After waiting almost nine months, Nittany Lion fans are just a few hours away from seeing their boys take the field against Temple in the season opener.
Penn State will start its 129th season at Lincoln Financial Field at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday; ESPN will broadcast the game. In the 44 matchups the teams have had, Penn State has come out on top in 31 of them, including last year’s 30-13 rout of the Owls in November at Beaver Stadium.
What to Look For
The Lions will be returning seven starters from one of 2014’s best-ranked defensive lines. Senior defensive tackle Anthony Zettel, who raked in preseason honors like the Lombardi, Bednarik, Nagurski, and Outland watchlists, is headlining the campaign for defensive coach Bob Shoop.
The defensive line will get to test the waters against Temple quarterback P.J. Walker, who threw for 2,317 yards and rushed for 324 yards in 2014.
On the other side of the ball, quarterback Christian Hackenberg is ready to get the season underway and lead the other seven returning offensive starters. With a fruitful recruiting season last year, head coach James Franklin brought new talent and fresh blood to the so-called “Swiss cheese” offense of 2014. After taking a record number of sacks last year, Hackenberg’s more protective offensive line should give him the time he needs to set up the play and read the field, not run from an incoming defensive tackle.
Additionally, Hackenberg looks to continue marching up the Penn State record books this year; with just 12 completions, he will tie Matt McGloin on the all-time list, and with 1280 yards this season (he’s averaged 2966 the last two years), he will overtake Zack Mills’ school record of 7212 passing yards.
The dynamic duo of running backs Akeel Lynch, a junior, and Daesean Hamilton, a redshirt sophomore, will provide Hackenberg with the perfect targets. Lynch and Hamilton combined for more than 1500 of the team’s rushing yards last season, and if both of them can stay healthy, promise a lot more than that in 2015.
Penn State’s Second Home?
Temple announced this week that the Lincoln Financial Field was sold out for just the second time since 2003. The only other time it’s been sold out in more than 10 years was when the Nittany Lions traveled to Philadelphia in 2007.
Another piece of exciting news for fans: this will be the first game since 2012 in which the jerseys will not have players’ names on the back. Earlier this year, Franklin made the announcement that the team would be returning to the 125 year tradition of nameless uniforms. About the switch back, Franklin said:
“We are tremendously excited about the direction and the future of our program, but also we are respectful of our past, our history and our tradition. It’s an exciting time.”
In Other Nittany Lions News
• The men’s hockey team sold out of student tickets in five minutes, rivaling the eight-minute sophomore sellout of football tickets. See the hockey schedule here.
• The women’s volleyball team is fresh off of an undefeated opening weekend and is ranked number one in the nation.
• The men’s wrestling team announced its schedule and will visit some of the best wrestling teams in the nation.
• Dunkin Donuts announced that it will partner with Penn State again this year for the “Penn State Runs on Dunkin” promotion, which allows fans to get a free medium coffee after a Penn State football win at participating Dunkin Donuts stores with the free mobile app.
Photo Credit: GoPSUSports.com
