On Saturday, Bill O’Brien will lead his team out of the tunnels at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. to begin his second year as head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions. But don’t expect this year to be any easier than year one for O’Brien.
Once again Penn State will be playing for pride, as they are in the midst of serving a four-game bowl ban among other penalties that were brought down on the football program last year in the wake of the child sex abuse scandal involving the former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.
That didn’t stop O’Brien and the program from finishing off an impressive 8-4 season last year. But there are more question marks with this team, starting with who is going to be the starting quarterback in six days when they take the field for the first time.
Position Battles
Quarterback
After standout Matt McGloin graduated last year, the position was up for grabs and have come down to two candidates. Sophomore Tyler Ferguson and true freshman Christian Hackenberg are both listed as No. 1 on the most recent depth chart. Ferguson, a junior college transfer, threw for 2,614 yards and 22 touchdowns in 10 games for the College of the Sequoias last season, completing 55 percent of his passes.
Hackenberg, who played high school at Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia, accumulated 5, 473 yards and 55 touchdowns in three seasons and completed 51.8 percent of his passes.
Right Tackle
Junior Garry Giliam and senior Adam Gress are currently sharing the No. 1 spot at right tackle entering Saturday’s season opener.
Safety
The Nittany Lions already have one safety position filled with the return of Adrian Amos. Amos was second on the team last year with two interceptions to go along with 44 tackles (31 solo). Lining up next to Amos will either be senior Malcolm Willis or junior Ryan Keiser. Willis had 45 tackles last year compared to Keiser’s five. Both played in all 12 games last year.
Wide Receiver
Junior Allen Robinson and senior Brandon Felder are back as the starting receivers listed on the depth chart, but look for contributions from a host of players. Robinson led the team last year with 77 receptions for 1,013 yards and 11 touchdowns. Joining Robinson and Felder will be
redshirt freshman Eugene Lewis, junior Alex Kenney, sophomore Matt Zanellato and true freshman Richy Anderson.
Key Returners
The number one player returning on offense is without a doubt junior running back Zach Zwinak. In 203 carries last year, Zwinak rushed for 1007 yards and six touchdowns. He also had one receiving touchdown. Joining Zwinak in the backfield are fellow junior Bill Belton and redshirt freshman Akeel Lynch. Belton rushed for three touchdowns last year. Senior Pat Zerbe will serve as the fullback.
Penn State will also have numerous returning starters in the defensive front seven as well as the offensive line.
Senior DaQuan Jones will lead the defensive line at the tackle position. Jones has 22 tackles, including two for losses and a fumble recovery last year. Joining Jones on the line will be 2012 Big 10 Freshman of the Year Deion Barnes and junior C.J. Olanyian.
Senior Glenn Carson will man the middle the defense at middle linebacker. Carson was third on the team last year with 85 tackles. Junior Mike Hull, 59 tackles and one interception will join Carson at linebacker as well as redshirt freshman Nyeem Wartman.
Sophomores Trevor Williams and Jordan Lucas have earned the starting nods at the cornerback position.
On the offensive line, seniors Ty Howle (center) and John Urschel (right guard) will anchor the unit, which also features returnees Miles Dieffenbach (left guard) and Donovan Smith (right tackle).
The Nittany Lions will dress four tight ends including returning sophomore Jesse James, senior Matt Lehman and sophomore Kyle Carter. Carter led the tight end group with 453 yards but Lehman found the end zone three times, the most out of the group. True freshman Adam Breneman joins the tight end group for 2013.
Junior Sam Ficken will kick, while senior Alex Butterworth will handle the punting duties. Howle is the kick snapper and Carson is the punt snapper.
Key Matchup
The national spotlight will be focused on Penn State at Ohio State on Oct. 26. The Buckeyes, ranked No. 2 in both the AP and ESPN Preseason Polls, are favored to win the Big 10. Penn State lost to the Buckeyes last year 35-23.
Schedule
8/31 vs. Syracuse (MetLife Stadium) 3:30 p.m. ABC/ESPN2
9/7 vs. Eastern Michigan 12 p.m. Big Ten Network
9/14 vs. UCF 6 p.m. Big Ten Network
9/21 vs. Kent State TBD
10/5 at Indiana TBD
10/12 vs. Michigan 5 p.m. (Homecoming) ESPN/EPSN2/Watch ESPN
10/26 at Ohio State 8 p.m. ABC/ESPN/ESPN2
11/2 vs. Illinois TBD
11/9 at Minnesota TBD
11/16 vs. Purdue TBD
11/23 vs. Nebraska TBD
11/30 at Wisconsin
