Newsstand: Bret Bielema discusses Saturday's game against Penn State
Good morning, Penn State fans.
Following last weekend’s 63-7 win over Delaware, it’s time for the Nittany Lions to turn the page to Big Ten play, as James Franklin and his team will travel to Champaign this upcoming week for an 11 a.m. local time start against Illinois.
Ahead of Franklin’s weekly press conference later today, we take a closer look at what Illinois head coach Bret Bielema and his coordinators had to say on Monday.
Tweets of the Day
Illinois came into the 2023 season as a darkhorse contender to win the Big Ten West following an eight-win season in 2022. That’s still in play, but if the Illini are going to take that next step, it’ll require a much better effort than we saw this past weekend, as Illinois lost to Kansas Friday night, 34-23.
The Fighting Illini, who ranked top three in the Big Ten last year in both rushing and pass defense, allowed the Jayhawks to rack up 539 yards this past weekend, including an eye-catching 262 yards rushing.
Even in its season-opening win against Toledo two weeks ago, the Rockets outgained Illinois 416 to 374. Now set to face Drew Allar, Nick Singleton, Kaytron Allen, KeAndre Lambert-Smith and many others, Bielema said the overall depth of Penn State will likely present a challenge.
“One of the trademarks of James’ teams is they play a lot of skill [players],” Bielema said. “They’re deep. They do a tremendous job in recruiting and they’re allowed to do things there at Penn State that allow them to get a lot of skill players in the program. It seems like as soon as you have one leave, another one stands up right behind him. That’s the thing about Penn State. The volume of skill that can be on the field and be fresh is a challenge.”
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Illinois defensive coordinator Aaron Henry was also asked to give his thoughts on the Nittany Lions.
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“They’re really, really good. They’re really talented,” Henry said. “They do what they do, and I think they do it really well. The quarterback, Allar, I mean, he has a beautiful arm. He’s long, he’s pretty. He’s pretty athletic and moves extremely well in the pocket. They got two running backs that I believe could start anywhere in the country. They’re very physical downhill runners. They pride themselves on running the ball.
“They have a couple tight ends who I think are physical at the point of attack. They’re like extensions of their O-line. They line ’em up outside, they line ’em up inside, they line up in the backfield. You have a receiving corps who may not have the Penn State names, theoretically, the first-round draft pick, but those guys bust their butts. They can get open, they have great hands. I think they do a really good job down the field of being in [rhythm] and catching the ball at its high point when they are throwing the ball, and they’re tremendous, tremendous run blockers. They take a lot of pride in that. So, I think [Penn State] has a really good offense.”
Fans can watch Henry, Bielema and offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr.’s Monday press conferences below.
Penn State Headlines
T-Frank’s Film Room: Penn State offense bullies Delaware
PSU-Illinois X factors: Lions ‘D’ preparing for a legit dual-threat QB and more: Flounders, PennLive
Penn State off to a strong start with Georgia tight end Logan Brooking: Snyder. BWI
Penn State-Delaware final thoughts: Drew Allar’s day, true freshman tracker: McGonigal, PennLive
What have we learned about the Penn State defense so far?: Bauer, BWI
What have we learned about the Penn State offense through two weeks?: Pickel, BWI
Penn State football looks primed to start Big Ten play: Scarcella, Reading Eagle
Quote of the Day
“I have no set top 10 or anything like that at the moment, but I would say that Penn State is definitely up there right now, probably among my top five or maybe top three at the moment. Everything I’ve learned about them and have seen so far, I really like.” – 2025 TE Logan Brooking
