Advertisement
football Edit

Five takeaways from Penn State's 24-10 loss to Arkansas in the Outback Bowl

Penn State's 2021 season ended in disappointing fashion on Saturday afternoon with a 24-10 loss to the Arkansas Razorbacks in the Outback Bowl. Despite a strong first-half effort out of the Nittany Lions' defense, KJ Jefferson and the Razorbacks' rushing attack were too much for them to handle in the second half.

Not a Subscriber? Join us With Our FREE 30-Day Premium Trial

Advertisement


1. Sean Clifford has a lackluster game to finish his 2021 season

The Outback Bowl served as a nice reflection of Sean Clifford's career as the Penn State starting quarterback. He's a solid college quarterback. he can get the job done to a degree, but at the same time he continues to make a lot of the mistakes you saw him make early in his career; mistakes he simply cannot be making in his fifth year.

On the day, the Cincinnati native was

Clifford's biggest mistake on Saturday afternoon was overthrowing a wide-open Theo Johnson down the middle of the field on what would've been an easy touchdown. Had Clifford hit Johnson, the Nittany Lions would've taken a 17-7 lead over Arkansas. Instead, they scored no points on the drive after an extremely strange fake punt play coming out of a timeout. While Arkansas wouldn't score on the ensuing possession, missing the opportunity to go up 17-7 was a huge hit to Penn State's momentum.

2. A tale of two halves defensively

It was really a tale of two halves for Penn State's defense. The first half defensively for Penn State was a really strong effort especially considering the circumstances. The defense was down all but three of their starters from their season opener against Wisconsin but early on stood up to a strong test. The front seven that consisted mostly of second and third stringers was regularly dominating Arkansas's offensive line and flustering Arkansas's KJ Jefferson in the backfield including five sacks. Smith Vilbert led the way in that aspect with three sacks in the first 30 minutes of play.

The second half, however, was a much different story for Penn State's defense. The Nittany Lions got routinely shredded on the ground by the Razorbacks in the second half, en route to what would be 353 rushing yards allowed including 110-yards and a touchdown from Jefferson. The Nittany Lions' inexperience looked to become more costly as time went on, the front seven consistently getting fooled on quarterback options and then not being fast enough to make up for the mistakes. It was also simply a strong second-half effort out of Arkansas's offensive line who made some great adjustments at halftime which resulted in consistently opening up major holes for Arkansas's run game to go through.

At the end of the day, the boxscore is ugly for Penn State's rush defense, the second-half gameplan from Arkansas looking similar to Illinois's gameplan against the Nittany Lions earlier this season. That being said, for a defense that was inexperienced and full of youth, there were a lot of quality takeaways that they could take into the offseason and build upon heading into next year. Some transfer portal additions are needed, no doubt, but there is a strong foundation there for Penn State defensively heading into next season. Not to mention that the secondary for the Nittany Lions' next season should once again be amongst the best in the Big Ten, if not the country. They did a phenomenal job against Arkansas in the Razorbacks' passing situations, playing strong coverage and allowing just 98 passing yards on the day.

3. Parker Washington shines in his first opportunity as the No.1 wide receiver

If there were any bright sides from Penn State's Outback Bowl loss, it was that sophomore Parker Washington was brilliant as the Nittany Lions' featured wide receiver. Washington recorded six receptions for 95 yards in the game including a brilliant one-handed reception reminiscent of Odell Beckham Jr.'s now legendary grab.

Sophomore KeAndre Lambert-Smith also had a solid game with three receptions for 74 yards and a touchdown including a wide-open 42-yard touchdown. Penn State's wide receiver room looks to be in good hands heading into 2022 with Washington and Lambert-Smith leading the way, not to mention the recent transfer portal addition of Mitchell Tinsley from Western Kentucky.

4. Ji'Ayir Brown steps up nicely in Jaquan Brisker's absence

If you were worried about what Penn State's secondary may look like next season especially at safety without Jaquan Brisker, then Ji'Ayir Brown's performance on Saturday should provide a nice morale boost. Brown had arguably his best game as a Nittany Lion against Arkansas, with two interceptions including a first-quarter interception in the endzone that kept the Razorbacks from taking an early 7-0 lead. Brown covered the entirety of the endzone and picked off a KJ Jefferson pass intended for Warren Thompson. He then picked up a second interception at the end of the first half on a wide receiver pass, this time coming out of the hands of Warren Thompson.

The Nittany Lions secondary will be just fine next year with Brown helping lead the way alongside the likes of Joey Porter Jr.

5. Fashanu and Tengwall flash in limited action

Penn State's offensive line was far from brilliant against the Hogs, but that comes as no surprise to anyone who watched the Nittany Lions over the course of the 2021 season. One bright spot, however, was that redshirt freshman Olu Fashanu looked solid in his first career start and while he gave up a few pressures, he didn't look at all out-manned while protecting Clifford's blind side.

Similarly, true freshman Landon Tengwall split time at left guard with Eric Wilson and look the far better of the two. Not only did Tengwall hold up well in pass protection, but he and Fashanu also combined to create a couple of long runs in the contest, one for Noah Cain and one for Keyvone Lee.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Follow us on Twitter!

Like us on Facebook

Follow us on Instagram

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel

Talk about it inside The Wrestling Room Board

Talk about it inside The Lions Den Message Board

Talk about it inside the Nittany Lounge free board

Advertisement