Drew Allar is sitting on a 'breakout performance,' Ryan Day talks Penn State: Newsstand
Penn State news, notes, and updates for Oct. 18 include opposing coaches talking about the Lions, including Ohio State’s Ryan Day, and more.
It’s time to dive into Wednesday’s top tweets and headlines about the Nittany Lions and college athletics.
Penn State tweets of the day
We start with a look at this weekend’s top-10 matchup between the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes. The Athletic spoke to numerous anonymous college football coaches to get a read on the game. One of them believes Penn State quarterback Drew Allar is sitting on an big game.
“He’s sitting on a breakout performance, it’s just a matter of when it’s going to happen,” a head coach who faced the Lions earlier this year said. “He’s played really solid. Sometimes people think solid means not good enough, but no, that team is built on running the football and defense, and he’s playing winning football. That’s who they are.”
He added:
“Their defensive ends, they have three that are elite P5 players, and they may have the best collective group of linebackers in the country. They have two NFL Draft picks at corner who can play man; one’s a first rounder, the other is probably a third- or fourth-rounder. Their third-down package is good, but they don’t have to do anything crazy. (Defensive coordinator Manny Diaz) likes to be creative, but they don’t have to do a ton to get to the quarterback.”
“They rush the passer well, they’re athletic — it just seemed like they were everywhere,” added an assistant coach who faced the Nittany Lions.”
In other news, Buckeyes coach Ryan Day held his first news conference of game week on Tuesday. He was not yet ready to say if various injured Ohio State players would be back in action. But, he did praise the Lions’ defense.
“They’re a very very good defense,” Day said, according to Eleven Warriors. “These guys have played before and some veteran guys on that side of the ball.”
Headlines of the day
Ohio State football’s defensive linemen keep punishing Penn State for passing over their coach: Baird, Cleveland.com
Will Penn State corner Kalen King shadow Marvin Harrison Jr.?: Carr, BWI
Ryan Day stays quiet on injuries, ‘hopeful’ Buckeyes will be healthy against Penn State: Holbrook, Lettermen Row
James Franklin notebook: Drew Allar, Ohio State approach, more: Bauer, BWI
Former Penn State QB Trace McSorley signs with the Chicago Bears: report: McGonigal, PennLive
Trimmings: Penn State’s Three Things vs. Ohio State: Fitz, BWI
For Keaton Ellis, Beating Ohio State Is Something He Has Seen, but for Many It’s a Memory to Renew: Jones, Statecollege.com
Quote of the day
“Every quarterback wants to throw the corner route or the go route or the post. I mean, who is throwing checkdowns in their backyard, right? So that’s why I got so uncomfortable and upset last week. It was just so foreign. Here we got a young kid who is starting for the first time. And we can call those plays and he’ll take the check down. To me, he’s doing a really good job of keeping the main thing the main thing. Which is protecting the football, trying to create explosive plays when they’re there, but not forcing them.”
—PSU coach James Franklin on Lions’ quarterback Drew Allar.
