The Penn State Nittany Lions get their “tune-up” game this weekend like the rest of the Power 5. After a season-opener against former foe West Virginia, a win 38-15, Penn State hosts Delaware on Saturday. The Blue Hens opened their 2023 season with a 37-13 win against Stoneybrook last weekend. This will be a good game for the Nittany Lions to work out some of the things that need tweaked and were exploited against the Mountaineers a week ago. Penn State vs. Delaware will kick off at noon ET on Peacock.
Penn State Can’t Take Delaware Lightly
Nittany Lion fans are half excited and half dreading this football game on Saturday. Excited because it’s another day in Beaver Stadium watching Penn State football. Dreading it because some fans do not like it when Power 5 schools play those from the FCS level. However, Delaware is coming off of a very successful 2022 season. The Blue Hens upset Navy last season, in a game those fans likely didn’t take seriously and then went on to finish the season 8-5. This record was good enough to get Delaware into the FCS Playoffs. Needless to say, Delaware will come into this game prepared. Penn State needs to do the same.
Nittany Lion Offense Tweaks
The Penn State offense faired very well against the Mountaineers in its week one match-up. Sophomore quarterback Drew Allar looked the part under center and silenced any doubters. We predicted that Allar would lean on his running backs early and often in this contest as he got his feet wet and he did use Penn State’s running back duo, but he also went 21-of-29, threw the ball for 325 yards, and three touchdowns. He commanded the offense well, but there are always things that can be fixed. There were two near interceptions, that better defenses likely would have come away with. And the Nittany Lions struggled to score in the red zone. Leading to two missed field goal attempts. Which will be addressed further down. Those are two things that can be worked on this week against Delaware.
First, the near interceptions. This Delaware defense will be a good test for Allar and the receivers. It may have lost nine starters from the 2022 campaign, but the Blue Hens came away with three interceptions last week against Stoneybrook. One of which was a pick-six. Ty Davis, Tyron Herring, and Christian Pierce are all members of the defense that Allar will have to account for this Saturday. In addition to close calls through the air, Penn State needs to find an answer for the red zone struggle. That might fix itself as Mike Yurchich opens the playbook in the coming weeks, but the Nittany Lions need to capitalize this weekend against a Delaware squad that is hoping to keep the score within reach.
Penn State Kicking Issues
Head Coach James Franklin benched starting kicker Sander Sahaydak after he missed two first-half field goals against West Virginia. The sophomore won the starting job over the Summer but was ultimately replaced by Columbia transfer Alex Felkins. Felkins was only called upon to kick one field goal in the second half and made that short attempt. In his weekly press conference this week, Franklin stated that the sophomore Sahaydak apologized to his teammates and took accountability for his performance on Saturday. This is something that is very commendable.
The game wasn’t in danger when he missed these field goals, but it could be as the season progresses. With a tough Big Ten schedule the game often comes down to a field goal. Franklin further stated that the competition was very close throughout the Summer and once Sahayadak missed the second attempt at only 34 yards, it was time to move to the second guy. Watch for who comes out for the first attempt this week.
Penn State Defense Against Delaware
The West Virginia offense rushed for 146 yards on 40 attempts in the opener. This is something that the Nittany Lion defense will have to limit against Delaware on Saturday. The Mountaineer run game is what allowed them to stay in the game in the first half. West Virginia ended the day with 308 total yards of offense. The Penn State linebackers and inside defensive line need to close those running lanes earlier in the game and force opposing offenses to throw the ball. The Penn State secondary is solid, Garrett Greene completed only 16 passes last weekend on 27 attempts. Last week, Delaware’s starting quarterback Ryan O’Connor threw for 346 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. If Penn State can force O’Connor to throw the ball, look for several takeaways from the Penn State defense.
Photo courtesy: Matthew O’Haren-USA TODAY Sports
