
• Subscribe to our YouTube Channel