The Penn State Nittany Lions (7-1, 4-1) will look to get back on the winning track tomorrow night when they host the Washington Huskies (5-4, 3-3) in their annual White Out matchup. Last weekend, the Nittany Lions fell for the first time in a 20-13 loss to No. 4 Ohio State while Washington pulled out a 26-21 win over USC.
Below, Happy Valley Insider offers three keys to victory for Penn State.
1. Finding a way to establish the rushing attack
The Penn State rushing attack hasn't been the same since entering the heart of Big Ten play. Part of that is due to the level of the competition, part of that is likely due to Nicholas Singleton still not appearing to be 100%. That being said, being able to establish the run game makes life a whole lot easier for the Nittany Lions. It's not a coincidence that the Nittany Lions last three games have been their toughest and most competitive games this season, in part due to the rushing attack struggles. The Nittany Lions are only averaging 137 yards per carry over their last three games.
Washington's rush defense this season is solid but nothing spectacular, they're allowing 150.8 yards per game and 4.3 yards per carry this season. In three of their four losses this season, the Huskies have allowed 175+ rushing yards. When keeping opponents under 175 yards, the Huskies are 5-1 including wins over USC and Michigan.
2. Winning the third down, fourth down, and redzone battles
When you look at the numbers overall, this Washington team on paper appears to be much better than its 5-4 record would indicate. That being said, the one spot that the Huskies have absolutely struggled this season on offense is when it comes to third down and fourth down as well as in the red zone.
The Huskies this season are only converting 36.08% of all third down attempts, one of the worst conversion rates in the country. Their fourth down conversion rate is also among the country's worst at 44.44%. Finishing off drives has been a struggle all season for Washington, their 77.42% red zone conversion rate ranks 111th nationally.
The good news for Penn State is that their defense has been among the best in the country at getting off the field on third down (33.95%) and in the red zone, allowing opponents to convert just 72.22% of the time, ranking 14th nationally.
Offensively, the Nittany Lions have been strong in each category as well. Despite struggles to stay ahead of the sticks last weekend, the Nittany Lions have still converted on over 47% of all third down attempts this season and 62% of their fourth down conversions. The Nittany Lions struggled in the redzone last weekend with just three points on three trips but overall have been quality in the red zone this season, converting on 87.8% of trips inside the opponents 20-yard line.
Notably, while Washington's defense is about average nationally when it comes to getting off the field on third and fourth down, they are among the nation's elite in stopping opponents from converting in the red zone, allowing just 73.9% of all redzone trips to result in scores.
3. Get off to a fast start
Slow starts have plagued Penn State's offense this season. Through eight games, the Nittany Lions are only averaging 4.3 points per game in the first quarter which is tied for 89th best in the country. Of course, the Nittany Lions did jump out to a 10-0 lead against Ohio State last weekend and it was all for not in their 20-13 defeat.
That being said, the Penn State faithful are coming into this weekend's game a bit deflated after last weekend's loss to Ohio State and the excitement for this White Out appears to be a bit behind that of previous seasons due to the loss. Getting off to a fast start on Saturday and getting the crowd into the game early could be a big boost for the Nittany Lions who after the loss could use some strong momentum themselves as they look to finish off the regular season strong.
--------------------------------------------------------------
• Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
