It wasn't always pretty but the Penn State Nittany Lions improved to 4-0 on Saturday afternoon with a 33-14 win over the Central Michigan Chippewas. In a game that had its fair share of ups and downs for the Nittany Lions, these are the major takeaways from the win.
A hot start until it wasn't...
It originally appeared that Penn State was going to avoid the emotional early letdown against Central Michigan on Saturday. Before you could blink, the Nittany Lions were up 14-0 on the Chippewas. It looked like the rout was on and we'd be seeing three-quarters of Drew Allar.
That was at least the case until it wasn't.
After taking advantage of a Central Michigan interception that put them up 14-0,the Nittany Lions would struggle both offensively and defensviely. Central Michigan on their fourth and fifth drives of the game would put together back-to-back drives of 11 plays for 45 yards and 9 plays for 67 yards to tie the game 14-14.
It was a concerning development for Penn State in the game. While it never felt that they were truly out of control in the game, they should've never allowed a team like Central Michigan to find their way back into the game.
Sean Clifford - He was hot and he was cold...
Sean Clifford had a performance that Penn State fans have come to get used to. It started off well for the sixth-year signal caller, he was seeing the field and reading coverages well, finding his open man, and firing strikes. His first eight passes were completions all completions, then he began to struggle. While also being the victim of a few drops along the way, seven of his next nine passing attempts would fall incomplete.
While it's understandable that he wasn't able to maintain such a hot start, quite a few of his incompletions in the game came on poor throws. While none of his passes were in danger of being intercepted, on-target throws likely would've allowed several of his attempts to go for huge gains or potentially even touchdowns.
His final line of 22-of-34 for 217 and three touchdowns is a quality one but some of his poorer throws on the day definitely were one of the bigger takeaways from the game. The Nittany Lions were able to survive their second-quarter struggles against Central Michigan but will need to play a much cleaner game as their season progresses which includes Clifford being able to make several of the throws he missed on Saturday.
The middle of the field continues to be an issue for Penn State's defense
Central Michigan entered the game with one of the MAC's better offenses and they looked like it on Saturday afternoon. When the Chippewas got going, the Nittany Lions struggled to stop them through the air and on the ground.
Credit is due to the Chippewas, their offensive game plan on Saturday was all about offsetting Penn State's aggressiveness and taking advantage of their weakness in the middle of the field. Throughout the game, Central Michigan consistently targeted the middle of Penn State's defense with various crossing routes and meshes.
It's been a consistent struggle for Penn State this season defensively and that should be no surprise, it was their biggest weakness coming into the season. That being said, if they hope to have success against some of their better opponents offensively, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio State, Maryland, and Michigan State, they'll need to find answers quickly.
Nick Singleton is in fact, human. / Kaytron Allen picks up the slack
After back-to-back performances against Ohio and Auburn that put freshman running back Nick Singleton on the national stage, the Shillington (PA) had trouble getting it going on the ground against Central Michigan.
He had just 10 carries for 37 yards in the game with 27 of those 31 yards coming on one run. Kaytron Allen, however, stepped up in Singleton's place and had himself a very nice day with 11 carries for 116-yards and one touchdown. Penn State has now had three straight games in which a freshman running back has rushed for 100-yards or more. As a team, Penn State averaged 5.2 yards per carry totaling 166 yards on 32 carries.
Barney Amor is him.
Barney Amor this season has put himself in the Lou Groza Award discussion early. Through four games, Amor has had 13 of his 18 total punts this season have landed inside the opponent's 20-yard line including three of four against Central Michigan.
Place kicking remains an area of concern...
Penn State is going to find themselves in quite a few close games the remainder of the season and after Saturday's game, their place-kicking abilities remain an area of concern and a major question. While the Nittany Lions were able to have strong performances against both Purdue and Auburn in the place-kicking category, it was a struggle against Central Michigan much like it was against Ohio.
Sander Sahaydak missed a 56-yard field goal at the end of the first half that was never close while Jake Piengar was unable to connect on a 38-yard attempt late in the fourth quarter. The Nittany Lions also had an extra point attempt blocked for the second time in three weeks.
The Nittany Lions may be able to get by Northwestern without a strong kicking game but much like with the middle of the field on defense will need to find answers before heading into Ann Arbor on October 15.
A trio of smaller takeaways:
- We could spend a while talking about Penn State's offensive line but after a promising performance against Auburn, their performance against Central Michigan on Saturday was not exactly a confidence builder. While they kept the quarterbacks upright, they struggled to open up consistent holes on the ground.
- Parker Washington had a nice game and was involved early and often. He totaled six receptions for 64-yards.
- Brenton Strange continues building towards a career year with five receptions for 42 yards and two more touchdowns.
I'll have more takeaways of course tomorrow morning in my weekly Sunday morning thoughts post on the Nittany Lions' latest victory.
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