College Football
Penn State football Season Review
Penn State football started this season ranked No. 10 in the pre-season poll. This season provided some sketchy moments. Penn State football season review is underway.
Season in Review
Penn State football came into this season with the No. 5 recruiting class in the country and the second best in the Big Ten. Some recruits such as Micah Parsons and Ricky Slade saw playing time, while others such as Justin Shorter took some time to develop.
The Nittany Lions finished their season with a 9-4 mark and a 6-3 Big Ten conference record. Besides that, Penn State lost its matchup with Kentucky in the Citrus bowl; which paved the way for the Nittany Lions to fall short of three straight 10 win seasons. A nail bitter in the first home game to App State topped by two devastating losses to Ohio State and Michigan State, at home which snapped the Nittany Lions 16-game winning streak.
To top it off, going on the road to Michigan and getting eviscerated by the Wolverines, left many fans wondering: was this truly the year? The answer was quite simple: NO.
Controversial Plays
Make no mistake about it, there were some controversial plays called this year that most people (including myself) believed cost Penn State its memorable season. One in particular is the 4th & 5 running play in the late stages of the Ohio State game. The occasional late-game interception thrown by Trace McSorley, but not all was McSorley’s fault. Both Miles Sanders and Ricky Slade had their fair share of fumbles. The wide receiving corps never really came around, and one thing is for certain: the defense was trying to find its identity the entire season.
Losing Players
Coming into this season, Penn State lost a group of core talented players. Saquon Barkley, Mike Gisecki, Daesean Hamilton and Grant Haley all left for the NFL. Replacing those players wasn’t going to be easy especially Barkley.
For the first time this season Miles Sanders filled the starting role, something he has not done for two years. Juwan Johnson and Brandon Polk did fulfill the roles they were looked upon.
Unexpected Players
There were some unexpected young talents that broke out throughout the season and ended up having stellar seasons, that in some ways negated what the veterans could not do. Red-shirt freshman K.J Hamler had himself a season to remember.
Likewise, Micah Parson ended up leading the team in tackles as a freshman, and showed that his five-star rating was as surreal as it gets.
Honest Grade
This season fell short of expectations. There were three games that stuck out the most: App State, Ohio State and Michigan. The App State game should not have went in over time, and not should it have been that close. The coaching staff that game reportedly played third and fourth string linebackers late in the game.
As for the Ohio State game, Penn State found a way to blow that 17 point lead at the half. Trace McSorley carried the ball on his end for the most part but when it truly counted, Franklin took it out of his hands which cost them the most.
And then there is Michigan. This game resembled the game back in 2016. It was a much experienced Wolverines squad and a inexperienced Penn State squad. It evidently showed as Penn State was able to score a touchdown very late in the game to avoid the shutout.
Letter grade: C+.
Conclusion
This team should be better next year. However, they’re losing key players. Miles Sanders has declared for the draft, and also as well as Connor McGovern, Ryan Bates, Kevin Givens and Shareef Miller. A new face will be at quarterback whether or not that’s Tommy Stevens or Sean Clifford will remain to be seen.
There will be new faces in the secondary offensive. The line will look totally different. However, the key difference from this year to next year is this team will be young but have established experience. That’s hard to come by.
Next for Penn State football is they’ll have spring football, and this is where key position battles will take place and James Franklin will get an opportunity to see where his program is headed.
Photo Credit to Kriss Legg via Flickr
