The Penn State Nittany Lions (4-4, 1-3 Big Ten) will travel to Bloomington to take on the Indiana Hoosiers (3-5, 0-4 Big Ten) on Saturday for the second year in a row.
Penn State is seeking redemption after narrowly losing 20-19 to Maryland last week and will look to kicker Sam Ficken and quarterback Christian Hackenberg to lead the offense. Ficken has connected on 17 of his 19 attempts this season, including three from behind the 45-yard line. Ficken is the first player from Penn State to achieve that since 1982 and has become a staple on the weak offense. Despite his recent setbacks, Hackenberg still leads the conference in passing, throwing 254.8 yards per game and is just seven yards short of being the eighth quarterback with 5,000 passing yards.
The Penn State defense continues to keep the team afloat. The Nittany Lions are ranked first in the nation in rushing defense with 76.9 yards per game, third in the nation in total defense at 273.4 yards per game, and ninth in scoring defense with 17.8 points per game. Linebacker Mike Hull, who was recently recognized as a Bednarik watchlist candidate, is listed as seventh in the nation with 11.5 tackles per game, a team best.
The Hoosiers fell to Michigan last week 34-10 and are looking for a chance to break their three-game losing streak. Indiana will look to junior running back Tevin Coleman, who is arguably the nation’s most dynamic rusher, leading the country in rushing yards with 162.5 yards per game. To put that number in perspective, the Hoosiers average 274.5 rushing yards per game. Coleman is also first nationally in yards per carry with 8.02 yards and has scored six touchdowns this year. Penn State must contain Coleman if they hope to win.
Indiana’s defense is led by senior safety Antonio Allen, sophomore linebacker T.J. Simmons, and senior cornerback Tim Bennett, who have combined for 135 tackles on the year. Bennett ranks fourth in the Big Ten with nine pass breakups. However, Indiana’s defense allows an average of 446.0 yards per game this season.
In the 17 match-ups between the two universities since Penn State’s entrance to the Big Ten in 1993, the Nittany Lions have won 16 times, making the Hoosiers the Lions’ second most-played opponent since joining the conference (tied with Michigan State).
Kickoff is at Memorial Stadium at noon on Saturday; the game will be broadcasted on the Big Ten Network.
Photo credit: OnwardState.com
