#24 Penn State Nittany Lions vs. Purdue Boilermakers The Records: Penn State (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten); Purdue (3-4, 1-3 Big Ten). The Head Coaches: Penn State: James Franklin, third season, 43-29 overall, 19-14 at Penn State; Purdue: Gerad Parker (interim), 0-1 record while head coach at Purdue, 0-1 overall. The Game: Penn State hits the road this week to face Purdue at Ross-Ade Stadium in only the third road game of the season for the Nittany Lions. James Franklin's squad is fresh off ... Read More
Penn State set to take on Ohio State in “white-out” game
Penn State Nittany Lions vs. #2 Ohio State Buckeyes The Records: Penn State (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten); Ohio State (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten). The Head Coaches: Penn State: James Franklin, third season, 42-29 overall, 18-14 at Penn State; Ohio State: Urban Meyer, 56-4 record while head coach at Ohio State, 160-27 overall. The Game: Penn State returns to the field following its bye week with a primetime matchup against conference-rival Ohio State at Beaver Stadium on Saturday night. And for the ... Read More
Penn State enters second half of season primed to make statement
After a 49-10 dismantling at the hands of the Jim Harbaugh-led Michigan Wolverines, it looked like there might not be a bowl game in store for the Penn State Nittany Lions. But sitting at 2-2 and with talks about head coach James Franklin being on the hot seat intensifying, Penn State returned to the friendly confines of Beaver Stadium for the beginning of a three-game homestand. Up first was an undefeated Minnesota team, a team with 13 graduating seniors this season. The match-up between ... Read More
“Chaos” gives life to offense in win against Maryland
The Penn State offense picked up right where it left off last week with an 84-yard touchdown drive on the first series of the game en route to a 38-14 victory over Maryland. Up until Saturday's game, the Nittany Lions had struggled mightily in the first halves of games under head coach James Franklin. Following the victory against Minnesota, Franklin and his coaching staff instituted a “chaos” period in practices throughout the week to kick-start the offense against the Terrapins. The ... Read More
Cheers and Jeers: Barkley rushes Nittany Lions past Terrapins
The Penn State Nittany Lions scored on their first possession and never looked back as they cruised to a 38-14 victory over the undefeated Maryland Terrapins Saturday afternoon. Here are the game's “Cheers and jeers.” Cheers Dynamic duo of McSorley and Barkley— Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley and running back Saquon Barkley got the rushing game going early on as the duo combined for 221 yards in the first half alone and 435 total yards. Coming into the game, the Nittany Lions were ... Read More
Barkley leads Penn State to victory in overtime
The recipe for victory in overtime for the Penn State Nittany Lions was simple: a single shot of Saquon Barkley and a 25-yard rush to the end zone for six points. Barkley had 38-yards on the ground through four quarters of football early Saturday evening, but his 25-yard touchdown on Penn State's first play in overtime gave the Nittany Lions the score they needed to beat the Minnesota Golden Gophers 29-26. “I think this is something our players needed. Everybody needed,” said head coach ... Read More
Penn State heads to Big House to take on No. 4 Michigan
Penn State Nittany Lions vs. No. 4 Michigan Wolverines The Records: Penn State (2-1, 0-0 Big Ten); Michigan (3-0, 0-0 Big Ten). The Coaches: Penn State: James Franklin, third season, 40-28 overall, 16-13 at Penn State; Michigan: Jim Harbaugh, second season, 71-30 overall, 13-3 at Michigan. The Game: Penn State heads to Michigan to begin Big Ten conference play to the tune of nine-straight games against Big Ten foes. The Nittany Lions enter the game at 2-1 on the season, while Jim ... Read More
Next-man-up mindset helps push Penn State over Temple
Depth has been a recurring issue for the Penn State Nittany Lions football in each of James Franklin's first two seasons at the helm. This year, in Saturday afternoon's game, the Nittany Lions overcame losing four defensive starters to defeat Temple 34-27 at Beaver Stadium. “At one point, we had seven starters out on defense,” Franklin said of his depleted defense. “I love how the defense handled it. It was next-man-up. Very proud of that.” Next-man-up: Defense The next-man-up mantra ... Read More
Nittany Lions welcome Temple to Beaver Stadium
Temple Owls vs. Penn State Nittany Lions The Records: Penn State (1-1, 0-0 Big Ten); Temple (1-1, 0-0 AAC). The Coaches: Penn State: James Franklin, third season, 39-28 overall, 15-13 at Penn State; Temple: Matt Rhule, fourth season, 19-21 overall, 19-21 at Temple The Game: Penn State returns home to the friendly confines of Beaver Stadium after an agonizing loss to arch-rival Pittsburgh last Saturday. The Nittany Lions nearly came back from a three touchdown deficit, only to throw an ... Read More
Penn State heads to Pittsburgh for the Keystone Classic
Penn State Nittany Lions vs. Pittsburgh Panthers The Records: Penn State (1-0, 0-0 Big Ten); Pitt (1-0, 0-0 ACC). The Coaches: Penn State: James Franklin, third season, 39-27 overall, 15-12 at Penn State; Pitt: Pat Narduzzi, second season, 9-5 overall, 9-5 at Pitt. The Game: For the first time in 16 years, Penn State and Pitt will battle on the gridiron. The last time these in-state rivals played, Rod Rutherford quarterbacked the Panthers to a 12-0 victory at Three Rivers ... Read More